Discouragement Strikes

Just when I feel like I have my shit together and things are happy, discouragement strikes. It's not the kind with an identifiable source, the kind that can be remedied by accomplishing (or starting work towards) a goal, or by ice cream or a hug. Well, maybe a hug would go a long way.

It may simply be the the melange of chemicals (all of them natural, except for the caffeine) coursing through my brain. What can I say? I'm not the most even-keeled person, but I think I'm definitely thoughtful enough to be reasonable about it!

Last night's practice was different. It consisted of a lot of stretching, more plyometrics, some forms (Plum Blossom A and B, and 8 basic deflections) and then about 1.5 hours of groundwork. When you're on the ground and have to defend (or attack!), never allow yourself to flip or be flipped onto your back or stomach, because it's all over when you can be easily pinned down. Most of the evening involved a lot of grappling, flailing and tackling, and being a smaller-than-average human, some of the situations I found myself in were pretty funny to my fellow students. At one point, I had successfully tackled M, but she was strong and big enough that I could have all of my weight bearing down on her and she could still get up and exit the arena (with me clinging to her!). I wasn't being unwieldy enough to really keep her down. I was so beat that I fell asleep around 9:30 PM.

Meh.