Curled up, warm
Asleep again
He makes his bed
And lies on it.
Comfortable and safe
Neat fur, aligned
With patterned covers.
Crochet and Cat
Cheery view
Asleep and snoring.
Asleep
Tag: Sleep
Tired
How are you feeling right now?
I tried to draw a cat yawning, which made me realise how tired I am at the moment.
If I were a cat I’d have yawned and fallen asleep by now. But I’m doing things, I’ve just eaten my evening meal, and I’m going to be doing things till well after midnight.
But cats have more sense. They come in when they are hungry or cold. They curl up on your lap, or in a little quiet place, a cat bed, or a chair, and then they get up and go out when they have rested. I read somewhere that cats sleep for up to 16 hours a day? I get by on barely 5 usually. Sometimes I’ll catch up. But these last few weeks have tired me out. I realise sleeping on the settee doesn’t help, but I still can’t climb stairs. I wish I could trans(mogg)rify into a cat! I’d get all the rest I need.
Hangover!
I was looking through Facebook and saw this image about hangovers and sleeping after drinking heavily. I decided to post anyway because I like the image.
But when I checked the word hangover on Snopes.com it said it does NOT come from people sleeping over ropes in Victorian times. It’s a false claim which is a shame because it sounds right. Even this image of people hanging over the ropes seems to reinforce the idea.
Look up hangover on Wikipedia and it generates all sorts of infotainment, especially if you look for ‘hangover meaning’. Including comedy films and hangover cures. Luckily I’m not suffering from one. (A build up of toxins following the consumption of excess alcohol or other poisons).
Random
Falling asleep with my finger on the screen of the Sketchbook app on my phone. I’d chose a smudge and soft pastel app. I started with an image in mind, but I woke up from my doze a few times and saw the straggly pattern developing! I could have worked on it but just let the ‘process’ carry on.
It is entirely random and I can alter angles and colours and opacity if I want to. But I like the idea of having no volition over it, making it really random.
Sleep where art thou?
My head nods forwards or sideways and suddenly I wake with a jump. I’m sitting in an armchair propped up with cushions. I’m a one level person at the moment, living room, kitchen, bathroom. No escape from a forty foot long pathway to nowhere. I can’t climb upstairs yet and the step out the back door or out the front are non negotiable even with crutches.
Hobbled is a thing that people do to stop horses wandering off, I think they tie a couple of their legs together to stop them running away.
I feel hobbled as I shuffle through the house. Jacob Marley with all his tangled chains couldn’t go much slower than I am at the moment. Then a cat will create an amusing barrier, wanting it’s tummy tickled or just to let me know it’s there. The nightly perambulation of a cat is interesting but inexplicable. In, out, in with a little purr… Crunch biscuits or eat wet cat food, out again. I’m up and down to the bathroom frequently. I have to guess when I will need to use it as it takes about five minutes to walk there.
Dawn is coming up in about two hours. If I put the radio on low I might drift off. Otherwise I’ll watch a bright dawn come up on one side of the house and the sun set behind the big hill about 9pm on the other.
Sleepy but not sleeping, sleep walking? Waiting for loud cars to start roaring past at around 6am. I want my bed!
Late
What time do you go to bed and wake up currently?
Early to bed, early to rise, just isn’t me!
I think my circadian rhythm is out, because over the last few months I’ve gone to bed later and later. Then I eventually sleep for a few hours, before waking up around dawn. Then sadly I look at my phone! Spend an hour or so catching up with videos and messages, before falling asleep again and waking up in the late morning.
I don’t want to be this way, I sometimes need to be up and out earlier, but insomnia and an overactive brain can see me struggling to sleep. It doesn’t help that I have to wear a mask at night to help me breathe. I also do have painful joints and my arm is still very shaky and sore (I sound like a wreck!).
One thing to do is to think the word “the” over and over to yourself. This was recommended by my friend and it works when I remember to do it. “the” is a word with no connotations, it interrupts your train of thought and gives your brain time to disengage (at least that’s what I think!).
Anyway hope you all have a good night’s sleep. Best wishes!
Sleep deprived
I was looking at a friend’s Facebook page and she talked about how some nights she sleeps well but on others she struggles to sleep at all with lots of thoughts flying around inside her mind.
It reminded me of something I now do. I’m not pretending this is a cure for the problem, but it might help? I wrote a comment about sleeping problems: “I get them a lot, but someone told me to think the word ‘the’ over and over again. It takes your mind off other things, while it is innocuous enough not to prompt other thoughts. It doesn’t always work but it certainly helps.”
It’s interesting that I’ve got so old without anyone sharing advice until this suggestion, except the old idea of counting sheep!
Sleepy
He came in to sleep
Curled up, paw over nose
Relaxed, snoring
Sweet curves and purrs
Paws stretch,
Twitch and flick
Ears turning fast
What does he see?
In his rushing dream..
A do not disturb sign
Needed to let him sleep
Amused
The cats have different beds to sleep in, most of them quite fluffy, and a couple are like igloos, which might be quite warm now spring is here.
I have a laundry ‘basket’, a tube of material with round ends, and a slit at one end you put your laundry into. It has a spiral wire spring, so if you undo two toggles that hold it flat it springs up to a cylinder a couple of feet in height.
I don’t use it much because it’s a bit cumbersome to carry when it’s full. But last night inspiration struck. I undid one of the toggles and one side opened up, so it was at 90° to the base. The slit was at the front so a cat might get in… I also put a cloth shopping bag inside because the wires would be uncomfortable to lie on… This morning? A little nose peeking out. It must be like a tent for my cat, and it will not be as hot to sleep in… Successful experiment I’d say…. Plus when not in use I can fasten the toggle and put it away…
Cat on the bed
Heat seeking cat… I went to the bathroom and came back to this! He must have snuck in while I was downstairs. Made himself at home, comfy and warm and in my spot! It isn’t helping my insomnia, but he looks so cozy I don’t want to just kick him off! But I guess he will have to move or I will be relegated to my old armchair! He’s so sweet, he’s stretched out his paws and put them next to my hand… Now he’s rolled over to show his belly! Sweet, and cheeky cat!
Mallaband-Brown 