Stuff and things...

[minxy]

Hi guys,

So I've been writing, right? But due to a stupid writing brain thing, for whatever reason, I'm not really finishing anything. I wrote 3 out of 5 things for an sg1_five_things prompt, which I still feel like I could have, you know, *finished* if I could have held my focus a little longer. (I posted in the comm, but may still try to write the last two things before I post here)

The other two fics I've been on about for the past, oh, forever? Reader, I have beta comments on them. The Sam and Teal'c AND the Teal'c and Daniel. Beta comments! Thinky, helpful, 'I R thought about this for you!' beta comments.

I can't seem to do much about them. I suspect this is related to my next point.

I have had a mild probably-migraine headache, on-and-off (by that I mean daily pain, but not always constant pain, and hard for me to identify as a migraine) for two weeks. The weather, I believe, is playing haywire with my stupid brain since it seems to be changing here every 12 or so hours. Because the pain was more or less the only symptom at first, I generally ignored it and made it through my workouts and experiments and days and whatnot, occasionally taking OTC stuff if they were handy.

But generally tried not to pay too much attention; it just encourages them. The headache gremlins, I mean.

This whole 'ignored it' thing has variously been described as 'macho' and 'stoic', when really it is 'lazy'. Who can remember to take meds every four hours for weeks? Pain in the ass. And the head. Just sort of breathe through it if it really pulses one side of your head or another and, you know, get on with things, that's my motto.

After a week of that crap, it caught up with me in ridiculous sleeping patterns (meaning a lot of sleeping, a *lot*), messed up muscles, knots, tension and inability to focus, right? Trust me, it did. Only it was Thanksgiving and I didn't have a lot of time to come up with a new plan (because I was enjoying myself and freakishly hot weather), so getting through all the food and drink and probable dehydration saw me through to yesterday where I developed fun side effect migraine symptoms like nausea and light sensitivity. Still mild, but distinct; it's the persistance of this that's going to be the death of me, frankly.

So I took my migraine medication.

You might think that this would have occurred to me at some point before Sunday, but you would have been wrong. It's expensive, right? And I'm used to migraines that are kind of unmistakable (in the sense that you can't see, until you can but you have tunnel vision, or aura, or are going to fall over if you could move that fast, and dear God please avoid all light, smells and sounds for the duration and unconscious would be so much better-- you see how it's not about pain? It's not so much about the pain for me, usually. It's also usually over in 24 hours, but apparently in California all bets are off.)

So, today I: took a second day of migraine medication, and also quite mindfully over-hydrated liek whoa. Because it sometimes helps, I also took a pseudoephedrine to try and disconnect myself from nature, so to speak.

I also made and kept an appointment with a masseur. This guy is trained in cranio-sacral work, acupuncture and massage, and used what is apparently an integrative approach with me.

[side note about how fandom rocks my world: I was chatting with synecdochic over aim, mostly to gush at her because I'd been rereading Take These Broken Wings (the Cam she has there, dealing with chronic pain, he was really speaking to me) and wanted to thank her. I got to the bit about how I was about at the end of my rope with self-medicating and ready to find a chiropractor or something, and five *seconds* later, she's found me this masseur in my town: accredited, specialized and easy to contact. Because of you, I feel better; thank you.]

I have no idea why that worked, that light touch pressure-point stuff. I was way too stoned to do much more than follow what he was saying in the moment (release the hip because it's rotated forward on the right? okay. YES, YES THAT POINT IS TENDER WOW.) I was open to, Gods, anything, but much more familiar with traditional deep tissue sports massage. I am not questioning the pressure points at all, to be clear, except I am, in a wondering sort of scientisty way.

Now that I can stand upright, though, and it really helped the tension in my neck and I feel like I can breathe deeply for the first time in a while and the nausea feels better too for whatever reason... I'm kind of much more keenly aware of all the other specific things that feel off. Like the lingering dizziness and slowness (migraine), oddly sore muscles in my shoulder blades (probably tension), soreness in my sinuses (what the hell is that about, anyway), nausea (migraine), light sensitivity (yes) and dear God fatigue (migraine too.) Before I just felt bad, you know, without the ability to pin it down to specifics.

I did all this today to try to break the cycle I seem to be stuck in. I hope to hell it works.

I feel so much better, except I'm now aware of how extremely not 100% I am.

Stupid brain.

Anyway, have a recs list, yes? Okay, that was a dumb segway, but in another fabulous holiday chat session, rydra_wong commented that it seemed like some of us on this side of the pond were clearly going to need some therapeutic porn to read to recover from our Thanksgiving holidays.

My housemates inability to cook without blaring Journey and various sundry 80's hair bands at house-vibrating decibels prompted this comment. That's a long story, though.

So, in my head, you see, this made sense as a segway. It was Thanksgiving! Let us be thankful for these stories:

Have Snake, Will Travel (the Director's Cut) from M (samdonne). This? This is neither porn nor particularly happy, but it is (as M's work is wont to be) extraordinary. The voices in this, the *voices* are incredible: from the arrogance and evil of the snake, to the pain, hysteria and long-suffering restriction of Sarah, to Daniel, beautiful, breaking, snake-baiting Daniel. Loyal to the end. Because what if Jack hadn't come through with a tranquilizer in time? What if Osiris, at the end of Chimera, blew up a van and took Daniel as a hostage? It's an incredible road-trip, let me tell you. R rated for violence. Sarah/Osiris, Daniel, S7 ep Chimera.

For something completely different, the one where Daniel turns into a cat (for SGA is not the only cracky fandom, no it is not): The Metamorphosis by fyere. Gen, cracky, worksafe and funny. I love when they get carried away.

Speaking of carried away, ivorygates and synecdochic announced one day that they intended to faff around and write commentfic to prompts. It was a good day, my friends. Everything from gen to slash to genderbending to aus... the works.

Speaking of ivorygates (and synecdochic) who, thankfully, usually use their powers for good: a sequel to their Abydan AU where Daniel, Jack and Daniel's feminine side Danielle all live in Abydan society, with coincident rank and language and name derivations and pronuciations and customs. This is Veil, this is the cementing of the relationships between Jack's character and the Daniel's; because ancient Egypt, and Abydos by exension, would have had no trouble with an extramarital homosexual relationships... but it's quite something to see it played out. And the language is kind of addictive. Links to the earlier fic at the top. NC-17, slash and poly, AU SG-1, Daniel and Jack.

And... yes, I believe this is the promised therapy porn, should anyone else have been blindsided by hair-bands during their migraines Thanksgiving: a birthday fic for mmmchelle from thegrrl2002. Naked, and now isn't that a promising title? NC-17, John/Rodney, SGA.

And, aw, I loved this one: early seasons SG-1! Like, season 1 SG-1, on a team night out and it's just funny and sweet and quirky and good: Assimilation, gen, SG-1, good stuff from moonshayde.

Speaking of brilliant gen work, abyssinia4077's Please Hang Up And Try Again, or five phone calls Daniel never got. It's really ouchy and wonderful and full of reunions and loss and surprises. Lovely. PG, gen, SG-1, spoilers off and on for most of the series.

There's also the brilliantly, mostly gen, creepy zombie-like fic from surrealis. Now, normally one might not associate Jenn with SGA, but it really works here, in a dark and creepifying way. Sistinas, SGA season 1, John &/ Rodney, PG-13.

Finally, a little more smut: John/Rodney, some fantastic fanfic cliches used to spectacular effect. Transference, from semivowel, NC-17, SGA. I'm so watching this author.

And in conclusion, I would like to ask: where is all the smut, SG-1 type people? I mean, I know I've been hit over the head repeatedly with the gen stick lately, but that's no excuse for all of us! We can't have all been collectively hypnotized by Unending, or something, right?

Comments

[synecdochic]

Oh, I'm so glad that the massage therapist helped -- seriously, it was no trouble at all to find you one, and I am a firm believer in the healing powers of massage. (And sometimes it's just nice to be touched, you know?) Go back to him in two weeks if you can afford it (or absolutely in a month). Immediate corrective work should be followed up with a followup visit.

(If my hands hadn't crapped out on me at age twenty, I'd be doing bodywork; I was contemplating entering school for it when the hands really started acting up. Sigh.)

In the meantime, to knock out the last lingering bits of the migraine, you should be taking 20-minute hot showers twice a day, letting the water (as hot as you can stand it) fall on your shoulders and neck; drinking as much water as you can stand (if you're not peeing every half an hour at least, you're not drinking enough water), taking two Aleve every morning and every night with a cup of coffee or other caffeinated beverage, get an extra hour of sleep if you can manage it, and keep taking the allergy drugs.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I am generally kind of touch starved. I'm not even particularly tactile, but I generally save it all up for one or two people I actually touch, and I don't have many people in my life in this new city here like that.

It's amazing to me how different I feel today--still sore in my hip and shoulder, where he did a lot of pressure and release work, but I feel much much stronger. The absence of some of the symptoms I was feeling that made me so cloudy, though, has uncovered a plethora of issues around my sinuses.

I'm deeply grateful that I can now pinpoint the sources of some symptoms, but the location in my sinuses alarms me. I'm well-rested enough today, though, to actually consider everything going on and create a plan of attack (mostly involving water, pseudoephedrine, sleep and hot showers) to keep myself from any more unpleasant illness.

I love your prescription, though. I shall attempt to follow it to the letter (who says doctors make the worst patients? Except we totally do) I wish my shower could facilitate a good long soak, though. That would so totally rock.

And thank you. Perfectly timed little push there, and your instincts were bang on. Long distance treatment ftw!

[synecdochic]

Pick up a bottle of nasal irrigation solution -- one without the benzalkonium sodium, which is a preservative that actually dries out the nasal membranes -- and use it. When Sarah started doing that, a lot of her sinus problems started disappearing. The hot showers will also help for that -- and you can also boil a pot of water on the stove for half an hour in the evenings to put some moisture back in the air of your apartment, which is a common reason for sinus problems.

Have you considered yoga? Twenty minutes of gentle yoga three times a week can do a lot to improve the overall functioning of your body, which will help to get everything in better shape.

Oh! And you can self-massage for a lot of sinus problems:

-- place the tips of your index & middle fingers along your cheekbones just next to your nose and rub gentle circles moving towards your nose

-- place the tips of your middle fingers along the side of your nose just where the cartilage ends and stroke downward along your nose (not back up again, just down -- it gets things flowing)

-- stroke along your forehead, just above your eyebrows, out to the temples

Be prepared to have to blow your nose like whoa afterwards, but ten minutes of doing that will help a lot.

(I am full of little things you can do to take care of your body, man. I have learned all the tricks.)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Wierd thing about the sinus pain is that it's just pain (not swelling, not congestion) and it's coming and going (I suspect with the weather). All the nifty massage tips felt good in as far as it always feels good to apply pressure to tender points and ease up, but I'm not congested in any way. No discharge, nuthin'.

The migraine pain, however, is back. And temperature disregulation etc. SUCK.

Yogiastic mindful breathing is serving me well at the moment when the pain throbs up and makes me stop what I'm doing. I usually, though, get extremely bored in yoga classes in general (there are many here, and expensive--no free classes at my gym, no sir!) The breathing may be doing double duty helping my sinuses equilibrate to changing pressures within and without. Let's hope.

Will try the salt spray, though. And will see a new doctor a week from Thursday.

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

*hugs* and I hope today is a better one.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Infinitely better. Still a little broken, but I can actually cope today, which is quite something.

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

Good. Coping is a something I'm striving for this week as well. ;)

[splash-the-cat.livejournal.com]

This guy is trained in cranio-sacral work

Man, if I could afford cranio-sacral work on a regular basis, I would be such a happier person. My friend's aunt does it, so I get the occasional session on the cheap, but she lives three hours away, and the going rates locally make it a rare treat, not a viable solution.

And in conclusion, I would like to ask: where is all the smut, SG-1 type people?

I think the Pornucopia porned everyone out. :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I've said for a long time that massage is something I'd really like to have be a part of my regular routine when I can afford it. I can't really afford it, but it's a mark of how much I needed the work done that I didn't even ask my masseur guy what his rates were until I stood up from the table feeling better.

I really should be wallowing in the pornucopia fics, then, I'm thinking? Mmmmmmmmmm, pornucopia.....

[abyssinia4077.livejournal.com]

Ugh. *kicks your migraine into submission* It should go away and leave you alone now!
(and I so, so understand how sometimes it's harder to take the pills than to just pretend it'll go away)

And, aw! I liked the three of your five things and I will tap my fingers expectantly waiting for the Sam&Teal'c story to show up in my inbox for a more thorough beta because I really did like it, even if I got nitpicky. It was such a cool idea!

And, ooh, how did I miss that Samdonne story? *hangs head in shame*

Thank you for the rec!

where is all the smut, SG-1 type people?
I think I doubled my amount of smut-I've-written for the Pornucopia. I'm totally drained. But did you look there? There is A LOT!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Betas are supposed to be nitpicky, that's what beta is *for*.

I think a couple of adjustments need to be made to the structure, and any time I go back and add scenes I really have to think about it a lot (I'm an analytical writer, I write from start to finish. It becomes a problem if I'm less than thorough about sorting out all the details in my head beforehand, like that story. I think it's still workable, though.)

Thank God for the Pornucopia, is all I'm sayin'.

[green-grrl.livejournal.com]

CK is currently writing ficlets in her writing journal brainofck -- some are NC-17. :-D

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I saw that last night after I posted and was blessing her in my head. :)

[aurora-novarum.livejournal.com]

And in conclusion, I would like to ask: where is all the smut, SG-1 type people? I mean, I know I've been hit over the head repeatedly with the gen stick lately, but that's no excuse for all of us! We can't have all been collectively hypnotized by Unending, or something, right?

Bwah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Behold the Power of Gen! :-D We are corrupting teh pron! (sorry, I couldn't resist. Hee)

In all seriousness though, sorry you've been feeling so poorly and hope you feel better soon! :-(

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I think I've turned a corner, and it feels good, even if I still feel kind of lousy.

*sigh* about the porn. I miss porn. I really should make these gen stories good so I can get back to writing smut, seriously.

[whisper99.livejournal.com]

I wrote porn. *peers at it* Not very good, but it's there.

http://whisper99.livejournal.com/87927.html

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Oooooh! You win for posting a link! Thank yoooooou....

[whisper99.livejournal.com]

Hee :)

[princessofg.livejournal.com]

i adored have snake will travel. i adore that fic. so much.

thanks for a great list.

as far as where i've been, it's been real life on all channels for me since about june. I have been chipping away and about six different things in my WIP file, including a very smutty next bit of the Memphis AU, but like you, I have been overcommited and under loved.

I'll be back though. All the rl shit changes up big time in December. I am soooo not done with Jack and Daniel. I'm definitely in this pairing for the long haul.

*hugs*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

I think it's fairly grand how consistent the SG-1 fandom seems to be at the moment. It might change, and will probably atrophy, but so far seems like there's still a good amount of writing actively going on. FTW! \o/

Looking forward to having you back. *kicks RL for you*

[50mm.livejournal.com]

hey you! fabu recs as always :) thank you thank you! I surreptitiously read the comment fic at work. oops? heh.

Ugh that migraine sounds so awful. :( I had one once and thought I was going blind (I made a panic appt w/an opthamalogist even). I can't imagine dealing with them regularly. *hugs you gently*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Yay, yay for a happy thing to read at work.

Thankfully these migraines are nothing like the ones I used to get; some of those were panic-inducing I would be so far beyond my own ability to cope. These I can *function* through, and isn't that just wierd? The downside being that I have to deal with them for weeks instead of hours, apparently.

I'll be okay, though. Doctor's appt a week from Thursday if all else fails.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

where is all the smut, SG-1 type people

This is all *YOUR* fault. Ok, maybe it's the fault of whoever it was on my flist who directed me here, but now I'm off writing PWP j/d smut when I've got a half dozen WIPS.

*sob*

On the other hand, it's smut, so y'know. *shrug*

:-)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

\o/

There is no bad here! J/D smut? FTW!!!!

Bless.

[tejas.livejournal.com]

OTP. :-)