[Navzrrqt]

Sorry, just wanted to share the story of my getting tsukid for the first time (sounds like a 'Baby's First...' book).

Had my first training session in bogu last night (yay for me! damn, I was crap) but anyway, I had, only the day before, recovered from a throat infection and my hearing isn't good at the best of times. So, with the men on I could barely hear anything at all. It comes to keiko (I'm not receiving, obviously) and I get paired up with my best friend. I'm exhausted, still feeling very nervous about the whole bogu thing etc. Anyway, sensei motioned to the motodachi to stop after a while so we go into chudan and stand there for a while whilst the seniors are still going. Then my friend nods to me. I'm feeling a fair bit fuddled and because in the past, whenever he's been motodachi for me, he's nodded as a way of saying "c'mon, attack, what are you waiting for?" so I go I think to myself "oh, we're not meant to finish?" and launch into a men strike and bang! go bouncing back from his tensen. Certainly surprised both of us. What was embarrassing was we were right in front of where all the beginners, including a few of my friends, were watching. Turns out he'd said "well done" and nodded to me but I couldn't hear him!

So my first tsuki was impaling myself on my friend's shinai and I discovered it doesn't hurt!