[Note: Due to lack of sleep over the past few weeks, this post will be out of the ordinary. No links, no commentary on the dwindling rights of smokers, no pandering to other bloggers. Just a look at my day off.--SoT]
Around three in the morning yesterday, my eyes focused on the blue LED clock counting down to the inevitable screech of the alarm, conspiracy theories pouring out of the radio, I knew that I'd reached the end of my storage of energy reserves. By the time six a.m. rolled around, I'd slept about an hour, my head pounding, I got out of bed to see if I could stir myself into work mode. Nothing. I needed sleep.
By 6:15, the morning blogs checked, the post made, I gave in. Thursday would be a day of rest. A day to catch up on sleep, to get rid of cobwebs. All of the typical guilt, the meetings I would miss, the fact that I would have a long weekend, but I couldn't force myself to the shower.
So that was the plan: sleep.
The reality was different.
6:30 - 7:30 am: Elaine gets ready for work. Never a time to try to sleep what with all the closet opening, the frantic dog worried about the impending departure of his mommy, the dread that I would have a "to do" list given to me. All but the latter, so I stayed in bed, feeling my eyes getting heavy, anticipating the moment when I would drift off.
7:30 - 9:00 am: Can't get to sleep. I keep thinking about work, so I log on to my email account and check to see if anything needs my attention. Luckily, no fires, but I send out a few cautionary missives, some reminders to my fellow supervisors, an event for my work calendar. By 8:15 I'm back in bed, but MSNBC has my attention. Usually when I'm home and trying to sleep, I turn on the news. Nothing works better than a humdrum news day (or golf).
9:00 - 11:30 am: I think I fell asleep for about 15 minutes, but I'm not sure. I keep thinking about the BBQ rib my brother let me sample yesterday. By San Diego standards, it was damn good, and the joint not far from my work. I wonder what's in the kitchen for lunch. Then the window of sleep opportunity slams shut. The lawn guys arrive. Lawn mowers, weed eaters, and blowers.
11:30 am - 12:30 pm: Toaster Scramblers. Cheese, egg, and bacon. Four of them and I'm still hungry. In fact, I wish I'd gone for the tuna salad. I burned the last of the scramblers. I get hooked on the College Softball World Series. Why?
12:30 - 2:00 pm: I force myself back into bed. I drift off for seconds only to be jolted back to deprivation by a noise that can only be described as unnecessarily loud, especially when accompanied by the barking of my wannabe watch dog. City of San Diego tree trimmers parked in the driveway eyeing the half-dead palm that leaned dangerously toward power lines. Out came the chain saws, down went the palm. Sleep, ah precious sleep.
2:00 pm - 4:00 pm: The tree disposed off, dogs napping, softball game over, perfect time to see if I can accomplish my day's one goal. Lester Holt does his job, and within the first half-hour, I'm out. Then the last of the days disturbances arrives a block away: street maintenance. Street maintenance full of jack hammers and back hoes. It's not fair.
4:00 pm: I give up. The Braves-Phillies game starts. My brother's girlfriend Nina (thanks Nina) brings me a cup of coffee. O well.
I'm back at work now. Stacks have sprouted from every corner of my office and I have a short day to try and get some of this done. It's really quiet here...too quiet.
Thank you, good sir. I've been trying to find some way to get my mind to understand the purpose of a holiday weekend. It's always been extremely difficult for me to relax. But you, good sir, have put things into perspective. And I shall spend the next four days doing almost nothing of substance, save reading, a bit of writing, and the like. (See? Can't stop working. Hopefully, the Mabuse main squeeze and the Liverpudlian will set things right.)
Posted by: Dr. Mabuse | May 28, 2004 at 12:50 PM
My pleasure.
Posted by: Jeff | May 31, 2004 at 05:40 PM