It is the middle of the night and sleep eludes me. After laying awake for the first two hours after getting into bed I have come to my computer (I sleep in my computer room) in the hope that a short while on my computer might help my brain to shut down enough for me to get to sleep.
My son (a radio ham) informs me that Saturday (it is now early -2am ish- on Sunday morning) April 22nd was Marconi Day. The day changes each year as the festival always falls on the nearest Saturday to Marconi's birthday, which was on April 25th.
April 22nd was my first husband's birthday and - although he died as long ago as 1991- I always try to remember to call my son to remind him of that. His dad, Malcolm, would have been 99 today.
When I find sleep difficult my brain runs along making all kinds of connections to suit itself and I thought of Malcolm and then of Marconi and then of the fact that the farmer and I, some years after we married (1993) went to St John's in Canada and were taken to what I remember as little more than a hut which was where Marconi is said to have received the first trans Atlantic signal - a fact which is open to dispute but has led to Marconi being celebrated on the day. I just remember the spot as being on a headland overlooking the Atlantic. The pretty town of St Johns I remember well.
It prompts me yet again to start going through my photograph albums - surely I took a photograph there when we visited.
Then my mind made another jump to I suppose a slightly related event and that is that at 3pm this afternoon I must make sure my mobile phone is switched off because the Government here has decided to send out a test signal all over the country which will be picked up by all our phones. As my carer said this morning - it is so that if the Russians decide to drop a bomb on us the government can warn us! Not sure what we are supposed to do though.
I wonder if I go back to bed now I might go to sleep. This is the second bad night in the past week - last time I spent an hour trying to recall the words of my favourite Christy Moore song - 'Ride On' (finally next day I found it on U Tube and did a 'sing-along' with him!)
I understand that the tablets which I now take in an effort to control my epilepsy do tend to affect one's sleeping patterns. (I am brilliant at dropping off in my chair after lunch to compensate).
So back to bed I shall go. Give it another hour and if I am still awake I shall go and make myself a cup of tea (Promise I won't burden you with another garbled post.
Night-night!
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22 comments:
Well, that's pretty cool where you wake up and do a post at 2 AM. I'm awake lots of times at 2 AM but I would never write a post.
Last night I was hours falling asleep and then at 4 am woke for bodily needs and couldn't get back to sleep till just before the alarm - which is set when I have to be somewhere in the morning. And that's why I wasn't able to get to sleep. Finally had 3 things come to me that I needed to do before leaving home. I tried naming all the women's names for each letter of the alphabet...I think I got to L before finally dropping off. Not sure it's such a good idea, but it kept me from thinking of other things!
When the phone siren goes off for real, you are supposed to get yourself under a table, and if possible wrap yourself in brown paper. Only that way will you be safe. I'm surprised you didn't know that!
Cro - my first laugh of the day at 6.30an
When I'm awake in the middle of the night, just listen to a podcast (and never get to the end) on my tablet. You mention Marconi and I remember going round the museum in Chelmsford to see all his wireless stuff. The first radio factory in 1912 was built there, and a lot of the stuff is housed in Sandford Mill, in countryside we would often walk around.
Think the government just like to keep us on our toes and of course distract us with reference to past wars, I shall turn my phone off.
Night night Weaver. Hope you managed to get some sleep. Thanks for the reminder re the phone. Jan Bx
Did you know that you can switch off the siren completely? If you have an iphone, go to settings then notifications...scroll all the way down and you can switch off "emergency alerts"
How interesting that in the UK the siren only comes once. Lucky you! In the Netherlands we have siren alarm at 12 o’clock every first Monday of the month. Now also on the phone. Maybe because of the occupation during the war? The government tried to change the siren into phone alarm only but the Dutch people missed the siren alarm. Maybe it gives us a (false?) feeling of security. When Putin wants to strike it will always be too late, haha.
The medical profession say that turning the computer on in the night will make it more difficult to return to sleep. Good luck, I would count sheep or read by book if really necessary but mainly calming thoughts will send me to sleep. If you make a hot drink make it a milky one, a calming hot milk or cocoa or horlicks. Or have a mantra which I suppose is what counting sheep is but you could say the Lords prayer quietly and slowly even if you don't believe in God, it will send you to sleep.
Your post today really hit home with me as I am/was a ham, I love the songs Ride On and also Sonny’s Dream and I never have a good nights sleep. I was up every hour on Friday night and every two hours last night. As Rachel suggested I do have a hot milk with Ovaltine before bed and sometimes it works, sometimes it just doesn’t.. I seem to only need about four or five hours sleeo now. Maybe tonight will be better for both of us! GG
Comments not related, but because of your love of birds I thought that you would enjoy.I have two large mirrors set up in my garden on a fence behind a rose bed.They used to be sliding closest doors that I did not know what to do with. Well this Spring an American Robin which is about as big as a British Starling. did not like his reflection or decided he liked his reflection too much. So he adopted attack mode and flew at his image. he kept this up for several days and has finally cracked the mirror and left. I only hope that whatever emotion prompted this response was satisfied.
I'm like Anonymous and rarely get a full night's sleep, sometimes 4 or 5 hours but mostly 2 or 3.
Don't people want to know what a public safety alarm is going to sound like in the event of a flood, toxic smoke, major gas leak, extreme weather conditions and so on? It will only be the work of moments to acknowledge it today, by swiping away or clicking OK, but we need to know how the sound differs from, say, a text alert.
I'm with that American Robin that Bristol Limey commented on. There are times I decidedly do not like my reflection in the mirror and could quite happily fly at it. So far the mirror remains in tact. - Pam.
Emergency alerts are used for natural events already..like flooding, and you can sign up for those with the Environment Agency if need be.
With this one? I am in two minds about it
I haven't got a mobile phone so will have to rely on people running down the street screaming when Armageddon comes. How long before some idiot discovers how to hack into the system and keeps sending alerts? Pollie
This was a meaningful post for me. Sorry you were unable to sleep, though. Since I live in TX, and married a Newfie who found me here, most of my life travels were locations between here and Newfoundland. I have been to St. Johns a number of times. Have climbed Signal Hill and looked out over the Atlantic from there. Certainly agree with you about the beauty of the place. The cries of the sea birds, the sense of so many cultures apparent in a walk along the many huge ships in port. My sister-in-law lived within a few minutes walk from the Harbor. I lost her in March, only a year after we lost her brother. Fifty-nine years of marriage. Thank goodness for all the mental videos! Sound, color, and love all included.
I do hope you were able to get some sleep.
The group Everything But the girl has a lyric in one of their songs that has stuck with me
“ that you are most fallorn
Just before Dawn”
And it’s true
I love that you got up and wrote this post. 😁
I do similar things when I’m awake at odd hours (thank you Parkinson’s sleep fragmentation!)
Glad that you catch up on your sleep during the day.
Just wanted to say how much pleasure I get from reading your musings. Thank you from another retired teacher, on the other side of the world.
How annoying that your medication affects your sleep pattern. Your wakefulness was not in vain as it providing another interesting post for us. Hope you sleep better tonight.
Tim had such an awful time sleeping after his stroke. Surprisingly, what worked for him was a medication for restless legs (which he does not have) but he had mild tremors from the stroke. Once he was able to stop moving, he was able to doze off.
Rachel is right; computers (including tablets and smartphones), actually all screens that have backlight are not helpful when one wants to get a good night's sleep. The backlight has a frequency that we do not consciously see, but our brain still registers a constant flicker that keeps it fully alert. Reading (from a paper book or a Kindle with no backlight, like mine) is much more relaxing for our eyes and brain.
When I can't sleep, I literally do what you say in your headline, Pat: My mind wanders. I choose a route that I have walked often enough to have memorised every corner and turn, every building and tree along the way. One of my favourites is the walk from Ripon to Fountains Abbey, via the fields and the hamlet of Studley Roger. I deliberately let my mind walk at a slow pace, not overtaking myself by anticipating what I know exactly to be behind the next bend of the path. It always helps.
Interesting to learn from Josephine's comment about the regular test alarms in the Netherlands. Here in Germany, the government has issued a smartphone app for alerts and alarms. The user can set it to the region where one lives, and will receive notifications about heavy rainfall or storm, and of course more insistent alerts when it comes to flooding, earthquakes or other events that require immediate action. Along with the alert/alarm, information is given on what to do next, and addresses of the nearest shelters etc.
This all was increased when two years ago, terrible flooding in the valley of the river Ahr caused many deaths and many more people to lose their homes and everything material they owned. I have the app but so far have never actually needed it - thankfully!
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