personal update of the crappy variety

I am having the worst fibromyalgia flare-up I've had since starting school - the worst since several years before moving to Canada. Without going into symptomatic detail, I'll give you the short version: I feel like crap.

I would normally spend the duration on the couch, watching a movie. I've learned through experience - perhaps the only way anyone really learns anything - that there's no point in trying to push through it.

But right now, waiting it out is not an option. I have two papers to write. My crappy job gives me very little paid time off and it's all used up, and taking unpaid time off is impossible.

So I've stripped everything down to the essentials, I'm economizing my energies as much as I can, and I'm forcing myself to do the school work.

In times of stress, I am comforted by reflecting on the many positives in my life. I don't appreciate when others remind me of them, but I do feel better from taking stock of my many . . . privileges, gifts, strengths, whatever you choose to call them.

My condition is generally very manageable. School is going well, and usually I'm able to do the work with much less effort than many of my classmates. Most importantly, I have tremendous support from my partner and from amazing friends. That's making a huge difference. So thanks in advance for your share of that.