Big hammer? An attempt at a one strike pin removal?

Or just a severe lack of "take your time, go slow, check often?
Maybe the flip flops should have been OD green?
Funny, sometimes, how easy it is to get twisted up in something and find it so difficult to extract from it once you realize what a mess you're in (or have made.)
Then again, it's usually not funny if it's your pistol, your punch and your flip flops.