blah blah blah y'see the kids they listen to the rap music with the bippin' and the boppin'

[jazz_trousers]

 HI ELJAY

I'm really sorry I haven't written any of the nice things I promised you, but my insomnia's gotten pretty severe recently and I'm pretty much dead. All my creative juices have temporarily dried up. Sad times.

BUUUUT~ I'm still beta'ing and reading and commenting and love you all very, very much.

(If you'd like to see some more action from me

Comments

Sleep tight!

[ichibanseiken]

Hey! 'Nuff of that funk! :-)

Seriously though, being unable to sleep sucks. If I may suggest the following (been there...:

- zen meditation. If you just sit and count your exhales (from 1 to 10) without losing track due to intruding thoughts - lose track and to back to 1 - that's actually very calming. Start with 10 minutes, work up to however long you like. I find I sleep better when I meditate and it's a great time investment. Plus, if you can't sleep you may as well turn on a small light, sit on a cusion, and put your time to good use, right?

- have a stretch routine for bedtime, consisting of a few *easy-going* yoga stretches. Nothing aerobic...just nice and peaceful.

- read a highly technical textbook. Seriously, to this day two pages of physics or chemistry knocks me right out.

- pretend you're waking up to the radio station your alarm is set to. Late at night, sometimes it helps if I think of old morning traffic reports and then imagine a voice in my head: "Good morning, this is Nina Tottenberg..."

- Chamomile tea. Hops sewn into a satchel and placed under your pillow. Lavender (if the strong smell doesn't bother you)

- Make a list of things to do for the next day. Keep it by your bedside, and if some stressor starts to bug you, write it down so you can take care of it later. Just writing it down often gets it out of your mind.

To change the topic, I'm glad you beta. May I call on your expertise next time I write something? I have this fic idea where Rikichi aspires to beat Renji the way Renji aspires to beat Byakuya so he spies on him while he trains with Ikkaku. Rikichi starts training with Ikkaku, and Yumichika decides he's likely to be subtle rather than strong. It's not yaoi as much as a growth story and an exploration of two, maybe three different approaches to teaching a promising youngster, as well as looking at the differences in attitudes and values between the two divisions. It would be a series. Would something like this interest you or do you prefer more M-rated material?

Re: Sleep tight!

[jazz_trousers]

Thanks, I'll try those! I do have a hops pillow, it doesn't do much but I like the way it smells :3

That's an awesome concept for a fic! I'd be happy to take a look at that, I'll beta pretty much any work as long as it's half-decent, haha! Drop me a line when you've got something.