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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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 Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: December 26 2008 |
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Yup, I would, which would be _great_.
In other news, no writing this week -- I fought the Vista, and the Vista won.
On a _completely_ unrelated note, I'm typing this on my laptop, which is running Ubuntu Linux. It took me roughly the same amount of time to get it working the way I wanted -- the difference was that I'm at my in-laws, and have a net connection that's less than stable. If you exclude the time I spent waiting on things to download and redownloading things because the connection dropped, I spent maybe a day customizing it.
The _install_ took less time than it took Vista to go through its first-time customization... and I was able to surf the web, etc, while I did it.
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: August 06 2009 |
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Today: 0 miles, 0 words. Woke up with a nasty[*] headache threatening, so rather than risk incapacitating myself I didn't do anything this morning. I appear to have pinched a nerve in my neck, which was probably the trigger.
[*] Possibly a migraine, possibly not -- I've never been sure. On the one hand, I don't have the classic auras; on the other, they're certainly severe enough to qualify, and not all migraine sufferers get the auras (ISTR it's either 30% do, or 30% don't). On the gripping hand, they appear to be tension related. On the *other* gripping hand, they could be migraines triggered by the tension, sooo... all I know is that if I take care of them before they really hit, I'm more or less okay, but if I let them get bad I end up in bed in enough pain to make me nauseated.
Which, now that I think about it, argues for them being migraines.
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: August 21 2009 |
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Bleh.
Let's see... Monday I slept in, trying to catch up a bit on the sleep I missed over the weekend and Sunday night. Tuesday I did the same, because I couldn't get to sleep at a reasonable hour Monday night. Wednesday and yesterday I had to be in early for training (lots of training -- 9+ hours), and last night I didn't get to bed until late after having to replace the matress in the waterbed, so I slept in (and ended up taking today as a sick day, because I did something to my back while messing with the bed).
On top of that, Vel's iguana died Tuesday, and my laptop just died. Well, sort of -- if I had a way to charge the battery, I could keep using it; it's the socket for the AC power cord that died. Luckily it's still under warranty.
The repair place I called said probably 3-5 business days, so probably no writing next week. 
Shalon Wood
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: September 19 2009 |
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Oh, it's better than that. The part is on backorder -- with no ETA. I jumped on the guy a little, but apparently this is an amazingly common failure mode, because they have several of that model with the same problem. I'm hoping that the fact that there's no ETA means that Toshiba redesigned the bottom case assembly to prevent it.
Tuesday I took my car in (which we have now got running for the first time in 2+ years) to get the brakes done. Needed new rotors, to the tune of $300.
Vel's new power supply came in this week... and yesterday appeared to die. It hadn't, however; it looks like it was her $80 Razor mouse died in such a way that it causes any computer it's plugged into to power off. That was good to know (although we won't be buying any more Razor mice), but now it won't start up (my guess, although I haven't had a chance to look at it, is that one of the video cards needs reseating).
And Jaime's laptop appears to be dead -- one long beep, two short ones, which (as far as I can tell) means a video problem. I just spent a couple of hours figuring out how to take it apart in hopes that the video was on a daughterboard which needed reseating, but no luck.
On the upside, the pool is fixed. And I'm not on call at work this week (and believe me, I'm grateful -- it's not been a good week to be the on call person. When you consider that I spent almost six hours last weekend handling problems, and it's looking like I got lucky, wel....).
Still. Frustration is. Screaming may be as well. At least I can (hopefully) get started biking again next week. Barring disasters.
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: December 01 2009 |
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I saw this message when you posted it, but I initially waited to answer (as we'd just discovered something), and then... the internet access at Vel's parents was, ah, flaky. I didn't know you could keep a link up with 20 second+ round trip times...
Vel is definitely getting better -- we got the results of her blood tests last monday, and her Vitamin D levels were... catastrophically low. Normal is 35-55, and a couple of years ago her doctor discovered hers were at 14, leading to her taking 2,000 units every day. It was the lowest her doctor had ever seen (although since then one of the nurses in the office had a level of *7* -- remember that; it'll be important later).
Vel's levels were at *9*, so in addition to the 2,000 units per day, she's taking 50,000 units per week (and her dr had her take 50,000 units *twice* last week). And she got off lucky -- the nurse I mentioned? *She* got put in the hospital getting IV doses until her levels were back up. It's probably a good thing Vel's appointment wasn't any later....
I hope to be doing much better after my doctor's appointment tomorrow, where I hope to get something for this sinus infection that's *killing* me (my right ear has been completely stopped up since july or august, despite taking decongestants and using a steroidal nasal spray, and on the drive to Vel's parents this weekend going over overpasses made my ears hurt and pop....). Once I've got something for it and I'm no longer frickin' exhausted all the time, I'll be able to finish up the chapter I have almost done. I was going to try to do it over the weekend, but between the headache and working on the van (AAAAARGH)... well, aside from thanksgiving dinner and working on the van, I pretty much stayed in bed. Part of the time with the lights out. I went to work yesterday, got almost nothing done, and called in sick (not even just working from home) today; I think that's the second time I've done that in three years.
I figure a round of anti-biotics will have me feeling much better shortly, though. It should, anyway.... and I've only got an hour or less to do to get that chapter finished. I want to get it done, at least one more done, and then there's a couple of short stories I want to knock out....
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: December 12 2009 |
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| ronp wrote: | | Let me guess, Vwl got sick and the computer died.... |
You think you're joking, don't you?
First, the power supply for her laptop died. We have one ordered, but it was coming via UPS ground... from Oregon. You can guess how far it actually moved this week, given the storm.
Second, C: on her desktop died. Complete loss. Luckily everything important was backed up elsewhere, but....
Third, I saw my doctor. I've apparently developed allergic asthma, which explains why I've felt so crappy... my resting breathing ability (well, "ability to breath while sitting at your desk, talking on the telephone, and so on" were his exact words) was down 'at least 20 percent', and "ability to push a lawn mower, etc" was down 'at least 40 percent'. He gave me an inhaler and put me on half a dozen meds to get me back to normal, which seem to be helping, slowly.
And finally... I'm the healthiest person in the house. My daughter brought home a stomach bug from school that's hit just about everyone else. Vel didn't *eat* for three days (well, she tried a couple of times, but it didn't work....). I'm starting to think that the school has this big tank labeled "Great Big Tank O' Germs" that they dip the kids in before letting them come home....
There *will* be an update up for beta by the end of tomorrow, however, even if I write it while hallucinating and running a 105 degree fever.
....You know, given past history, maybe I should have said 'Even if I write it while driving down to Austin to claim a giant lottery win'?
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The Wanderer
Joined: 16 May 2006
Posts: 93
Location: Maryland
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: January 11 2010 |
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| dstar wrote: | Vel is definitely getting better -- we got the results of her blood tests last monday, and her Vitamin D levels were... catastrophically low. Normal is 35-55, and a couple of years ago her doctor discovered hers were at 14, leading to her taking 2,000 units every day. It was the lowest her doctor had ever seen (although since then one of the nurses in the office had a level of *7* -- remember that; it'll be important later).
Vel's levels were at *9*, so in addition to the 2,000 units per day, she's taking 50,000 units per week (and her dr had her take 50,000 units *twice* last week). |
This has been niggling at me off and on since it was posted. If her levels were that low despite taking 2,000 units a day, is it possible that she has some kind of difficulty in uptake - that what she's taking isn't being absorbed or processed properly, for some reason?
Because if that's the case, then I wouldn't necessarily expect taking the additional supplements to help; I wouldn't even be surprised if oversaturation could actually make the root problem worse.
I'm hoping that I'm wrong, that the extra supplements are the needed fix and that things are getting better (all else being equal, which in your lives it rarely seems to be); it's been far too long since we've heard one word from her, and I'd like to have her able to be back around here again.
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ancient
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
Posts: 18
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: May 17 2010 |
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Shay & Vel - your medical problems are distressing!
Just a thought - if you've already considered mold problems, sorry to intrude.
Your problems sound very much like those of a friend. His house is totally infested with mold. It has an unventilated earth-floored crawl space which exudes a stench of mold. The garage is full of woodpecker holes, water gets into the basement when it rains heavily, and there are suspicious water marks on the ceiling. He has perpetual sinus infections, headaches, etc. Recently he had to take care of his GF for two weeks in her 3rd floor apartment in a brick building. Funny, that - he didn't have any symptoms until he moved back. He's finally decided maybe he should move... Meanwhile we're figuring out if there's a way to move air through the crawl space to outside that his landlord won't go ballistic over.
I used to get horribly congested visiting my SO's parents' house. On examination, a carpet had a 5 foot circle of black mold hiding invisibly on the reverse side. Ripped that sucker up & took it to the dump. Presto, changeo, no more problems.
I'm not sure where you live. If you live in a wooden house with any leaks, one with wall-to-wall carpeting over a source of moisture, an earthen floor in the crawl space or basement, or places where water has gotten behind the wallpaper, you could have monster molds (or mold monsters?) shedding intensely allergenic crud.
In any case, get better soon and have a long productive spell (both writing and at work) with less stress!
ancient
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: June 04 2010 |
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| awkward42 wrote: | Well, I know the two of them are alive, based on an email exchange with Shay over a technical issue. He did say that he'd update the forum soon, but, this daily update thing doesn't appear to have been an entirely successful initiative  |
Infinite.times {Head->impact(wall)}
Actually, it was wildly successful... while I had time. The last month, though... time? What's that?
I've worked past 9 at least one day every week in the last month. Don't get me wrong; I'm *loving* what I'm doing, and it's important -- as in, success or failure could make a *large* (as in, multiples of my annual salary large) difference in how much we have to spend this year alone, but it means that I come home wiped. I haven't been sleeping all that well, either, because my mind doesn't want to stop working on things....
I'd planned on getting some writing done last weekend, but that was blocked thanks to a case of food poisoning (probably mild, technically, but the headache certainly wasn't). It was my own fault -- I saw a cockroach in the place, but it was 10:30 at night, I'd just gotten out of the office, and I hadn't eaten since 1, so I wasn't at my best....
No, crap. That was weekend before last... I think? Yeah. Last weekend was catching up on sleep and fixing the ceiling so that later this month I can add insulation.
Sheesh. See what I mean? I'm still not sure where May went... I should have seen it going by, shouldn't I?
Anyway... Next Jason and Kylie will go up for beta this weekend *probably*; the one question is whether I manage to finish the ceiling (I've got one 2x2' square to patch) without messing up my hand/wrist (I managed to *bruise* the pad of muscle at the base of my thumb cutting sheetrock on monday, and my wrist wasn't happy even without that, so I'm going to try to get Vel to do the cutting this weekend if she's at all up for it).
After the next Jason and Kylie is a NIS short story that's been eating my brain, which is... not a particularly happy story, and probably a tragedy.
I've got another one I'm working on, sort of, although it hasn't eaten by brain yet... it's rather different; the codes would include 'herm' and, possibly, 'tg', as the main character gains the ability to switch genders at will -- but the price is that she can only stay in a male or female form for a total of six hours a day each. The rest of the time, she's in an in-between state. (I say 'possibly' tg because she doesn't consider herself transgendered, and still thinks of herself as female even when in her male form).
I've always been irritated by gender-swap stories; almost all of them either a) have the character instantly change orientations so that they're 'straight', b) have a great deal of angst, or c) both of the above. I have yet to see a story where the character would react the way I would -- 'Huh. Interesting. Well, time to get ready for work.'
(Have I posted about this one before?)
Shalon Wood
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: June 23 2010 |
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| ronp wrote: | | awkward42 wrote: | | Almost two weeks since the chapter went up for beta, and not a peep out of Shay since? |
He's sick and/or having computer problems, I bet. Or the A/C flaked out. |
No, actually, I've been insanely swamped at work -- we're getting ready to roll out a new storage array (well, technically, we _have_ rolled out a new storage array), and it's been bad enough that...um... tuesday before last? The one before that? Anyway, I realized that I hadn't eaten anything substantial in over 36 hours....
I'm waking up multiple times in the middle of the night with thoughts about what I'm working on. Wouldn't be so bad if I could _remember_ them in the morning....
Don't get me wrong, I _love_ what I'm doing, but by the time I get home I'm utterly wiped out. I'm actually thinking about taking Friday off, because I need a break, and I think we're at the point where I _can_. Especially since I'm on-call over the fourth. If I do, I'll get this chapter of Jason and Kylie out then (barring being unable to do so, since I'll be out of town at Vel's folks, but I should be able to).
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: July 20 2010 |
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| awkward42 wrote: | | A few weeks on from the posting, and I know you're alive due a couple of comments on one of the mailing lists, but how is life treating you otherwise? |
Not horribly. I've discovered that my exhaustion is only partly due to work, which is good; I just wish I'd realized I needed to go see my doctor to get something for my asthma a month ago, if not longer. I hadn't realized how much trouble I was having breathing until a little over a week ago, when it got bad enough that I noticed -- then I realized it'd been a problem for at least a month and a half, but had crept up on me slowly and I hadn't recognized it.
I've got a little bit on another HP one-shot; it's the ultimate over-powered super-Harry (albeit, that's in large part because of the organization he has behind him; he's _personally_ only mostly over-powered). I couldn't resist.
Here's a teaser. A cookie for anyone who recognizes the crossover from this (and there _is_ enough information to do so -- pay attention to his description):
| Quote: | Hermione watched in horror as Voldemort, having led his Death Eaters into the castle via a secret passageway in the Chamber of Secrets, laughe\
d.
"Where is your Boy-Who-Lived now, Dumbledore?" he asked mockingly, waving a hand at the empty space which only moments before had been occupie\
d by Harry Potter. "I'll tell you where he is -- gone! Gone forever, to another world, one in which he will live, unharmed -- making me _IMMOR\
TAL!_"
"There are worse things than death, Tom," Dumbledore said, a tear trickling down his cheek.
Voldemort sneered. "Even if that were true, the prophecy said that only your precious pet could 'vanquish' me --"
He broke off in surprise, as... something... began to emerge from nowhere in the middle of the hall. It grew more and more defined, and larger\
, as if it were approaching from a great distance, and then, all at once, a man stood in the center of the hall.
The stranger was six feet tall, with dark hair, bronzed skin, and rugged features, dressed in a simple grey leather uniform, a pair of oddly s\
haped pistols in holsters on his hips. Hermione was wondering who it could be, and how he could have gotten there, when he turned. It took onl\
y a glimpse for her to know who he was.
Harry Potter.
But it wasn't the scar that gave his identity away... it was the {REDACTED}.
Hermione collapsed onto the floor, gasping in disbelief. It wasn't possible... but the proof was standing in front of her.
|
The bit I redacted would utterly and completely give it away -- I'll just note that it's a) something Harry got while he was gone, and b) Something which conclusively identifies him for anyone who sees it.
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: July 20 2010 |
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| The Wanderer wrote: | It's fairly obvious, really, at least if you know the source material well enough.
Though the question then is, just when in the timeline of the other source did Harry just come back from?
(Also, I'll note that Voldemort's description of the prophecy isn't quite accurate, though his interpretation of its consequences - if prophecy is to be taken as prescriptive rather than merely descriptive - probably is.) |
Let's just say he was adopted by four red-headed girls who were not quite teenagers when he arrived -- and that they're free to travel now.
Voldemort and Dumbledore _both_ should be grateful that he managed to convince them not to come and... be politely expressive about their opinions on certain matters.
Harry's rather politely expressive himself; he compares Voldemort's competence unfavorable to some of the villains of the source material -- and not the upper echelon. Or their seconds. Or the level below that. _OR_ the level below _that_.
He gets to monologue all he wants, because, well... look. Even an _ordinary_ member of his organization wouldn't have much trouble with the Death Eaters, if he knew what he was facing, and he's not ordinary -- he's one of a group of six counting himself (but not, of course, the girls or their brother -- they're on a different level entirely).
And he's going to recruit Hermione -- and then they're going to expand into their universe. Consider for a moment what that means for the ministry of magic... by definition, Harry's incorruptible. And far too powerful to attack directly. And Occlumency isn't going to help them hide their plans to attack indirectly.... Not to mention the backup he can call on.
See what I mean about the ultimate over-powered super-Harry?
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The Wanderer
Joined: 16 May 2006
Posts: 93
Location: Maryland
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: July 20 2010 |
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Well... not really, but that's at least in part because A: I tend to be very careful about using terms like "ultimate", and B: I sort of specialize in overpowered super-whatevers. (I actually have a beginning, in the back of my head, which would eventually - and at least somewhat naturally - develop into Harry having direct control over all magic.)
Beyond that, while the organization in question certainly has advantages and capabilities well beyond those of the wizarding world, many of them tend to operate on much more of a macro-scale, and they also have their limitations - and there are things the wizards can do which those of that organization can't, and some of those things might well be able to fit right in through some of the cracks in the metaphorical armor.
I do think that an "ordinary member", as you put it, might indeed have considerable trouble with the Death Eaters even knowing what they were up against, and depending on how certain things are interpreted, even the advanced special members might have serious trouble if they didn't know what they were up against. (For one thing, as far as I recall their quasi-innate abilities don't provide much if anything in the way of physical protectoin...)
I also have a certain amount of trouble with the "expansionist" notion; I don't know offhand exactly why (it's been far too long since I spent much time with that source material), but for some reason it just strikes me as out of character for them, either individually or as their larger organization.
Yes, Harry with that backing would indeed be able to overwhelm any and all opposition he might face from within either the wizarding or Muggle worlds, but it wouldn't necessarily be as one-sided or as clear-cut as I think you're making it out to be.
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dstar
Joined: 05 Aug 2003
Posts: 508
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| Post subject: Re: Writing progress Posted: July 20 2010 |
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| The Wanderer wrote: |
I also have a certain amount of trouble with the "expansionist" notion; I don't know offhand exactly why (it's been far too long since I spent much time with that source material), but for some reason it just strikes me as out of character for them, either individually or as their larger organization.
Yes, Harry with that backing would indeed be able to overwhelm any and all opposition he might face from within either the wizarding or Muggle worlds, but it wouldn't necessarily be as one-sided or as clear-cut as I think you're making it out to be. |
Well, the last bit is because I left something out, now that I look back at my post. Harry doesn't need a wand anymore -- he has something better. His Lens.
And while he's by *no means* a Third-Stage Lensman, he *is* a Second-Stage Lensman -- and one of the things he wanted was better control over his magic. (He also went for a sense of perception, and a variation on Worsel's trick -- he can't actually compartmentalize his mind, but he can do a large number of essentially identical things, and one or two things that aren't. Such as immobilize all the Death Eaters while still carrying on a conversation).
Consider for a moment the ramifications of being taught to truly master his magic by Mentor, of all beings. Even if Mentor had no knowledge of magic when Harry arrived (a highly dubious proposition, given that Harry's magic did work there), he would very shortly be better versed in it than anyone from the wizarding world.
And the Patrol is expanding into Harry's universe because Harry asked them to; his view of the wizarding world is that it's remarkably like Boskone, only without the redeeming values. (For example, the stunt Kinnison pulled after taking Boskone, where he gave the former leaders complete information on what it would be like to work _for_ Civilization, and a choice as to which they'd personally enjoy more, would be wasted effort on most of the members of the MoM, in his opinion. And the rest wouldn't need it.)
You're right about ordinary members having a problem, though -- I forgot that taking control of someone was a Second-Stage trick.
On the gripping hand, he still has the Children of the Lens backing him up. The girls especially aren't so much a thought away as they are waiting for Harry to stop insisting on doing it on his own.... (Despite the fact that they're technically _younger_ than Harry, he's their baby brother as far as they're concerned, and they're... very protective.)
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