Wednesday, June 26, 2019

The Night Owl

Image result for night owlRemember the time-honored college ritual of pulling all-nighters during finals week? I don't, because I could never stay up that late. By the time midnight rolled around, I'd be asleep with my head on the desk, my face squashed into an open textbook. I've just never been a late-night person. If I don't get something done by eight o'clock p.m., it's for sure not going to happen that day.

I know people who are very productive in the hours between nine and midnight. (Anyone who is busy after midnight is probably a vampire.) They revel in the quiet as they knit or scrapbook or bake or--let's be real here--fold a week's worth of laundry. Whenever I hear of these feats, I feel a little foolish that I spent the same period of time asleep in my bed like a slacker.

So I wondered if, for a week, I could somehow rustle up a bit of night owl energy. I aimed to use those bonus hours for the same kind of quiet productivity I imagine Martha Stewart engages in when she's in her human form. Basically, that meant not sitting around playing on my phone or watching Netflix, but actually doing something.

I'm not going to lie, the first night was rough. I had woken up at 3:30 that morning for no apparent reason, and by the time 11:30 rolled around, I was dead on my feet. (But not un-dead like that vampire Martha.)  The second night, I cruised--reading and writing and practicing calligraphy. The hours flew by, and I timed things so perfectly that my head hit the pillow at exactly midnight.

That's when the Second Wind kicked in. "Oh," my body said, "you want to be awake? Let's be awake! I'll pencil you in for a few hours of sleep starting at 2 a.m."

After a bumpy start to the week, I got better at staying up. I made good progress in a couple of books I've been wanting to read and got some writing done. And although I was more tired during the day (Siesta Fiesta, anyone?), I didn't feel as sleep-deprived as I thought I might. All in all, I learned I can pretend to be a night owl on occasion and not suffer too many ill effects.

But I am so, so ready to go back to my 10:00 bedtime. Late(ish) night is quiet and peaceful, but it's also kind of boring and lonely. Plus, the dog was confused, and I discovered that a midnight snack is an actual thing.

Sorry, vampires! This week's Take It or Leave It is a Leave It.

Image result for Martha Stewart vampire
I told you! Total vampire.






2 comments:

  1. 11pm is my tilting point. That's when I zonk, but if I can push through my 11pm wall I get my second wind and can stay up all night.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ugh, that second wind is killer!

    ReplyDelete