sleepless

That last post was kind of depressing so here's a related comic I found to lighten the mood :) I found it at this site http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=1079
Enjoy!

To Sleep Perchance to Dream

I think we all can agree that sleep is pretty awesome. It renews us, it provides us with inspiration, but what about when it evades us? It's almost 5am here in Canada and I am still awake - tired, but awake. I've always had a love/hate relationship with sleep. When I was a kid I hated to go to bed but who doesn't actually love to sleep - I loved to sleep then and I still love to sleep but I'm not sure how very fond sleep is of me.
In December I finally got tired of my sleepless nights and decided to go and speak to a doctor about my problem. I was then formally diagnosed with insomnia and very luckily managed to get an appointment at a sleep clinic a few days later.
That was an interesting experience I can tell you - hooked up to all those wires....you'd think that would make it even more difficult to sleep but remarkably I did sleep that night.
However, it is now months later and I'm still waiting to hear the results of that sleep test and I am still having enormous trouble sleeping at night. I feel like I'm being driven ever-so-slowly mad.
It's very frustrating. I should explain though I can sleep - just not at night. I usually end up nodding off around 7 or 8am and sleeping well into the afternoon. As you might expect this rather interrupts my life - especially those 9am classes.
Still more frustrating though is the information out there about sleep. Stumbling on the internet I've read article after article talking about good sleep hygiene - about how you should only use your bed for sleep and sex and that you should have nothing in your room except what you need to sleep - no distractions around you. And I can't help wondering if good sleep isn't a luxury of the wealthy. My apartment has a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom - I live in my bed and we can't afford anything bigger at the moment. So now what?
Well then the next question they ask is what keeps you up at night? Worries? Well, you must do away with those, pesky things you know - believe me, if I could live a worry free life I would but that's not likely to happen. So they tell you to de-stress before you go to bed and all manner of other things. Don't drink pop for at least 8 hours before you go to bed and nothing sweet....
I'm complaining now I think but I am so tired.
Anyways, I did come across one interesting article though from the perspective of another night owl. It discussed the idea that not all of humanity is necessarily hard-wired for the day time. Isn't it possible that some people are meant to be awake at night? And this got me to thinking about how much society really has an influence on our lives. How many people live in this sort of haze because they're trying to conform to normal standards of living? I wonder. Nevermind though, just the ramblings of a very sleepy woman. I think I'll try and entice sleep to come and pay me a visit. Nighty night for now.

Nine Lives Indeed

For whatever reason, cats seem to be blessed with outrageous luck and our cat Bagheera is no exception. Today, for the second time in about a month he jumped on top of my computer monitor only to fall off and have the monitor come tumbling down after him - it is a very heavy monitor! Both times I was sure Bagheera was about to be crushed to death or severely injured and both times a black blur whizzed by mere nanoseconds after the monitor hit the ground. Asides from a tail that was now twice its size - Bagheera really didn't appear any different - and that's the miracle of the cat.
I never really understood about the myth of cats having 9 lives but I think I get it now - and I think Bagheera's used up two of his. When I was a kid I used to think this myth was talking about reincarnation but now I think it's really referring to those close-calls so typical of a cat. But it got me to thinking about some of my own close-calls - those heart-stopping moments when everybody holds their breath - how many lives have I used up? How many lives do I have left? At least a cat knows their numbers.
"Luck never gives; it only lends"

Introducing the King Hellion

Wanted: Bagheera

Crimes: too many to list ... and they'll give you nightmares

Favourite Hobbies: eating toes, swiping at hands that innocently dangle over the edge of the bed, stalking the dog, owning the dog in "play" fighting, violently commandeering the laundry basket

Most likely to be found in any location he is forbidden to go including the bathroom, the laundry basket, the linen pile, on top of the computer, on top of the tv, and the list annoyingly continues

Weapons of choice: razor-sharp claws he insists on sharpening on wall-corners instead of his cat house and cat-tree and fangs to put a saber-toothed tiger to shame

Greatest weakness: an occasional desire to cuddle and involunatrily mewing cutely thereby forcing me to cuddle him

Most evil tendency: sneaking under the covers thereby slowing the speed of escape as he attacks the feet and legs of both Banana Number 2 and myself

Feel free to approach this cat and pet him but be weary - he tires of petting very quickly and new hands to maul are such a novelty

Introducing the Newest Little Hellion

Wanted: Loki

Crimes: Using the kitchen as his personal toilet

Favourite Hobbies: chasing snowballs which magically disappear when they hit the ground, jumping into the air and trying to eat giant snowflakes, pulling the cat around by his tail

Most likely to be found in Banana Number 2's spot in the bed - even if he just got up for a second

Weapons of choice: whining and "puppy-dog eyes"

Greatest weakness: an unquenchable love of cuddling

Please approach this dog with care since he is still weary of all strangers - especially snowmen and statues