Do you remember back in high school and college when the greatest thing about the morning was that it was optional? When you didn't have to be up for class or something else, wasn't it great to just sleep the mornings away? 8:00 in the morning? What the hell is that? Perish the thought that the day started before 10:00 at the earliest. For whatever reason, I have found myself getting up early recently. And I don't mind that at all.
I can no longer stay up late either. I think once you get past the age of thirty, 11:00 at night is considered an all-nighter. We went out a couple of times with some friends to watch some playoff hockey and half way through the games, we were all checking our watches and phones to see what time it was. I'm telling you, I'm just happy none of the games we watched were on the West coast. I doubt we all would have made it to the second intermission. If you are getting up earlier, it just makes sense to go to bed earlier as well. Which is funny, because as my mom loves to remind me over and over, I did not sleep very well as a baby. 'You didn't sleep through the night until you were four years old.' is the comment most commonly uttered. With just a dash of anger in it too. It's was twenty eight years ago, I'm sure it's time to move past it. Am I right?
An example of this situation happened earlier this week. I work on Wednesday morning at 2:00. While college kids were closing down the bars, I was headed to work. And, of course, I did not sleep very well the night before. I got maybe two hours of sleep. So I got up, went to work, worked ten and a half hours, and came home. I did not go to sleep right away despite the fact that I was extremely tired because the Tigers game was on television. So I had to stay up because I do not get to see them play all that often. I did fall asleep for a little bit during the game, but I barely missed half an inning. Regardless, I went to bed and thought I was going to sleep in really late the next morning, so I set my alarm for 10:30, just in case. You know what happened? I slept in until 8:30. I was kind of pissed about it, but then realized I got ten hours of sleep because I went to bed relatively early.
So it's not like I'm only getting five or six hours of sleep each night. I am getting more than I use to just because of going to bed earlier than I use to. I still get up around the same time I use to, or close to it. I just make coffee and enjoy being up early these days. For whatever reason. It's not like I am getting up to go work out or do anything productive. Well, some days I'm productive. Maybe if I took time out of each of these early mornings on days off, I will keep up on my goal of writing this year. Whatever. Other days I just sit around, watch a movie or two. It's a wonderful system I have going for me.
35/120
Showing posts with label sleep. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sleep. Show all posts
18 May 2014
06 April 2013
Lazy Morning
This morning I woke up around 7:30. My first thought was 'holy shit it's early'. Then, while I was laying in bed contemplating whether or not I wanted to try to go back to sleep, I realized I had slept for about seven hours. More than my fair share. Six to six and a half hours is normally what I have been getting so anything more than that is awesome. When I sleep for eight hours it is mainly because I had only gotten four or five over the previous three days. So, up and at 'em before 8:00 this morning.
Up to do what exactly? We still are apartment dwellers so I don't have lawn chores to deal with. It's the morning of a closing shift at work so I don't really want to do anything. I did the only thing I could do while trying not to make too much noise. A whole lotta nothing. And let me tell you, it is everything slackers have made it out to be. It's almost like I'm on vacation, but I still know that I have work to do later today. Being productive during the morning when I have to go to work in the afternoon just never sits right with me. I don't know why.
So here I sit on the couch with the television off staring at the computer screen. As long as I'm doing something it does not feel like a wasted morning. I made a pot of coffee. I finished watching a movie. I've listened to some podcasts and some music. I've read through some articles online. I adjusted my fantasy baseball lineups (yes, I do that). And I'm writing this post. This is the extent of my productivity for the morning. Plus, it's a weekend. Everyone is suppose to be a little bit lazy on the weekends. Am I right?
Up to do what exactly? We still are apartment dwellers so I don't have lawn chores to deal with. It's the morning of a closing shift at work so I don't really want to do anything. I did the only thing I could do while trying not to make too much noise. A whole lotta nothing. And let me tell you, it is everything slackers have made it out to be. It's almost like I'm on vacation, but I still know that I have work to do later today. Being productive during the morning when I have to go to work in the afternoon just never sits right with me. I don't know why.
So here I sit on the couch with the television off staring at the computer screen. As long as I'm doing something it does not feel like a wasted morning. I made a pot of coffee. I finished watching a movie. I've listened to some podcasts and some music. I've read through some articles online. I adjusted my fantasy baseball lineups (yes, I do that). And I'm writing this post. This is the extent of my productivity for the morning. Plus, it's a weekend. Everyone is suppose to be a little bit lazy on the weekends. Am I right?
04 January 2012
Sleepless Morning
One of the few times I have the opportunity to sleep in during the week and I was wide awake at three thirty. There haven't been many mornings when I have woken up extremely early and not been able to fall back asleep since moving to Minnesota.
I don't always know what to do with myself at this moment when this happens. There are a few options. I can try to go back to bed. Tossing and turning never leads anywhere and can just infuriate you to the point where you say 'fuck it, I'm getting up.'. This usually works out for me when I have to be to work at six in the morning, I just add some more water to the coffee pot, throw in an extra scoop of coffee smelling Colombian children's tears, start brewing, and browse around the internet or write. It kills a few hours, I go off to work and catch up on sleep that afternoon with a nap or go to bed earlier that evening.
There are mornings when I can't get comfortable in bed and come out to the living room and sleep on the couch. In fact, I might do that after finishing this up. The couch isn't the most comfortable, it isn't the Nap Couch we had at the cabin growing up (my family knows what I'm talking about), but it works for a few more hours of sleep. Even falling asleep on the couch doesn't totally resolve the issue because it isn't a deep and complete sleep to get fully rested for the day ahead. It's like several naps crammed into one.
I know there are some people that read when they can't sleep, but I don't like to go that route. It would wake my brain up even more and not want to go back to sleep. Even typing this, I can feel a part of me getting more and more awake. Reading would kind of do the opposite of trying to get back to sleep. That isn't much of an option.
I will just suffer through a few days of going to bed early to try to regain the sleep I am losing today. Three hours isn't enough for someone closing in on thirty. Hell, I don't even know if a college kid can survive on three hours of sleep and be productive for the next few days.
I don't always know what to do with myself at this moment when this happens. There are a few options. I can try to go back to bed. Tossing and turning never leads anywhere and can just infuriate you to the point where you say 'fuck it, I'm getting up.'. This usually works out for me when I have to be to work at six in the morning, I just add some more water to the coffee pot, throw in an extra scoop of coffee smelling Colombian children's tears, start brewing, and browse around the internet or write. It kills a few hours, I go off to work and catch up on sleep that afternoon with a nap or go to bed earlier that evening.
There are mornings when I can't get comfortable in bed and come out to the living room and sleep on the couch. In fact, I might do that after finishing this up. The couch isn't the most comfortable, it isn't the Nap Couch we had at the cabin growing up (my family knows what I'm talking about), but it works for a few more hours of sleep. Even falling asleep on the couch doesn't totally resolve the issue because it isn't a deep and complete sleep to get fully rested for the day ahead. It's like several naps crammed into one.
I know there are some people that read when they can't sleep, but I don't like to go that route. It would wake my brain up even more and not want to go back to sleep. Even typing this, I can feel a part of me getting more and more awake. Reading would kind of do the opposite of trying to get back to sleep. That isn't much of an option.
I will just suffer through a few days of going to bed early to try to regain the sleep I am losing today. Three hours isn't enough for someone closing in on thirty. Hell, I don't even know if a college kid can survive on three hours of sleep and be productive for the next few days.
03 December 2011
Sleep cycle
I have been trying to break my old sleeping cycle as of late. I have always been under the impression that getting eight hours of sleep each night was more of a guideline than a recommendation, despite what you hear or read. I would shoot to get somewhere between six and seven hours and call it good, but lately I have found myself sleeping in later and having to hurry around the house a little bit before going to work. In an attempt to get to a point where I'm getting between seven and eight hours of sleep each night, I'm trying a few things.
I'm not taking a nap after work. I love naps. Half an hour or forty five minutes zonked out on the couch completely oblivious to the world around. You wake up afterwards and feel refreshed. However, last week these little naps went from being half an hour to an hour long. So what's the big deal? Well, if you fall asleep for your nap around four thirty and wake up an hour later, you feel like you can stay up an hour later that night (at least I did). Before you know it, you're going to bed at eleven o'clock and the alarms goes off at five. Six hours. Not good. Foregoing the nap makes me more tired earlier in the evening and I go to bed earlier and end up crashing hard at nine thirty at night. So, the alarm goes off at five and I'm looking at seven and a half to eight hours of sleep. Boom, problem solved, right?
What about the weekends? Who wants to go to bed at nine thirty on a weekend where you don't have to get up for anything the next day? I certainly don't. So trying to find that right time to go to bed on the weekends has been a little strange. I think some time between ten and eleven works out because it isn't too far from where I am trying to go to bed during the week. Plus, I sleep in so I'm still getting enough sleep where I don't over sleep and can't fall asleep Sunday night before the work week starts.
I feel a bit old manish writing about trying to get more sleep and going to bed earlier in the evening, but at the same time, doesn't more sleep keep you healthy by not getting you run down? I will risk being called an old man and going to bed before ten at night if it means I stay healthy during the winter months. No one likes being sick, and getting enough sleep each night can help out with that, apparently. I never understood why, I have always just gone with it.
I'm not taking a nap after work. I love naps. Half an hour or forty five minutes zonked out on the couch completely oblivious to the world around. You wake up afterwards and feel refreshed. However, last week these little naps went from being half an hour to an hour long. So what's the big deal? Well, if you fall asleep for your nap around four thirty and wake up an hour later, you feel like you can stay up an hour later that night (at least I did). Before you know it, you're going to bed at eleven o'clock and the alarms goes off at five. Six hours. Not good. Foregoing the nap makes me more tired earlier in the evening and I go to bed earlier and end up crashing hard at nine thirty at night. So, the alarm goes off at five and I'm looking at seven and a half to eight hours of sleep. Boom, problem solved, right?
What about the weekends? Who wants to go to bed at nine thirty on a weekend where you don't have to get up for anything the next day? I certainly don't. So trying to find that right time to go to bed on the weekends has been a little strange. I think some time between ten and eleven works out because it isn't too far from where I am trying to go to bed during the week. Plus, I sleep in so I'm still getting enough sleep where I don't over sleep and can't fall asleep Sunday night before the work week starts.
I feel a bit old manish writing about trying to get more sleep and going to bed earlier in the evening, but at the same time, doesn't more sleep keep you healthy by not getting you run down? I will risk being called an old man and going to bed before ten at night if it means I stay healthy during the winter months. No one likes being sick, and getting enough sleep each night can help out with that, apparently. I never understood why, I have always just gone with it.
17 March 2011
Early morning post and St. Patrick's Day
For the first time in quite a while, I woke up way before my alarm went off. There was a two to three month span late last year when I was constantly waking up an hour and a half to two hours before my alarm would be going off. The first couple of times, I thought it was nice to get up early and get some writing taken care of, or watch some shows recorded on the Tivo. Then? Then it got really freaking annoying. I would wake up, and not that slow wake up like you were coming out of a nice eight or nine hours of sleep. Oh no, my eyes would shoot open, I would toss and turn and finally give up and go to the kitchen and put some more water in the coffee maker and turn it on. I might as well pump myself full of natural caffeine to get past not sleeping much. And there were people that would point to the extra coffee as the root to my less sleep, but if I was finished drinking it by one in the afternoon how would that affect my sleep at night?
It is Saint Patrick's Day today. I've written about this in the past and pointed out the fact that I hate that places put green food coloring in beer and call it good. If you are going to support an Irish holiday, you need to drink like an Irishman. Here are my complaints last year. And from two years ago. We'll go even further back to three years past. So there is the obvious theme there. If I lived in a smaller town that had a nice tradition, I would partake. This year, I'm hanging out with a former co-worker. We're going to drink some whiskey at his house and just kick back and relax. Nothing too crazy. Is it because I am getting old? Perhaps. Is it because when I go out to a bar, I would like to have good to great service? Mostly. Packed bars are not fun bars. Who wants to yell and scream just to have a normal conversation? Not I.
If you are going to celebrate the holiday, grab some Irish whiskey or a stout beer and relax at home. It doesn't sound much like celebrating if you are at home, I know, but it is more of recognizing the holiday exists without being out amongst the masses. Call it celebrating the holiday or call it recognizing the holiday, I don't really care. Grab a glass a raise it high and salute a man. Or, salute a people.
It is Saint Patrick's Day today. I've written about this in the past and pointed out the fact that I hate that places put green food coloring in beer and call it good. If you are going to support an Irish holiday, you need to drink like an Irishman. Here are my complaints last year. And from two years ago. We'll go even further back to three years past. So there is the obvious theme there. If I lived in a smaller town that had a nice tradition, I would partake. This year, I'm hanging out with a former co-worker. We're going to drink some whiskey at his house and just kick back and relax. Nothing too crazy. Is it because I am getting old? Perhaps. Is it because when I go out to a bar, I would like to have good to great service? Mostly. Packed bars are not fun bars. Who wants to yell and scream just to have a normal conversation? Not I.
If you are going to celebrate the holiday, grab some Irish whiskey or a stout beer and relax at home. It doesn't sound much like celebrating if you are at home, I know, but it is more of recognizing the holiday exists without being out amongst the masses. Call it celebrating the holiday or call it recognizing the holiday, I don't really care. Grab a glass a raise it high and salute a man. Or, salute a people.
21 January 2011
Worst invention ever
The worst thing ever to be invented is the snooze button. Shake your head or yell about it all you want, you know it is true. How many times have you had to rush around because the snooze button was hit one or two too many times? I'll raise my hand and admit that I have been late a few times to work because I have overslept, but I have also been a little late or almost last because I hit that damned snooze button for just a few more minutes of sleep. But to what benefit is the snooze button? I know that when I hit it too many times and have to rush out the door, and more often than not not get my coffee which is just an awful situation, while I am getting through the day I think back to the morning and think to myself, 'did the alarm go off?'
The simple solution to the situation is just go to bed earlier and get the sleep then as opposed to try and catch up on sleep in the morning when you should be up and getting ready for work, but let's be honest who wants to go to bed earlier than than usual? I worked twice this week at four in the morning and I felt like an old man going to be around nine o'clock at night, but it was smarter than going to bed later and hitting the snooze button repeatedly. Generally speaking, I set my morning alarm about an hour before I have to be at work. It gives me time to drink a cup of coffee and officially wake up before having to be at work. It also allows me to hit that damned snooze button. Just in case I need more sleep. Ten minutes at a time.
I made the analogy to a coworker that the snooze button is like heroin for an addict. You don't want to hit it, but when you do, it feels so great.
The simple solution to the situation is just go to bed earlier and get the sleep then as opposed to try and catch up on sleep in the morning when you should be up and getting ready for work, but let's be honest who wants to go to bed earlier than than usual? I worked twice this week at four in the morning and I felt like an old man going to be around nine o'clock at night, but it was smarter than going to bed later and hitting the snooze button repeatedly. Generally speaking, I set my morning alarm about an hour before I have to be at work. It gives me time to drink a cup of coffee and officially wake up before having to be at work. It also allows me to hit that damned snooze button. Just in case I need more sleep. Ten minutes at a time.
I made the analogy to a coworker that the snooze button is like heroin for an addict. You don't want to hit it, but when you do, it feels so great.
17 December 2010
Holiday music
You know what is awesome about waking up at two in the morning and not being able to fall back asleep? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Am I having deja vu or have I written something very similar to this before? I'm really excited about being up this early because....because.....hmmm...I can't find the words. Oh right, there is NO REASON to be up this early. Bah!
Most people have a favorite Christmas or holiday song that they love to hear over and over again. Whether it is 'Silent Night' or 'Frosty the Snowman' everyone has that one song that they will turn the radio up for. That they will shut their family up for. Leave it to me to pick more than one and it's difficult because there are versions of songs that I prefer over others. For example, I love 'I'll Be Home For Christmas' when it is sung by Bing Crosby (granted, all his Christmas songs are great). Another song that I enjoy is 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'. Now, when the Barenaked Ladies released a version of it, it skyrocketed to the top of my favorites for the season. Before then, it was in the middle somewhere stuck between 'O Holy Night' and 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'. I think one aspect of the BNL version that puts it over the top is Sarah McLachlan. I just enjoy her voice.
Both of those songs are fine no matter who sings them, I just prefer those versions over the other ones that are out there. There are fun holiday songs out there as well as the traditional ones. 'Christmas Wrapping' by the Waitresses (you know them for singing 'I Know What Boys Like') makes me smile. I hadn't heard it until last year, forgot about it, and then heard it again this year. Another fun song is 'I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas'. Another song I hadn't heard up until last year, and another song that just makes you think...well, okay then. It sounds a little creepy when you first hear it but it grows on you.
There aren't too many holiday songs that I really don't enjoy. 'Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree' and 'Jingle Bell Rock' are the two that I just don't like. They are too poppy. I was going to go with too modern, but songs that were written in the fifties don't exactly qualify for modern.
Most people have a favorite Christmas or holiday song that they love to hear over and over again. Whether it is 'Silent Night' or 'Frosty the Snowman' everyone has that one song that they will turn the radio up for. That they will shut their family up for. Leave it to me to pick more than one and it's difficult because there are versions of songs that I prefer over others. For example, I love 'I'll Be Home For Christmas' when it is sung by Bing Crosby (granted, all his Christmas songs are great). Another song that I enjoy is 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'. Now, when the Barenaked Ladies released a version of it, it skyrocketed to the top of my favorites for the season. Before then, it was in the middle somewhere stuck between 'O Holy Night' and 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'. I think one aspect of the BNL version that puts it over the top is Sarah McLachlan. I just enjoy her voice.
Both of those songs are fine no matter who sings them, I just prefer those versions over the other ones that are out there. There are fun holiday songs out there as well as the traditional ones. 'Christmas Wrapping' by the Waitresses (you know them for singing 'I Know What Boys Like') makes me smile. I hadn't heard it until last year, forgot about it, and then heard it again this year. Another fun song is 'I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas'. Another song I hadn't heard up until last year, and another song that just makes you think...well, okay then. It sounds a little creepy when you first hear it but it grows on you.
There aren't too many holiday songs that I really don't enjoy. 'Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree' and 'Jingle Bell Rock' are the two that I just don't like. They are too poppy. I was going to go with too modern, but songs that were written in the fifties don't exactly qualify for modern.
29 November 2010
reposting....kind of
You know what is awesome about waking up three hours before having to go to work? Nothing. Especially when you only get three and a half hours of sleep before waking up and not being able to get back to the gloriousness that is sleeping.
It's funny how there will be random mornings when I wake up super early and find it a little refreshing to be up far enough in advance to get some random stuff done around the apartment. Nothing crazy like cleaning dishes, mostly watching some stuff that has been recorded and I haven't had a chance to watch. Or listen to a podcast or two that have been sitting around just patiently waiting to be heard. I seem to find time to write when I should be asleep as well. Looking at the archives, there are close to ten posts regarding waking up earlier than normal. So this isn't anything new.
There are also the early mornings when I just stare at the television and down a bunch of coffee to get myself going for the day. That is something I am trying to get away from, relying on coffee to get me through the day. The experiment went well. I never felt the ill affects of not having coffee for a little over a week. Not that I expected withdrawal symptoms or anything like that, it was more of a 'can I do it' kind of thing. Knowing that I can makes me feel good about myself. It reminded me of when I would give up alcohol for lent during college. Oh yeah, you read that right. I did it twice and it was really difficult.
The third kind of early mornings are what I call the 'smart mornings'. Simply put, I come out to the living room and sleep on the couch for an hour or two. Normally that happens when I haven't gotten any sleep whatsoever. Those nights when I toss and turn trying to get comfortable and it never works. However, I'll come out to the couch, set my cell phone alarm, and just pass the hell out. A little strange, but I'm never one to turn down a quick nap.
Don't get me wrong, it's going to be a long day today because of the lack of sleep and when I come home I do plan a much needed nap just to stay up a little later. The good thing is knowing that tomorrow morning I can sleep in and laze around the house because of the day off.
It's funny how there will be random mornings when I wake up super early and find it a little refreshing to be up far enough in advance to get some random stuff done around the apartment. Nothing crazy like cleaning dishes, mostly watching some stuff that has been recorded and I haven't had a chance to watch. Or listen to a podcast or two that have been sitting around just patiently waiting to be heard. I seem to find time to write when I should be asleep as well. Looking at the archives, there are close to ten posts regarding waking up earlier than normal. So this isn't anything new.
There are also the early mornings when I just stare at the television and down a bunch of coffee to get myself going for the day. That is something I am trying to get away from, relying on coffee to get me through the day. The experiment went well. I never felt the ill affects of not having coffee for a little over a week. Not that I expected withdrawal symptoms or anything like that, it was more of a 'can I do it' kind of thing. Knowing that I can makes me feel good about myself. It reminded me of when I would give up alcohol for lent during college. Oh yeah, you read that right. I did it twice and it was really difficult.
The third kind of early mornings are what I call the 'smart mornings'. Simply put, I come out to the living room and sleep on the couch for an hour or two. Normally that happens when I haven't gotten any sleep whatsoever. Those nights when I toss and turn trying to get comfortable and it never works. However, I'll come out to the couch, set my cell phone alarm, and just pass the hell out. A little strange, but I'm never one to turn down a quick nap.
Don't get me wrong, it's going to be a long day today because of the lack of sleep and when I come home I do plan a much needed nap just to stay up a little later. The good thing is knowing that tomorrow morning I can sleep in and laze around the house because of the day off.
08 November 2010
Vacation v. 'Vacation'
I finally have a day off tomorrow. I have worked six days in a row, which is normal and that isn't the problem. The problem is that we were on vacation during the previous weekend. During my normal weekends off I do a ton of nothing more often than not. It's a nice 'vacation' from work. It gives me time to relax and gain some extra sleep from the week. I don't have too stressful of a job, but there are weeks when I am just drained by the time my days off come around.
Then there are vacations. Actual vacations. They are nice to get away for some time but by the time the vacation is done, I'm wanting a day or two off just to recuperate from the overall traveling. Take this last vacation for example. I traveled for eleven hours. Driving for five hours and flying for another six. Then, I had to turn around and get to work the next morning. I got six hours of sleep and haven't really stopped since. This will be my first day off since.....19 October. I worked eight days in a row before we left. I didn't do a ton of stuff while on vacation, but the fact remains, I didn't have a day of lazing around from waking up to going to sleep.
'Vacation' from the working world and actual vacations are two different beasts. Actual vacations are nice because you get away from your daily troubles. 'Vacations' from work are wonderful because you get fully recharged from your daily life.
Then there are vacations. Actual vacations. They are nice to get away for some time but by the time the vacation is done, I'm wanting a day or two off just to recuperate from the overall traveling. Take this last vacation for example. I traveled for eleven hours. Driving for five hours and flying for another six. Then, I had to turn around and get to work the next morning. I got six hours of sleep and haven't really stopped since. This will be my first day off since.....19 October. I worked eight days in a row before we left. I didn't do a ton of stuff while on vacation, but the fact remains, I didn't have a day of lazing around from waking up to going to sleep.
'Vacation' from the working world and actual vacations are two different beasts. Actual vacations are nice because you get away from your daily troubles. 'Vacations' from work are wonderful because you get fully recharged from your daily life.
14 August 2010
Catching up
While I have been dealing with this little cold, I have trying to catch up on sleep. That is the best way I have found to deal with being sick, other than taking medicine. Here's the problem, I've been doing stuff other than work. Of course that happens. When I don't get sick I can come home and nap and have relaxing evenings. Oh no, not when I'm sick. Plans come out of the wood work for socializing and outings while I'm sick.
Wednesday afternoon we went out to the movies and then met up with some friends for dinner. Thursday I went to work and did get in a twenty minute nap before going out for a work related outing. Friday, I worked and when I got home went to get measured for my tux for my brother's wedding and returned some clothes. After that, we went to a friend's house for dinner.
It's exhausting doing these little things when you are sick, even if it is just a cold. I wish I were still in elementary school so I could have my mom call and tell them I would not be there for a few days. All I want to do is sleep this off, but I want and need to get paid, so I go to work.
*Fourth post of the one hundred degree plus posts*
Wednesday afternoon we went out to the movies and then met up with some friends for dinner. Thursday I went to work and did get in a twenty minute nap before going out for a work related outing. Friday, I worked and when I got home went to get measured for my tux for my brother's wedding and returned some clothes. After that, we went to a friend's house for dinner.
It's exhausting doing these little things when you are sick, even if it is just a cold. I wish I were still in elementary school so I could have my mom call and tell them I would not be there for a few days. All I want to do is sleep this off, but I want and need to get paid, so I go to work.
*Fourth post of the one hundred degree plus posts*
12 November 2009
To sleep or not to sleep
It doesn't happen very often, but there are nights when I cannot sleep. Or I will fall asleep for three or four hours and won't be able to get back to sleep. It is a matter of comfort. Tossing and turning in bed just gets irritating, and I will usually hunker down on the couch until it is time to go to work. I can get a few more hours of sleep on the couch (it is more like a two in the morning nap).
And then there are the nights like today. I woke up and tried to fall back asleep (failed), went out to the couch to try to get a few hours of sleep (failed), and just dealt with it. Such is life as long as this does not become a regular thing. If I can't get to sleep in about twenty minutes after getting comfortable on the couch, it is over. I won't try to get back to sleep. I can handle not having a full six to eight hours of sleep. There is always afternoon naps.
I am making the best of my extra few hours of being awake, mainly typing this and drink some coffee. After curtailing the amount of coffee I drink during the week, Thursday mornings are more of a treat than anything. It is the earliest I have to be up and to work during the week and is really the only time I make coffee anymore. On occasion, I will make some on my off weekends, but I am more intent on catching up on sleep from the previous week that by the time I get up, it is late morning or early afternoon. That time doesn't really warrant coffee.
I wouldn't come out and say I was dependent on coffee to get me through the day a few months ago, but I could tell when I didn't have any. I would be dragging ass near the end of the work day and would come home and nap for an hour or two.
Okay, maybe I was a little dependent. But at least I didn't get the shakes or cold sweats.
And then there are the nights like today. I woke up and tried to fall back asleep (failed), went out to the couch to try to get a few hours of sleep (failed), and just dealt with it. Such is life as long as this does not become a regular thing. If I can't get to sleep in about twenty minutes after getting comfortable on the couch, it is over. I won't try to get back to sleep. I can handle not having a full six to eight hours of sleep. There is always afternoon naps.
I am making the best of my extra few hours of being awake, mainly typing this and drink some coffee. After curtailing the amount of coffee I drink during the week, Thursday mornings are more of a treat than anything. It is the earliest I have to be up and to work during the week and is really the only time I make coffee anymore. On occasion, I will make some on my off weekends, but I am more intent on catching up on sleep from the previous week that by the time I get up, it is late morning or early afternoon. That time doesn't really warrant coffee.
I wouldn't come out and say I was dependent on coffee to get me through the day a few months ago, but I could tell when I didn't have any. I would be dragging ass near the end of the work day and would come home and nap for an hour or two.
Okay, maybe I was a little dependent. But at least I didn't get the shakes or cold sweats.
15 October 2009
Early morning activity
I have given up on being upset when I can't sleep. I woke up today at three thirty (that's a.m.). Wide awake. Don't know why. Thought about turning over and going back to sleep, but decided to get up and put some extra water in the coffee maker. I don't have to work until six this morning, so the option of sleep was there. I will justify it this way: if I went back to sleep, I could over sleep my alarm and be late for work. I'll go with that.
Normally if I wake up a few hours early and feel extra tired, I'll curl up on the couch and get in something resembling a nap. I do this because when I wake up really early I have a tendency to toss and turn in bed, and that makes for an angry wife. And no one wants that.
I have gotten some things done while being up. I took a shower. Listened to a podcast (Art of Manliness has started podcasts and they are great). Got my fantasy football (nerd) groove on. Now, come about ten or eleven o'clock this morning I may regret not going back to sleep but I'm good for the morning.
I feel a big fat nap coming my way right around three o'clock this afternoon. That is when I will catch up on the sleep I missed out on this morning.
Normally if I wake up a few hours early and feel extra tired, I'll curl up on the couch and get in something resembling a nap. I do this because when I wake up really early I have a tendency to toss and turn in bed, and that makes for an angry wife. And no one wants that.
I have gotten some things done while being up. I took a shower. Listened to a podcast (Art of Manliness has started podcasts and they are great). Got my fantasy football (nerd) groove on. Now, come about ten or eleven o'clock this morning I may regret not going back to sleep but I'm good for the morning.
I feel a big fat nap coming my way right around three o'clock this afternoon. That is when I will catch up on the sleep I missed out on this morning.
23 September 2009
Sleep catch up and frolfing
One great thing about working Tuesday night is not having to work the next day. I have also been going out for a couple of hours with some work friends and grabbing a few cheap beers at a local establishment. So by the time I get home it is close to one in the morning. Sounds late, but it is only two hours after we get done with work. Normally on Tuesday night going into Wednesday I get about six or seven hours of sleep, but not last night. I got ten (TEN!) hours of sleep. I woke up at eleven this morning. It was wonderful.
The only thing I did today was go frisbee golfing. Something fun and relaxing. It doesn't take a lot of skill, but it takes concentration from time to time. It is difficult to make the disc go in a straight line and go about two hundred feet every throw. That is the fun in it as well, trying to get better at it. I have just recently started throwing in a forehand motion (the same motion in the picture I took of Marc earlier this year at the Colwich golf course). It may not make sense to people who don't play the game, but there is a big difference in the game. My wrist will definitely be sour as opposed to my shoulder. It is nice to get outside and just hang out with a few friends for an hour or so and have a purpose to throwing a frisbee.
The only thing I did today was go frisbee golfing. Something fun and relaxing. It doesn't take a lot of skill, but it takes concentration from time to time. It is difficult to make the disc go in a straight line and go about two hundred feet every throw. That is the fun in it as well, trying to get better at it. I have just recently started throwing in a forehand motion (the same motion in the picture I took of Marc earlier this year at the Colwich golf course). It may not make sense to people who don't play the game, but there is a big difference in the game. My wrist will definitely be sour as opposed to my shoulder. It is nice to get outside and just hang out with a few friends for an hour or so and have a purpose to throwing a frisbee.
30 May 2009
sleep cycle
It seems like that no matter what I do to try to catch up on sleep, it doesn't work. I get to bed super early at night to get an extra hour here, an extra hour there to make up for the four or five hours of sleep I got the previous night. Doesn't happen. I was in bed by nine thirty(ish) last night, and was asleep before my head hit the pillow. If I had slept straight through to my alarm going off this morning, it would have been seven hour. SEVEN! That is huge. But, I woke up a little after three. So five and a half hours of sleep. Not bad, but seven hours would have been exquisite.
All of my family, I am sure, is (are?) surprised at this whole up and at work before the sun is up situation. I am not a morning person. At all. Never have been. They know it. People at work are now aware of it as well. I could get nine or ten hours of sleep the previous night, I will still be quite and somewhat cranky.
I did get a nice nap in yesterday after work. Close to two hours, that helped out a lot. This is how I really make up for the hour or two that I wake up early before my alarm. It is a good system. I nap on the couch, which could have it's disadvantages, but it helps to keep the nap time at a minimum. If I were to nap in the bedroom with the nice fluffy pillows and warm blankets and darkness, I may sleep for four or five hours. I would then be in a world of hurt. Sure I would gain the sleep back, but I would not be able to fall back asleep at the normal time at night.
I have found a solution to being tired. It is a tried and true solution that people have used for centuries. Coffee. Joe. Java. Mud. Morning tar. (et al.). The addictive morning drink that keeps me going through the day. I love me some coffee. I never understood my parents need to have it made every Christmas morning before we opened presents. I understand now. Can I get through the day without it? Yes. Should I? No. No one wants to see that. I don't get the shakes or have bugs crawling under my skin, it isn't that bad.
It is one vicious cycle. Finding the balance of night sleep, and afternoon nap sleep is critical. I find that happy medium every once in a while, but it is quite elusive.
07 May 2009
Waste of a day
I worked overnight on Monday and Tuesday to get a bunch of stuff that needed to be done done. It was nice in the fact that I did not have to deal with people asking questions, be annoying, or just getting in the way. So my sleep schedule got a little screwed up, but not to the point where I am wide awake at one in the morning.
Wednesday morning I got back home a little after seven in the morning and promptly went to bed. Fell asleep a little bit later and woke up at two thirty. A nice, college student type time to get up. The best part, I think, is that I went back to bed six hours later. Oh yes my friends, I was up Wednesday for six hours. Even though I got a decent amount of sleep in the morning, I still had to force myself to go to sleep at my normal time so I could get back on my normal sleeping pattern.
Now, it is eight o'clock at night and I need to get ready for bed again at an early hour. Why? I have to work in eight hours. Four in the morning.
*Whoo whoo* They should be up cooking breakfast.
21 April 2009
counterproductive planning
I have been very tired and run down lately, something I attribute to work. Early mornings and no naps afterwards...bad combination. So I figured I would try to get a head of the game and go to bed an hour earlier than usual, which meant about 8:30, read for a little bit, and then fall asleep. I would wake up around five o'clock with close to eight hours of sleep, something I haven't had on a work day in a very long time. The first part went great. Fell asleep as soon as my head it the pillow, but my body had other plans for the morning.
It is apparent this early morning, that my body doesn't want eight hours of sleep, it only wants about seven. In the grand scheme of things, one hour is not a big deal, but on a day to day level, it really is. So instead of waking up around five, it was four o'clock. Wide awake. Fantastic. On the other hand, it did allow me to make some more coffee, download some podcasts, update my fantasy baseball teams, write this, and watch the weather.
But I would have enjoyed that last hour of sleep.
18 October 2008
It's offical
I am old. It is ten to nine at night and I am ready for bed. And not the 'ready for bed' meaning going and reading for an hour. I could go lie in bed and fall asleep.
Work definitely took it's toll on me this week. It was one of those weeks when everything seemed to go wrong. I fixed what I could and was asked why I didn't fix what I didn't have time to fix. Assholes.
I think I'm gonna finish watching this inning of baseball and I am calling it a night.
26 September 2008
Early morning post
It is twenty minutes past the two o'clock hour....in the morning. This is early. Too early. Bars are just closing down. For those of you who have never seen it soberly, yes, two o'clock in the morning exists.
There are some days that I hate my job, for example, today. Because it is two in the morning. I work at four, but couldn't fall back asleep after I woke up close to one thirty. I suppose I could have gone back to sleep, but that makes it harder to wake back up.
I find that happens quite a bit. If I wake up close to an hour before my alarm goes off and I turn over and go back to sleep, it is harder to get back up. So the coffee pot is on and it is making that which gets me through days like today. Mmmmmm.....tasty addictions.
All I know is that right around noon today, I will be coming home and taking a nice big fat long nap on the couch.
26 August 2008
sleepless
Listening to Down by 311
I've been up way too long. It's been close to thirty two hours. I went and did inventory last night and it went well (for once, it seems). The one bad thing about inventory is that I leave and have to turn around and come back in eight hours later. That doesn't sound that bad, but it is just draining. There isn't a whole lot of sleep in between leaving and coming back. So I asked my boss if I could just stay for a double shift. After a little bit of debating internally in her head, she agreed to it. It was just about the best thing. I got a shit ton of stuff done that normally wouldn't have been done. It is amazing how much can get done when no one bugs you.
So I was just exhausted while I was working. My only thought was that I couldn't wait to get back to the apartment and sleep. But I just wanted a nap, not a long sleep on the bed. But I laid down on the couch and couldn't fall asleep. And that is never an issue when I come home after a normal day. It is odd. So I can't wait until tonight so I can get some sleep back.
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