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bedlamsbardMy right wrist! Still in pain. It makes this delightful pop (...I honestly don't know whether it actually audibly pops or if that's just the feeling) when I rotate it. Handwriting is doable but painful, knitting is fine (though I'm not doing much of it right now, let me tell you) but can be sort of...odd (I'm not sure that I'm actually in pain or just uncomfortable or just thinking I should be in pain), I can hold things but I'm definitely far more aware of my hand and wrist than I usually am. My wrist isn't swollen or anything, although it seems like my hand is swelling a little more than normal on occasion, but not all the time. I think I'm also starting to feel some kind of splintery-ish aches in my forearm, but it's mostly concentrated in my wrist. Typing is mostly fine, mouse-handling a little strange. Advil didn't help, but I'm kind of used to painkillers not helping (they work for cramps, but ninety-nine percent of the time do not work for anything else -- mainly, my recurring back pain). Left wrist is a little achy, but not like my right wrist. Depending how I'm moving my arm, I can lift things without difficulty or pain, which at least means I can drink my tea.
In conclusion: I don't even know, y'all. This is day three (and possibly day four, but if it is day four it wasn't bad enough on the first day for me to really notice). At least I didn't wake up with a crick in my neck this morning, unlike yesterday, where it was both wrists and my neck, and also briefly my back later on in the day. I still think it has something to do with the way I'm sleeping, since I'm having my familiar "I don't know what to do with my hands!" problem when I'm in bed again, but that happens fairly often and this has never happened before. I haven't done anything strange or unusual to merit this; I'm not even spindling a lot, so I know it's not repetitive stress from that, the way it was this summer. What the actual fuck, o my body?
*
Today I made bread pudding, or tried to, and it sort of worked out. Next time, I'll use more liquid (I didn't actually measure anything, just whisked together some milk, cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and lemon zest), cut the bread into smaller pieces, and bake it in my loaf tin instead of my square cake tin -- as was, I only had a single layer of bread cubes, so it was (a) too thin and (b) I had to dismantle it and put it in the loaf tin anyway after it had baked and cooled in order to put it in my fridge. Ooops. I was going for the same flavor profile king cake has (thus the cinnamon and lemon zest), so I made the same icing -- powdered sugar, lemon juice, and milk to serve with the bread pudding. It does have a very similar flavor profile, so success on that front! Traditionally in New Orleans you'd make a whisky sauce, but I don't have any whisky. I did actually go looking for it in the store, but I don't want to buy a full-size bottle since I don't really drink and I only have one other recipe right now that calls for whisky or brandy. Maybe they had those single-serving bottles, but I didn't look all that closely. Maybe next time.
In other totally boring food news, I had some leftover (Japanese) curry, but no rice and I didn't feel like making any. So I boiled some soba noodles and served the curry over that. And it was good, but it was also the weirdest fucking experience. I grew up eating curry and rice (and potato chips. Salt and vinegar. You dip them in the curry, scoop up some of the curry and rice, and eat them. WHAT, MY FAMILY DOES IT), and it's probably my number one comfort food. I can never make it the same way my mother does, of course, she probably adds a splash of magic and motherly love and secret samurai spices or something. Anyway, it's a flavor profile I'm very, very familiar with, and I'm eating, except it's noodles and not rice and -- so brain-breaking. That sounds crazy, doesn't it? But it's something that's so familiar, with just a little twist, and that twist is what makes my brain kick out and go NO WHAT WHAT REBOOT.
*
It's been a weird couple of days. My brain appears to be absent this week, which means my ability to do research is sort of currently stunted, which is not so good when I have a presentation on Monday. Oh, well, at least it's only a 5-10 minute presentation with a partner who has probably done more research than me. (And I have done some, and will do a little more tomorrow.)
*
Worked out my chapter timing problems, at least for the immediate time being. Serial fic writing is such a weird experience. On the one hand, you want the story to hang together as a whole, the way a novel does, so chapters and POV and plots have to make sense when read all in one go. But on the other hand, because it's being posted as a WIP, it normally isn't read all in one go -- there's going to be tension between chapters just because there's going to be a time break between when those chapters go up, just like TV episodes. I can't do anything about that except write faster, obviously, and sometimes that's not an option.
Also at some point it helps to step back and think about the situation as a reader -- not necessarily of this story specifically, but as a reader of fanfic and WIPs in general. And since at the moment I am, I kid you not, for the first time in years freaking stalking this one author's Hobbit fic, well, that helped make up my mind. *laughs*
*
Amazon sent me a recommendation e-mail consisting entirely of Hobbit movie tie-ins and Lindsey Davis novels. Oh, Amazon. You know me so well. (Okay, this was Amazon UK, my Amazon U.S. rec e-mails are considerably more confused, since I've gotten a bunch of my textbooks from them and all I've gotten from Amazon UK has been Hobbit stuff. My Amazon U.S. rec e-mails are like, "Here is a set of knitting needles, a Latin textbook, a book on medieval Spain, two Lindsey Davis novels, a cookbook, a Shakespeare play, and a Tamora Pierce novel. Surely you must want one of them?")
Sometime I ought to take a picture of my to-read pile. It's higher than my bed. I'm afraid to put any more books on it, which means I need to find somewhere else in my tiny room to start another pile of books, since I...I have a problem. (My library books and most of my cookbooks are elsewhere. Uh.)
Currently reading An Imperial Possession (still. I KNOW), Rome and the Sword, and N.K. Jemisin's The Killing Moon. And The Hobbit, technically, but I just don't want to go on, because it's all heartbreak and immense readerly frustration from here on out. I would rather go back and reread the first two-third and pretend it has a happy ending!
*
I wonder if draping a hot water bottle over my wrist would help? But then I couldn't do anything, and that's my dominant hand.
In conclusion: I don't even know, y'all. This is day three (and possibly day four, but if it is day four it wasn't bad enough on the first day for me to really notice). At least I didn't wake up with a crick in my neck this morning, unlike yesterday, where it was both wrists and my neck, and also briefly my back later on in the day. I still think it has something to do with the way I'm sleeping, since I'm having my familiar "I don't know what to do with my hands!" problem when I'm in bed again, but that happens fairly often and this has never happened before. I haven't done anything strange or unusual to merit this; I'm not even spindling a lot, so I know it's not repetitive stress from that, the way it was this summer. What the actual fuck, o my body?
*
Today I made bread pudding, or tried to, and it sort of worked out. Next time, I'll use more liquid (I didn't actually measure anything, just whisked together some milk, cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and lemon zest), cut the bread into smaller pieces, and bake it in my loaf tin instead of my square cake tin -- as was, I only had a single layer of bread cubes, so it was (a) too thin and (b) I had to dismantle it and put it in the loaf tin anyway after it had baked and cooled in order to put it in my fridge. Ooops. I was going for the same flavor profile king cake has (thus the cinnamon and lemon zest), so I made the same icing -- powdered sugar, lemon juice, and milk to serve with the bread pudding. It does have a very similar flavor profile, so success on that front! Traditionally in New Orleans you'd make a whisky sauce, but I don't have any whisky. I did actually go looking for it in the store, but I don't want to buy a full-size bottle since I don't really drink and I only have one other recipe right now that calls for whisky or brandy. Maybe they had those single-serving bottles, but I didn't look all that closely. Maybe next time.
In other totally boring food news, I had some leftover (Japanese) curry, but no rice and I didn't feel like making any. So I boiled some soba noodles and served the curry over that. And it was good, but it was also the weirdest fucking experience. I grew up eating curry and rice (and potato chips. Salt and vinegar. You dip them in the curry, scoop up some of the curry and rice, and eat them. WHAT, MY FAMILY DOES IT), and it's probably my number one comfort food. I can never make it the same way my mother does, of course, she probably adds a splash of magic and motherly love and secret samurai spices or something. Anyway, it's a flavor profile I'm very, very familiar with, and I'm eating, except it's noodles and not rice and -- so brain-breaking. That sounds crazy, doesn't it? But it's something that's so familiar, with just a little twist, and that twist is what makes my brain kick out and go NO WHAT WHAT REBOOT.
*
It's been a weird couple of days. My brain appears to be absent this week, which means my ability to do research is sort of currently stunted, which is not so good when I have a presentation on Monday. Oh, well, at least it's only a 5-10 minute presentation with a partner who has probably done more research than me. (And I have done some, and will do a little more tomorrow.)
*
Worked out my chapter timing problems, at least for the immediate time being. Serial fic writing is such a weird experience. On the one hand, you want the story to hang together as a whole, the way a novel does, so chapters and POV and plots have to make sense when read all in one go. But on the other hand, because it's being posted as a WIP, it normally isn't read all in one go -- there's going to be tension between chapters just because there's going to be a time break between when those chapters go up, just like TV episodes. I can't do anything about that except write faster, obviously, and sometimes that's not an option.
Also at some point it helps to step back and think about the situation as a reader -- not necessarily of this story specifically, but as a reader of fanfic and WIPs in general. And since at the moment I am, I kid you not, for the first time in years freaking stalking this one author's Hobbit fic, well, that helped make up my mind. *laughs*
*
Amazon sent me a recommendation e-mail consisting entirely of Hobbit movie tie-ins and Lindsey Davis novels. Oh, Amazon. You know me so well. (Okay, this was Amazon UK, my Amazon U.S. rec e-mails are considerably more confused, since I've gotten a bunch of my textbooks from them and all I've gotten from Amazon UK has been Hobbit stuff. My Amazon U.S. rec e-mails are like, "Here is a set of knitting needles, a Latin textbook, a book on medieval Spain, two Lindsey Davis novels, a cookbook, a Shakespeare play, and a Tamora Pierce novel. Surely you must want one of them?")
Sometime I ought to take a picture of my to-read pile. It's higher than my bed. I'm afraid to put any more books on it, which means I need to find somewhere else in my tiny room to start another pile of books, since I...I have a problem. (My library books and most of my cookbooks are elsewhere. Uh.)
Currently reading An Imperial Possession (still. I KNOW), Rome and the Sword, and N.K. Jemisin's The Killing Moon. And The Hobbit, technically, but I just don't want to go on, because it's all heartbreak and immense readerly frustration from here on out. I would rather go back and reread the first two-third and pretend it has a happy ending!
*
I wonder if draping a hot water bottle over my wrist would help? But then I couldn't do anything, and that's my dominant hand.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 12:19 am (UTC)Speaking of fic-stalking, can I have that steampunk Hobbit link again? I started reading it on my phone, lost the link (I hate the phone web-browser; sometimes when you go back to the phone's home screen it 'minimizes' and sometimes it exits and I NEVER KNOW WHICH IT WILL DO), and OMG PLEASE do not make me try to make twitter cough up history!! (Most ephemeral media ever, y/y?)
Regarding pain, I'm sure you've been asked this before but have you ever seen a chiropractor? Because the back pain could almost certainly be helped by that and weird phantom-ish pains in things you have not injured sometimes are just the body going "help, help, nerves are firing in ways I DO NOT UNDERSTAND".
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 12:30 am (UTC)I haven't. I've never even brought it up to a doctor. (...I'd say my family has issues, but I'm pretty sure it's just me. I mean, my pain med issues are from my family, but reluctance to see a healthcare professional is just me.) I know I should, I just...*hands* I don't know. It's the feeling that they'll look at me and be like, "You're making it up."
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 12:38 am (UTC)As for healthcare... you are not fat, addicted to anything, or seeking help for a strictly female complaint, so it's very unlikely they'll accuse you of making it up. Worth at least trying.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 12:41 am (UTC)*hands* My issues. I have them. (Last year I had like six people, including my mother, telling me to go see a shrink for my anxiety and I still couldn't do it.)
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-17 03:12 am (UTC)It was tendonitis, not yet carpal tunnel syndrome, and your symtoms sound quite abit like it!
If nothing else, you could locate a wrist brace to hold your wrists in neutral position- you can still type and all!
I still have a wierd poppy sound when I rotate my wrists, and my elbow pops these days. But they hurt less when I'm aware of my position.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-18 12:03 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-18 05:04 am (UTC)I know! I was Terrified when I realised that my hands! !
but i think you really need to just make some adjustments, like a brace to take the worst of it off, adjust your computer to a better position (hover hands rather than lean it on the keyboard) so that your wrists can recover, and take breaks as much as you can. I got myself a lap-desk that is very easy to adjust the surface, and now I can type with less stress on my wrists.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-02-18 11:41 pm (UTC)I've got a laptop stand at home, but I didn't bring it with me because (1) it's bulky and (2) I bought it primarily for the fan, since my old laptop had overheating issues. So I shall order a new one, in hopes that it will help. (It might be good for my back too, who knows.)
I have acquired a brace, different painkillers, and Asian magic salve -- uh, I mean Tiger Balm. Not entirely sure that any of these are actually helping, but I dunno, it's personally easier for me to throw money at a problem than actually call a doctor.