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anqelbean · 1 year

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I have many mdzs fanfic ideas (or mxtx in general) that I'll never write because I'm a coward with no time to spare so I'll just share what's supposed to be a 100k fic in my head into a long tumblr post.

So I have been thinking of this tgcf x mdzs crossover for months basically.

You know those AUs where hualian adopt wwx? What if. Hear me out. Wei Wuxian is their actual blood son?

Like. One of the two of them finally took that childbearing pill and popped out little A-Ying, who's basically the first human to be born immortal. Little young master of Ghost City. Little prince of the heavens. Spoiled with love and care by his parents and endless list of uncles and aunts. Crimson red eyes and a bright smile.

So, of course, in this au, his last name wouldn't be Wei, but what if they couldn't decide whose name he should take? I don't think hualian would care much for that anyway, but the realms have different opinions. The heavens want his name to be "Xie Ying" after his godly father, but the ghosts want it to be "Hua Ying" after their king.

So, why not both, you know? The Gods call him "Xie Ying" and the Ghosts call him "Hua Ying".

He grows up a very happy child with incredible parents, beloved in all three realms, by Heaven, Earth and Ghost.

Then, he turns 22, and decides he wants to know what mortality felt like, being the only one in his family to have never experienced it. He asks his parents to grant him the chance to see how it felt to be mortal, at least for a while.

Xie Lian and Hua Cheng take this with a heavy heart, as both of them are incredibly worried over their son. They agree of course, but they make a deal.

It goes like this: A-Ying will be reverted to a 9 year old, and until the day he reaches the same age as he was the day he gained his mortality, he shall not have the memories of his immortal life. He will not remember his fathers, he will not remember how it's like to walk through the golden streets of the heavens, or the colourful ones of Ghsot City. He will not remember his relatives, nor will he remember his friends. He will lose all of them, for 13 years as a mortal.

And so, the little young master is sent to Earth, with no memories nor spiritual power. His parents sent him purposefully on the path of two young newlyweds, who unfortunately couldn't have children. They send word to their friends that they have adopted a child. He gains a third name, one for the Earth to call him, Wei Ying, a normal silver eyed boy.

Then, his mortal parents die, and Wei Ying is alone. Hua Cheng and Xie Lian are worried sick as they watch their little boy from afar. Then, while Jiang Fengmian is searching for his da-shixiong's child in Yiling, he spots something quite peculiar.

A butterfly, with wings that seemed as if made of pure silver, looking neither alive nor dead. He decides to follow it, thinking it the will of the heavens.

He finds a young boy, cornered by a pack of stray dogs in an alley. He rescues the boy and asks for his name.

"My name is Wei Ying," The boy bows to him in gratitude. "Thank you for saving me, kind shushu!!"

Jiang Fengmian thinks it the blessing of the heavens.

And so, Wei Ying gains a new family, a kind shushu and an angry madame, a sweet older sister and a grumpy little brother and he couldn't be happier.

So he works hard, he learns how to cultivate, he does everything so that he doesn't disappoint this new, fragile family he has. Soon enough he becomes da-shixiong, just as his adoptive father before him. He even gets a his own sword, one made specifically for him!

(Xie Lian's hands itch to see his son's spiritual weapon, especially since it's a sword, but he cannot help but laugh at the name)

The madame is harsh, but he'll take any punishment if it means keeping his family.

His little brother is often jealous of him, insecure in his standing as heir to their clan, but he still cares for his older brother, even when he is reckless, so Wei Ying tries everything to help his brother with his woes.

His shijie is the best. But she's in love with an idiot. So he needs to protect her. It's the least he can do for her.

His shushu is still as kind as the first day he met him, but he is too harsh on his shidi. He cannot have that, so he tries everything to get him to acknowledge his son.

And then there's Cloud Recesses.

Then there's long black hair and sharp golden eyes. Bright white and soft blue against a moonlit night. An uptight personality and a face he cannot get out of his head. And easily triggered annoyance, an even but deep voice, a natural rule follower. Someone who he can spar with on even ground.

Wei Ying, now Wuxian, has always been smart. He realizes why he wants this boy's eyes and attention to always be directed at him. He wishes he could ignore it. It would be preferable to dreaming of being pressed to a desk at the Library Pavilion by an angry Lan Zhan and being kissed within an inch of his life.

Although not by much, if such a fantasy were to come true.

Then, he punches Jin Zixuan and gets sent home. It's worth it, it's to protect his shijie's honour. But as he says goodbye to Lan Zhan, as he leaves him with two small bunnies, as he sees blush seep into the top of his ears and back of his neck, he thinks he should've been more careful about it.

(As Xie Lian watches his son from afar, he cannot help but chuckle at his son's first love, and thinks that maybe, that Lan Wangji would be a good son-in-law. His husband is not as convinced, protective over his child. Maybe this is how Guoshi felt when he found out about him and Xie Lian.)

When Wei Wuxian sees him again at the archery competition, he feels overjoyed, and, wanting to show off in front of Lan Zhan, wins the competition single handedly, but not before accidentally taking off Lan Zhan's forehead ribbon, and angering him in the process. He really didn't understand what's so serious about it.

(Feng Xin could not be more proud of his nephew for winning in archery, but he does wish he could smack him on the head for not realizing the meaning of his actions. Mu Qing rolls his eyes as his husband's boisterous laughter fills the room.)

Then there's a dark cave and a murderous monster, blood and hunger and wounds. But there's also a kiss, soft, speaking a thousand promises, a song, a sweet melody to lull him to sleep, and the lap of his beloved, supporting his head as he rests and Wei Ying thinks he could happily die like this, in Lan Zhan's arms.

(There's also a brother, who's frantic to return home to get help. There's also a silver butterfly, guiding Jiang Cheng back to the cave, where he finds his brother hurt and battered, sleeping peacefully on Lan Wangji's lap.)

Then. He wakes up alone to the ceiling of his room. He would think it all a dream but his wounds say otherwise. He understands, of course, why Lan Zhan couldn't stay, but oh how he wishes he did.

But then there's fire.

There's fire and a mountain of corpses. There's hands around his neck, and tears falling on his face. There's Zidian, pressed to his brother's palm.

Then there's steady hands cutting him open with precision honed by years of experience. There's pain worse than anything he's ever felt. There's a peak in Yiling, there's a golden spiritual core.

Then there's darkness and resentment. There's spirits around him. He learns to wield it. To bend it to his will, no matter the cost. Asks the spirits of the dead for their bodies, to help his cause. They agree.

But then there's a worried father dressed in red. There's an unplanned reunion. Unplanned memories. Unplanned tears. Unplanned consequences.

Hua Cheng tries everything to save his son from the pain, but even with the knowledge he was given again, his A-Ying, his A-Xian, couldn't stop.

He had loved ones to protect.

(After all, his A-Ying always took after his love)

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ibraddersday-blog · 5 years

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20 years so far.

Hi, my name is Bradley Day. Never received a middle name, guess my parents were too lazy. It is currently 12:53pm as I write this on Friday 16th August of 2019, and to be honest I have no idea what I'm doing. I'm about to explain what I have experienced over the past 20 years frankly because, I know 2 people my age who are like me, the rest are so uptight about who they think they are on their online personas and social media reputations. so I want to find more like me.

in this post im giving you real, the embarrassing, humiliating, funny but stupid truth about my life. seems like thats the only thing that you can't really find anymore... honesty.

I was born in basildon hospital in Essex on the 10th of November 1998, my mother is Heidi Day, my father being James Day (actual name is Jimmy but we stick to James) I have a older sister called Rebecca Day. apparently I was born with a skin condition were I didn't get enough vitamins which means I was born yellow, a little English asian baby as you will. had to be sat next to a window to get natural vitamins from the sun. but that was all cleared up as a baby and I dont remember it so not important.

as far as I remember we were a happy family, I was a little shit for my parents but hey I didn't ask to be born. I've never said this but im very thankful for my parents, as a family we went through a few hardships and money never came easy, and no matter what my mum and dad always went out to work and make an honest living to keep a roof over my head and food on the table, people say thats a luxury and may berate us saying thats not hard, but the hard truth is, if you had to worry about where your next meal came from as a kid, your parents didn't work hard enough, and ill be dammed if I let my kids starve a day just because I go lazy for a day.

but out of this happy hardworking family it all changed when I was 4-5, my mum and dad divorced, my dad left and it was me, mum and becky in one house, my dad always tried his best to make it work for him and us. we got by it was just a couple who fell out of love, it's always bummed me out but thats life, move on.

Thats when I met Lindsey who is now a second mother to me, I made her life hell for a lot of years and so did my sister, Linds if you ever read this im sorry, im sorry for never being the kid you wanted because you couldn't have children and wanted to take on me and becky so you could feel loved as a mother, im sorry I tested your patience every chance I got, im sorry you felt you had to buy me a brand to xbox when the disk tray on mine broke (but thank you cose it was an awesome thing to do) but for most of all, im sorry for never having the guts to admit to you in person how much you really mean to me or impacted my life, you gave me chance after chance at your work and im sorry for letting you down. now for what im thankful for. thank you for kicking me up the ass to do my homework, thank you for putting plasters all over me when I've hurt myself doing something else stupid, thank you for coming with me to the hospital when I got run over just down the road and following matt down countless alleys, thank you for letting my friends come over whenever they wanted as a place to hang out and chill and chat, thank you for not telling mum that there was a grinder in my room when I went back to living at mums, but for most of all, thank you being full of advice, thank you for the honesty you poses wether it hurt or not you were always honest with me, I hope one day I can repay you for all the things you have done for me over the 15\16 years of knowing you, I love you very much.

school... ugh, primary okay, secondary Jesus Christ what a shit show, now im not stupid but im not smart, education is not my path Im a natural worker and always have been, don’t do suits and smiles I do hi viz clothing and “oh fuck you slag’ spent the better part of it arguing with teachers and trying to be someone im not just to fit in. I had my fair share of bullying but you take it like a man and thats it but back then I thought my world had been crushed, ridiculous I know, kids if you’re being bullied now it may not seem it but it really dont fucking matter, its school thats how it is if you dont like learn from home. now I got pretty bad at one point and made a video and put it online, about how im being bullied and how pissed and upset it Made me and so on, well the school found out and I was forced to remove it, should of just told them too fuck off but it was just hassle that I couldn't be arsed with. year 11 soon flies around and boom left with nothing... great, now college level 1 sport how fucking normal right. well sussed level 1 dropped level 2.

now work. for the next 2 years I dosed about and went through 8 jobs... yes thats right fucking eight until one came by and that is TGIS at lakeside retail park, now it was a shit job but it taught me a lot, it taught me team work, pace, the importance of showing up for shifts, how vital I am as a cog in that machine, it taught me how punctuality means everything, I mean I got employee of the month in my first month working there for god sake I pushed hard and getting a reward like that it really hit home, as I never really got anything like that before, I got home and cried in bed as I was so happy for that for once in my life someones recognised me for me and how hard I work, it still gets to me writing this, it means a lot to someone like me. I've since left there for a better job and found one at a container shipping company driving cranes, and I gotta say I think this Is the place I’ll make a career out of, its great pay, get great hours and there are some great guys there who I've grown to become friends with. after countless let downs in my life I’m happy to say I've found somewhere I belong and love. the people I wanna say thank you for are Lex A and Jack R, I love you boys you really pulled me through at TGIS, even though we argued a lot I still value you two a lot.

now for my life outside of work. I have a few friends being Michael, jack, James and josh. these are the people who are like me, hard working and are making a name for themselves with the help of no-one else. we have all faced great hardships in life and really push to get what we want. but with my friends that want is wanting to get a shitty old RWD and drift it into walls for a laugh, it is pretty funny to be honest. honestly I can say these boys are like family to me they mean more to me than they know and id be there for them in a second if they need me. jack is my longest friend though, we've been friends for 15 years, we met in year 1 in primary school and never stopped since, I would go Into details but its now 1:30am and im tired.

relationships... I can't do them. dont get me wrong I love the idea of them and would love to be in one but I simply can't do it, I can't deal with other peoples shit as well as my own as I've always dealt with mine on my own not needing someone else, and girls are weird about that shit, all emotional and shit, grow up and move on life is tough if you dont like it theres many ways out, I dont do sorrow or sympathy. but marriage scares me, it freaks me out im not even kidding, the idea of being forced by law to be in a relationship with someone and if the love dies they can take all your shit fucking scares me! who wouldn't be frightened by that! maybe one day ill get over it and take a leap of faith with someone I love but why knows ay.

and for now right this very second. im happy with who I am, I have nice car, a good job, im single but happily, its easier and less stressful, the key to happiness is a stress free life after all. yeah I may be bit tubby and not in great shape, but im happy with myself and who I see in the mirror, because I know im going to be okay, ill work through my problems that happen in my life, and in the end ill know ill always be okay.

to whoever is reading this. just know life is easy, the key to happiness is being okay with who you are. yeah theres always improvements that could be made, but if you got a roof over your head, working water and food on the table, you’re doing pretty good in life. just picture life as an English country lane, for the most part its gonna be rocky and bumpy with loads of big potholes but theres always the parts where the road is smooth and freshly done, just gotta keep hanging on to those moments before your turning is up on to the straight and narrow bud, keep pushing and working hard boys and girls, like I was always told “stop being a pussy and get what you want”

probably be my only ever post here so yeah, maybe someone will read it, who knows!

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wellpersonsblog · 5 years

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The 7 Supplements I Take, 2019 Edition

Yep, seven. Kind of a lot for a “whole foods” guy, right?

Don’t worry, I’ll explain.

If you’re even a casual NMA reader, you know it’s been a loooong time since I wrote two blog posts in a week. We’re talking years, I think.

Well, I’m here to boldly declare that I’m back. My goal for the year, No Meat Athlete’s 10th anniversary year, is to write a blog post per week, on average. Not because I should, but because I really want to — the time away has renewed my enthusiasm. And after going for so long without writing regularly, I’ve got a lot I’m excited to share.

But writing more is just one of my goals. This year, I gave myself permission to set a bunch of them — not just one or two, like I usually tell people is best — and to make them BIG.

Upgrading the OS

It didn’t take long, though, for me to realize that in order to do more, my “operating system” needs to be better — which means upgrading my daily habits, and to pay particular attention to nutrition, since that affects just about everything else.

For several years now I’ve been careful to cover the bases: vitamin B12, vitamin D, and DHA/EPA, just to safeguard myself against common deficiencies of a vegan diet (and many other diets, too, by the way). But now I’m paying more attention to things like sleep, recovery from workouts, nagging injuries, and even long-term prevention — and because of that, I find myself both more diligent and more experimental with supplements.

Don’t worry, this isn’t the post where Matt turns into a biohacker. In general, my philosophy is still “whole foods first,” and probably always will be. (Not the store — in that case, it’s actually “Whole Foods second,” after we’ve gotten everything we can at a cheaper place!)

In fact, you’ll see that several of what I call “supplements” actually are whole foods; it’s just that I take them like a robot would take fuel. If robots ran on fuel.

So here goes. I’ve listed the daily dose I take next to each.

1. Complement (provides B12, D3, and DHA/EPA) — This one is actually a three-for. I’ve written about Complement at length, since it’s the supplement I created, so I won’t spend long on this one. In a nutshell, here’s why the nutrients it provides are so important:

Vitamin B12 (1000mcg) is just about a no-brainer for vegans. I know there are still a few purists out there who say we can get enough B12 from dirty produce, but I just don’t see the point. Even many non-vegans are deficient in B12, and when I didn’t take it in my first few years of being vegan, I experienced symptoms of deficiency. So I take it, and make sure my kids do too.

Vitamin D3 (2000IU) is the best form of vitamin D, which our bodies make in response to sunlight. Unfortunately, the combination of our modern, indoorsy lifestyles (plus knowledge about the dangers of UV exposure) and a plant-based diet leaves many of us “D-ficient.” Dr. Greger and others recommend supplementing with 2,000 IU of vitamin D daily, so that’s what I take.

Finally, DHA (300mg) and EPA (70mg) are two long-chain omega-3 fatty acids that are important for brain health. We can get ALA, which is another omega-3, from vegan foods like flaxseeds and walnuts, so many vegans assume they’ve got omega-3’s covered. But it turns out that although some people can efficiently convert ALA into DHA and EPA, many cannot. I haven’t done the testing to know whether I or my wife and kids can, so that’s why I take it in supplement form, derived from algae.

You can learn more about Complement here, but see the note at the bottom of this blog post first.

2. Creatine (5g) — This is strictly for building muscle and increasing strength, so I only take creatine when I’m trying to bulk up or doing a strength sport. Creatine is an amino acid that our bodies do make, so it’s not essential. And although we’re completely fine without it, I find it absolutely helps me to build muscle, and the extra motivation that comes from that is reason enough to take it, given that it’s well-studied and appears to be completely safe. (There’s some evidence to suggest creatine helps vegetarians perform better on tests of memory, too.)

3. Magnesium (350mg) — As I mentioned in a recent podcast episode (“Matt’s Quest for Deeper Sleep”), lately I’ve been obsessed with increasing the amount of deep sleep I get each night, as measured by an OURA ring that tells me how much time I spend in each sleep phase.

I get plenty of total sleep, and plenty of REM sleep, but very little deep sleep (which, oddly, is not as “deep” as REM). Deep sleep is very important for tissue repair and recovery. I haven’t figured out whether my body just happens to need less deep sleep than others, or whether it’s something about my diet, lifestyle, and sleep habits that prevents me from getting more of it.

I’ve been experimenting with a lot of small changes, ranging from obvious ones — like eliminating light from my bedroom at night and limiting screen time after about 7pm — to making changes to my diet (especially around caffeine and alcohol) and supplementing.

Magnesium is a mineral that’s associated with improved sleep and helpful in the absorption of iodine (see below), so it’s a natural one to test.

I’ve only been taking magnesium for 10 days or so, but I suspect that it’s responsible for adding roughly 10 minutes of deep sleep each night. Which doesn’t seem like much, but when I typically only get 30 minutes or so, I’ll take whatever I can get!

Once I figure this shiz out, I’ll write a whole blog post about my sleep project.

‘Supplements’ that are Actually Food

4. Brazil nut (1 small one provides ~100mcg selenium) — We don’t need much selenium, but we absolutely need it. Selenium deficiency is linked to certain cancers, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. And, thanks to soil depletion, most plant-based diets are low in selenium. Luckily, a single, small Brazil nut each day provides more than enough. So I eat one a day, in my smoothie, and selenium is taken care of.

(Incidentally, one of the reasons I love the daily smoothie is that it’s easy to toss in things like a Brazil nut, flaxseeds, a slice of turmeric… things I want to eat each day but don’t show up in my diet on their own.)

5. Iodized salt (60mcg iodine per quarter-teaspoon salt) — Let’s be clear here, there’s no reason to supplement with salt; in fact we should limit our intake. It’s the iodine that I want; the fortified salt just happens to be a convenient way to get it.

Iodine used to be in our soil, but with modern agriculture, it’s less plentiful in our food than it once was. Which wouldn’t be a big deal, except that iodine deficiency affects two billion people (!) and is the leading preventable cause of intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Which is why they put it in our salt. Except we vegans like to be natural, so many of us choose unrefined sea salt… which usually doesn’t have iodine added to it.

Non-vegans actually get some iodine from the cleaning products used on dairy processing equipment that make their way into the milk, so it’s less a concern for them. Vegans should make sure we have an iodine source, whether supplemental or with fortified salt.

6. Tart cherry juice (1oz concentrate or 8oz juice) — Tart cherry juice has been shown to reduce inflammation and muscle soreness after workouts, which is why I’ve been a fan for a long time.

Most days out of the week now, I do Muay Thai, a form of kickboxing, and get pretty beat up in the process. So I have a renewed interest in the benefits tart cherries provide.

I don’t like to drink any juice on a daily basis; in general whole fruit is much better. But immediately after workouts is one time when juice may be one of the best things we can consume, for its speed in reaching the bloodstream. So that’s when I try to take my tart cherry juice, about an ounce a day.

7. Turmeric (1 tsp ground or a quarter-inch slice fresh) — Faddish, perhaps, but I think turmeric is legit. There’s a lot of research about how it can help with everything from muscle repair to recovering from hospital surgery, not to mention reducing the risks of cancer and heart disease.

Dr. Greger recommends either a quarter-teaspoon of ground turmeric or a quarter-inch slice of the fresh root daily. Fresh and ground actually do different things, so I try to mix them up, and almost always eat it in combination with black pepper to increase bioavailability.

If I don’t use ground turmeric in cooking or don’t add a slice of fresh to my smoothie, then at night I’ll take it in pill form (turmeric, not just curcumin). But I much prefer getting it in whole-food form.

Blurring the Food/Supplement Line

I actually could go further with the “foods I view as supplements” list, but there’s not a clear dividing line between these and the rest of my food.

For example, green tea. I don’t really drink it like tea: in order to extract the most nutrients, I steep it at close to boiling temperature and for much longer than the tea-types recommend, producing a drink far more tannic and bitter than green tea traditionally is. Or I’ll put the tea leaves directly into my smoothie, not for flavor but for nutrition. Similar with flaxseeds — I don’t eat them as snacks like I do other nuts and seeds; instead I just add them to my smoothie because I know how healthy they are.

But I had to draw the line somewhere. So I did.

What’s Missing?

Believe it or not, there are two other supplements I believe I should be taking, but am not, simply because it’s not convenient to take more pills and I’ve been lazy about it. These are zinc and vitamin K2, both of which are likely deficiencies in plant-based diets.

Zinc: Beans provide plenty of zinc; the problem is that the phytates in beans interfere with absorption. Zinc may be especially important for heart health, and given family history, this is important to me.

K2: Vegans can get plenty of K1 from leafy greens, but K2 isn’t found in almost any plant-based foods, especially not in the West. (It is in natto, a Japanese, fermented soy product, but unfortunately not in tempeh, sauerkraut, or other fermented foods in reliable and appreciable amounts.) K2 is important for both bone and heart health, so not something I want to be missing.

To the Rescue…

Good news here, though. This week, an upgraded version of Complement, called Complement Plus, ships for the first time. (Mine is supposed to arrive today!)

It’s in capsule form instead of a spray, and for me will drastically simplify my supplementation routine, not just by filling the zinc and K2 void, but also by providing iodine, selenium, magnesium (all of which I’m currently making the effort to get into my diet), and of course the “Big 3” that are already in Complement.

When I first announced Complement Plus last year as a pre-order, we sold through everything we had allocated for it. But now we’ve got a few hundred bottles from this first shipment that we can sell, so next week I’ll send the details about how to get a special NMA-reader discount on Complement Plus.

If you’re thinking about getting Complement or Complement Plus, I’d join the email list and wait until then.

It feels great to be writing again. Look for a new post from me next week, and every week after that!

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First found here: The 7 Supplements I Take, 2019 Edition

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