Tuesday, January 5, 2010

To sleep, perchance to dream...

Usually I have no problem sleeping. Every so often a gremlin gets in and mucks up the works and causes me issues, but generally Morpheus and I are like *THIS*.

The last few nights have been CA-RAZZY in my head. Two nights ago I woke up every hour beginning at 1:30 or so. When I did sleep, the dreams were bizarre and not in the least restful. Last night I slept, until 2:50am when Poncho, the littlest of the Schnauzers, woke me up whining and crying downstairs. When that happens you get down there as fast as possible because something either has happened or is about to happen in the crate that you do NOT want to clean up. Turns out this was a "has happened" evening. But then he launched himself outside to do more of whatever he needed to do. 20 minutes later I had cleaned up what I could, taken the dog bed out and replaced it with blankets and was back in bed. To sleep fitfully for the next two hours.

The dreaming is the kicker. I have always had very vivid dreams. Much of the time I am not left feeling very rested. I work hard in my dreams, and sometimes it is related to real life stuff, but a lot of the time it is fantastical and bizarre. I will not attempt to reconstruct any for you, as that never goes over well. And dreams are funny. They can be so crystal clear as you are having them, but as soon as you try to find the words to describe them, the images disappear like fog burning off in the sun. I know it was there just a minute ago. It was, I don't know...foggy. With a bit of extra fuzz, and the color of...fog. I swear, it was WEIRD.

The thing I do enjoy about the few times I can't sleep well is listening to the night. Night in the winter is so different from night in the summer. During the winter, at least around New England when there is a foot of snow on the ground, everything is muffled, like you are hearing the sounds through a pillow. Cars squeak by on the road, wind is harsh and makes things snap. In the summer, sounds are clearer, you hear the crickets and frogs chirping, and because of the humidity you often feel just slightly drunk even when you have had nothing to drink. The wind is different, because of the leaves, which are absent in the winter, making so much noise.

I do like sleeping better though. I don't function very well on a cognitive or patience level without adequate sleep under my belt. So here's hoping as the full moon continues to wane I will get more, restful sleep. Full moons always make me more wakeful no matter what time of the year or season. Good night moon.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

I have not been sleeping well for the last couple of nights either...NOT COOL...hopefully it's the moon thing!

Wenderina said...

What a great post - although I'm sorry about your sleep patterns. You described the problem of trying to capture and describe dreams so well. It all seems so logical until you open your mouth to speak it! I like to put a cool damp washcloth on my eyes when I can't sleep. Sometimes the downside is you wake up with a wet washcloth in your bed, but most of the time it just relaxes me. Also - there are those benadryl melting strips in a pinch.

dubiousma said...

I'm not sleeping well because my sister and 8 mo. old nephew are in town and staying with me for a week...I forgot what it is to have a baby in the house!!!! LOL....loving it though.