Sunday, November 02, 2008

Fall back

I'm not among those who whine and complain and develop conspiracy theories in March, when our clocks 'spring forward' one momentous Saturday night and the whole time zone collectively 'loses' an hour of sleep. I keep my eyes on the prize, and the prize is more daylight, when I need it--which is to say, after supper, rather than at 5am. So I am never really that excited when the clocks 'fall back' in early November: I am, mostly*, just really grateful that we do this now three or four weeks later than we used to, so that the grim months of daycare pickups in the dark are that much shortened.

Still, I have to say: what a great thing it was to drag my sorry self into bed at 10:30 last night, to read a new book for half an hour, and then, just before turning out the light, to roll the digital readout back to 10pm. And then I slept, uninterrupted by dreams or nightmares or babies or husbands or insomnia, until 7am.

If you're counting--and believe me, I am counting--that's 9 hours of sleep, all in a row. Such a bounty of unbroken hours of sleep does not often grace my life. In fact, I write a lot here about not sleeping. What a difference it makes to my day. It is, actually, amazing to me how changed I am--my mood, my reflexes, my outlook on life, my patience, my cognition, my laughs--when I, on these rare occasions, sleep through a whole night.

To whit: today, I had a little reunion with two of my good friends from pregnant-lady-yoga, from three years ago. We used to get together with our wee babies and drink tea while they lay inert on the carpet. Well. Mom #1 has had a second, so she arrived with husband, 2 year old, and 1 year old in tow. Mom #2 has sponsored her husband's children from his first marriage to emigrate to Canada, so she arrived with four children swirling around her like a autumn leaves in a gale: aged 2, 7, 9, 10. If you're counting--and believe me, I am counting--that's seven kids and 5 adults. For a good long while we perched in the attic playroom, distant repository of toys too noisy and annoying for everyday use. Their volume did not dim in the cacophany of 14 kid hands bashing them about.

After they all left? A faint buzz in my ears, as after a rock concert, and a good feeling. I enjoyed it.

Lemme tell you, if it hadn't been for that extra hour, and that gift from the gods of insomnia that let me use it fruitfully, it might have been a different story.

And now, if you don't mind, I'll be falling back into either my bed or big glass of wine, or some sequence of both.
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* I say 'mostly' because now that it's still Daylight Savings Time until after Halloween? The toddlers have to head out trick-or-treating while it's still daylight, and that's no good at all.

10 comments:

Beck said...

I am SO happy about the time change right now - it's been BRUTAL getting up for the past couple of weeks, and this should make a big difference. I write, hopefully.

Kyla said...

I never notice a change with the time, is that strange?

Glad you had a full night's sleep and a good noisy day with friends.

alejna said...

Sleep is a wonderful thing. It is really amazing the difference it can make for mood (and those other things, as you say) when you get enough of it.

I've long been one who's resentful of the whole time change business. I mean, I'm happy to get that extra hour once a year. But pissed as hell when it gets taken away from me in the Spring.

Run ANC said...

I spent a YEAR trying to get the Little Guy to sleep till 7am, and now he's up at 6am. Boo.

Patti said...

So glad you slept!!

I don't like losing the hour in the spring, since I work long days on Sundays. One year it happened on Easter weekend - my busiest weekend of the year - that was lousy.

But to gain an hour before a Sunday - that is truly heavenly!

Jenifer said...

I agree that there is nothing so great than a goods night sleep. I have been in the lovely habit of waking up to pee around 4 or 5am and not being able to go back to sleep which is horrible. I am cranky and tired for the rest of the day.

The past few nights though have been better and what a difference! I hope your sleeping hours stay this way too!

hoppytoddle said...

Yes. I was putting the flour & baking supplies away last night before bed & a palmetto bug (giant flying cockroach) was hiding under a bag of granola. When I tried to vaccumn it up I ended up 1) waking husband 2)catching the bag of granola & 3) getting granola everywhere all over my freshly cleaned kitchen & living room. I couldn't sleep after the skeeviness of having that bug in our house, let alone pantry. Now taking a grumpy 3yo to the park on 5 hours of sleep. Wish me luck.

Amy Urquhart said...

NINE HOURS! You deserve some sort of sleep medal or something. Woo-hoo!

Jennifer (ponderosa) said...

We must be further north than you, or else trick-or-treat later, because it was pitch black when my kids went out at 6:30pm.

Here, I don't see the point of daylight savings. By midwinter's eve it is dark when we head to work/school and dark when we return.

You got some sleep! Hoorah! Hoorah!

ewe are here said...

9 hours sleep in a row? Wow! Fabulous!

And I HATE picking up my boy from nursery/preschool in the dark. It's horrible.