Writer's Block and Jaw Lock

   H'okay, so.  I'm having the absolute worst writer's block I've ever had.  I started this new story (big surprise, I know) and it would be the coolest ever... If only I could figure out how to start it.  Seriously, I have exactly 20 sentences written down, and I am S.T.U.C.K.-Stuck!  They aren't even good sentences.  They S.U.C.K.-Suck!!  Maybe it's just the new program I'm using.  For the past year and a half, I've been using a program called PageFour, and it's simple, but I absolutely adore it.  However, just recently (within the one-two month range), my mom found me this program called yWriter5, and it really is cool.  You write separate scenes, and add them together, or reorder them, in different chapters, and you add characters, locations, items, etc. and it's just awesome... Problem is, it takes me awhile to get used to changes, especially when it comes to writing (Yeah, I know, that's a bad issue to have, don't remind me).  I'm thinking maybe I should do a collab, and use PageFour and yWriter5, and see if I can actually to get somewhere.  Because honestly:  20 sentences.  I think that has to go down in history as one of the fastest cases of writer's block to plague a person so soon after starting a project.  And it should be dubbed The Most Pathetic Case Ever.

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   Now, have any of you ever heard of TMJ?  Well, here's a definition from www.webmd.com:

The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is the hinge joint that connects the lower jaw (mandible) to the temporal bone of the skull. Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) occur as a result of problems with the jaw, jaw joint, and surrounding facial muscles that control chewing and moving the jaw.

This joint is immediately in front of the ear on each side of your head. The joints are flexible, allowing the jaw to move smoothly up and down and side to side and enabling you to talk, chew, and yawn. Muscles attached to and surrounding the jaw joint control its position and movement.

   Now imagine this, also from www.webmd.com:

People with TMD can experience severe pain and discomfort that can be temporary or last for many years. More women than men experience TMD and TMD is seen most commonly in people between the ages of 20 and 40.

Common symptoms of TMD include:

• Pain or tenderness in the face, jaw joint area, neck and shoulders, and in or around the ear when you chew, speak or open your mouth wide
• Limited ability to open the mouth very wide
• Jaws that get "stuck" or "lock" in the open- or closed-mouth position
• Clicking, popping, or grating sounds in the jaw joint when opening or closing the mouth (which may or may not be accompanied by pain)
• A tired feeling in the face
• Difficulty chewing or a sudden uncomfortable bite as if the upper and lower teeth are not fitting together properly
• Swelling on the side of the face

Other common symptoms include toothaches, headaches, neck aches, dizziness, earaches and hearing problems.

I have had this disorder for a better part of a year now.  But up until about two months ago, the whole first bulleted line hadn't occurred.  It never really hurt, just annoyed me.  I never used to have difficulty chewing, either.  But now, all of a sudden, my jaw's getting stuck in weird positions; I can't open to far because it hurts like heck when I do; I have to eat soft foods, or things that don't call for a lot of chewing, because chewing hurts; when I yawn, I have to make sure I don't push my jaw into an overbite, because moving it forward hurts; I have to squash down sandwiches and such, because I can't fit my mouth over them (and it's not like I had a very big mouth to begin with -frowny face-).  And I guess I'm not supposed to rest my chin on my hand, or sing, or talk much, or anything like that (The singing and talking can't be helped; chorus teachers don't think of TMD as a singing-prohibiter, and other teachers expect you to respond when they talk to you, and get mad when you don't). The chin-on-hand thing, I'm getting better at refraining from.

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   So, now that I have gotten to give you the sob-story, my dear friends, about my writer's block, and educate you on TMD, I'm going to, much to your dismay, complain about people.  

   Today, my boyfriend, who has been sick with tonsilitus and strep-throat for the past week, but finally came to school today, went home to chill after school... And found two of his cats, one dead, the other half alive, both with lacerations on their left hind legs.  The one that was already dead, Rahvin, we discovered, had actually been shot in the leg.  And then possibly run over, because her back legs were sprawled out, one on each side, and the whole back end had been flattened like a pancake.  His other cat, Spectre, is very furry, and mostly black, so it's hard to tell exactly where her injury is.  It is on the same side as Rahvin's, but we don't think she was shot.  She may be just really sore, but we thought there was blood on her, too, so... yeah.  She ate normal today, so hopefully, there's no internal bleeding.

   Rahvin was found near the tree-line of my boyfriend's home, and Spectre had somehow crawled away from the road and behind their garage.  Both had obviously been trying to get back home after the...attack.  My boyfriend is pissed more than anything, but I can tell he's sad, too, even though he hides it very well.  It just makes me so angry that people have the audacity to shoot a poor, innocent animal, who did absolutely nothing to them!  People around where I live, do it just for the hell of it, and it pisses me off to a T! (Please excuse my language)... Hopefully, Spectre will live and be up and walking soon.  That's my boyfriend's favourite cat.

   Well, I need to pack for this weekend, and do a little ACT homework (that I'm probably actually not going to do until tomorrow) and get some rest.  Hobey-ho, mates.

This is Maximum Sunshine, signing off.  Αντίο και ο Θεός ταχύτητας.