Metatalktail Hour: more like metatakenap August 22, 2021 10:33 AM Subscribe
This week's topic is man, who has the energy to come up with a topic? I'm bushed, you look bushed, let's just say we're gonna read a book on the couch and then immeeeeediately sack out of an hour. So it's an open thread, talk about that good nap you took or that nap you need, or talk about hey whatever.
Tomorrow will be the first day in TWELVE YEARS I do not have at least one child at home with me. I ... am a little afraid of what's going to happen when I'm alone with my thoughts. What are my thoughts even like? Do I spend all my time thinking about Bigfoot? Am I interested in 18th century literature? I DON'T KNOW! It's been 12 years! Anything could happen!
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 11:05 AM on August 22, 2021 [53 favorites]
posted by Eyebrows McGee (staff) at 11:05 AM on August 22, 2021 [53 favorites]
I read this after my kids just laid down for a nap. Now I’m hoping to get an hour or so to continue reading The Three Body Probkem, one of the recommendations from the recent excellent FPP about the top sci-if books of the last decade. I already read the first Murderbot, which I enjoyed quite a bit.
posted by skewed at 11:06 AM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by skewed at 11:06 AM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
I had no idea that if you take a mild edible (say, something in the 5-10 mg range) around lunch time, it kicks in just in time for a really nice lazy day nap. You snooze nicely and wake up just ever so slightly stoned.
posted by Kitteh at 11:10 AM on August 22, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 11:10 AM on August 22, 2021 [6 favorites]
So I requested Nine Perfect Strangers be added to Fanfare after I watched two of the first three episodes - suspenseful and relatively entertaining (poorly reviewed) Netflix fluff with Melissa McCarthy, Bobby Cannavale, Manny Jacinto, Regina King, Nicole Kidman and more people you probably know. But then I watched the third episode and a thing happened that was so stupid and gratuitous and unnecessarily terrible that I no longer wish to post about it. Or maybe I should post about it anyway and argue and/or commiserate with people about the upsetting thing that happens which I am trying not to spoil in case you want to watch it. : /
I will say Samara Weaving was unexpectedly excellent. I say unexpectedly because she plays a gorgeous Instagram star and I admit to you all I wrongly judged her out of the gate by her looks. I don't think it's giving too much away to say, and you probably will not be shocked to hear, that this also happens to her character on the show.
Meanwhile, I keep reading bad online reviews about apartments I have chosen to look at and have increased my rent limit three times now because a year is a long time to live in a bad place, though I will not be saving as much as I would have liked if the cheaper places don't work out. I am going to visit them anyway because there will always be disgruntled customers no matter where you go. I am trying not to feel constantly anxious about the whole endeavor.
posted by Glinn at 11:13 AM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
I will say Samara Weaving was unexpectedly excellent. I say unexpectedly because she plays a gorgeous Instagram star and I admit to you all I wrongly judged her out of the gate by her looks. I don't think it's giving too much away to say, and you probably will not be shocked to hear, that this also happens to her character on the show.
Meanwhile, I keep reading bad online reviews about apartments I have chosen to look at and have increased my rent limit three times now because a year is a long time to live in a bad place, though I will not be saving as much as I would have liked if the cheaper places don't work out. I am going to visit them anyway because there will always be disgruntled customers no matter where you go. I am trying not to feel constantly anxious about the whole endeavor.
posted by Glinn at 11:13 AM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
Any tips for someone who has historically never been able to take a nap and would like to start?
posted by iamkimiam at 11:53 AM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by iamkimiam at 11:53 AM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
Just woke up from a nap in front of the baseball game on the teevee. Baseball naps are the best naps.
posted by cooker girl at 12:01 PM on August 22, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by cooker girl at 12:01 PM on August 22, 2021 [6 favorites]
Naps with pets are the best naps ever.
posted by bookmammal at 12:06 PM on August 22, 2021 [15 favorites]
posted by bookmammal at 12:06 PM on August 22, 2021 [15 favorites]
As I am of the age to take naps, I will do this thing. I go to bed, select an album on my phone and play it loudly. Strangely enough, this allows me to have a nice 45 minute sleep. When the music stops, I wake up.
How messed up is that?
posted by Splunge at 12:22 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
How messed up is that?
posted by Splunge at 12:22 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
I'm not generally a nap-taker. It only really works out for me in rare circumstances, such as severe tiredness due to a bout of insomnia, or a bad cold or flu that keeps me from sleeping well at night. Otherwise I end up more groggy and listless than I was before, though sometimes it works out okay if I limit the nap to 20-30 minutes.
One evening when I was feeling a little under the weather after work, I laid down for a quick nap...which turned into a two-hour nap. I woke up at 7:30, very disoriented and thinking it was 7:30 the next morning, and confused the hell out of my son and his friend when I asked them why they weren't getting ready for school....
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:28 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
One evening when I was feeling a little under the weather after work, I laid down for a quick nap...which turned into a two-hour nap. I woke up at 7:30, very disoriented and thinking it was 7:30 the next morning, and confused the hell out of my son and his friend when I asked them why they weren't getting ready for school....
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:28 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
While sitting in the back of the car with my 10 week old niece, watching her sleep to make sure she didn’t lean forward too much, all I wanted to do was sleep too! I woke up at 5:45am for no reason and am tired tired tired!
posted by ellieBOA at 12:38 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by ellieBOA at 12:38 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
Can you please keep it down, I am trying to nap. My kids call me Nap King Cole. Funnier thing is that I am not sure if they even know who Nat King Cole is
posted by AugustWest at 12:41 PM on August 22, 2021 [9 favorites]
posted by AugustWest at 12:41 PM on August 22, 2021 [9 favorites]
this weekend was full of adventure:
* a 7am week 6 couch-to-5K run where we ended up running most of the 5kms!
* post-run Rungry breakfast with coffee and pastries and fresh bread, jams and french butter!
* then a quick shopping trip to the supermarket because I am going to start mass cooking to freeze a bunch of ready-made meals for when our kitchen remodel begin and we do not have use of our kitchen (askMe post coming soon regarding this)
* then a Copenhagen Cooking Week activity where we visited the headquarters of an urban non-profit specialising in urban honey bees! they have various beehives installed around the city and the volunteers collect, process and sell the honey which all have different tastes and we got to walk around their facility, taste a bunch of honey, tap our own and get up close and personal with an actual beehive with a volunteer apiologist.
* then we short-term rented a car (in CPH we have a program where we can rent electric vehicles by the hour) and went to a couple of places to fulfill my SO's plant wishes for plant dirt & plant stuff (we only bike so having this car opportunity really opened up our travel opportunities, sometimes we just take an afternoon drive...)
* came back, got a pizza and began watching "9 perfect strangers"
*Sunday, my SO got up at 5am to go work out, I got up later to make a victory-for-working-out breakfast!
* went to the city center for lunch and shopping for the last bits I needed for the mass cooking
* came back to the apt and began ALL the prep for braised mince pork, orange chicken sauce, shredded chicken tacos (tinga de pollo), and a strawberry gallette....
...and halfway through my prep I wasn't as careful as I should have been while chopping an onion and skillfully shaved off a good slice of my left ring fingernail and a bit of the underlying skin (thank god it was a very sharp knife and gave a clean precise cut)
so, sunday ended at the emergency room and now i'm typing this with a finger hugely disfigured by swaddles of gauze bandage.
so, no need for a nap - i'm just going to bed.....
posted by alchemist at 12:50 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
* a 7am week 6 couch-to-5K run where we ended up running most of the 5kms!
* post-run Rungry breakfast with coffee and pastries and fresh bread, jams and french butter!
* then a quick shopping trip to the supermarket because I am going to start mass cooking to freeze a bunch of ready-made meals for when our kitchen remodel begin and we do not have use of our kitchen (askMe post coming soon regarding this)
* then a Copenhagen Cooking Week activity where we visited the headquarters of an urban non-profit specialising in urban honey bees! they have various beehives installed around the city and the volunteers collect, process and sell the honey which all have different tastes and we got to walk around their facility, taste a bunch of honey, tap our own and get up close and personal with an actual beehive with a volunteer apiologist.
* then we short-term rented a car (in CPH we have a program where we can rent electric vehicles by the hour) and went to a couple of places to fulfill my SO's plant wishes for plant dirt & plant stuff (we only bike so having this car opportunity really opened up our travel opportunities, sometimes we just take an afternoon drive...)
* came back, got a pizza and began watching "9 perfect strangers"
*Sunday, my SO got up at 5am to go work out, I got up later to make a victory-for-working-out breakfast!
* went to the city center for lunch and shopping for the last bits I needed for the mass cooking
* came back to the apt and began ALL the prep for braised mince pork, orange chicken sauce, shredded chicken tacos (tinga de pollo), and a strawberry gallette....
...and halfway through my prep I wasn't as careful as I should have been while chopping an onion and skillfully shaved off a good slice of my left ring fingernail and a bit of the underlying skin (thank god it was a very sharp knife and gave a clean precise cut)
so, sunday ended at the emergency room and now i'm typing this with a finger hugely disfigured by swaddles of gauze bandage.
so, no need for a nap - i'm just going to bed.....
posted by alchemist at 12:50 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
How to wake up after a nap: floss + water.
posted by aniola at 1:31 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by aniola at 1:31 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
I'd need a LOT of water to get that floss down!
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:00 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:00 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
I impulse-bought a weighted fleece blanket on Friday (hey, it was on special!). I tried it out when I got home, and honestly thought I'd have to resign myself to life as a couch-human-blanket hybrid for the rest of my days. Extremely high quality napping there.
posted by scruss at 2:04 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
posted by scruss at 2:04 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
Am I interested in 18th century literature?
I'd been sitting on this post for a while, wondering really how many people on Metafilter are interested in 18th century literature, but since you asked and it's a slow day on the front page, I thought what the heck. Anyhow time for a nap maybe.
posted by Wobbuffet at 2:10 PM on August 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
I'd been sitting on this post for a while, wondering really how many people on Metafilter are interested in 18th century literature, but since you asked and it's a slow day on the front page, I thought what the heck. Anyhow time for a nap maybe.
posted by Wobbuffet at 2:10 PM on August 22, 2021 [8 favorites]
I never napped until adulthood, but I am an A+ expert at it now. Way better than I am at night sleeping. This post totally described my afternoon, reading myself into a nap, complete with doggo curled up between my legs.
I just finished Earthlings by Sayaka Murata which is … definitely a book. I think I enjoyed it. Maybe.
posted by obfuscation at 2:13 PM on August 22, 2021
I just finished Earthlings by Sayaka Murata which is … definitely a book. I think I enjoyed it. Maybe.
posted by obfuscation at 2:13 PM on August 22, 2021
We went snorkelling this afternoon. It wasn't as warm as a few weeks ago but it was pretty nice, clear and only one jelly fish showed up. Lots of shoals of fry plus some bigger fish. Some recon by my SO meant we picked the only quietish beach in town plus we found enough change to cover two large I've creams instead of two small ones. Later met some friends and their dog for drinks in a field, we were interrupted by what may have been the most gorgeous young Labrador who has ever lived. He ran up for some love, his owner apologised, took him away for some reinforcement of his training, which didn't take as he ran back over and snuggled right up to me. He was even wearing a bowtie.
Slow cook brisket for dinner, followed by apple & blackcurrant crumble.
Plus the cat is curled up on my lap and is purring.
posted by biffa at 2:18 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
Slow cook brisket for dinner, followed by apple & blackcurrant crumble.
Plus the cat is curled up on my lap and is purring.
posted by biffa at 2:18 PM on August 22, 2021 [10 favorites]
How to wake up from a nap #2: Sleep outside in the sun. When your nap is over, the flying and crawling things will let you know.
posted by aniola at 2:19 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by aniola at 2:19 PM on August 22, 2021 [1 favorite]
Just woke up from an excellent nap. I justify it as bonding time with the cats. They are their happiest snoozing up beside their human. They are also extreme bed and pillow hogs, but I've learned to accept it for the benefit of the napping experience.
posted by cgg at 3:32 PM on August 22, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by cgg at 3:32 PM on August 22, 2021 [5 favorites]
How to wake up from a nap #3: Friend puts chocolate covered coffee bean or almond or similar in your mouth (or DIY).
posted by aniola at 3:33 PM on August 22, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by aniola at 3:33 PM on August 22, 2021 [4 favorites]
Naps with pets are the best naps ever
Whenever I go lie down in the bedroom for a nap, the cats always join me for "snuggle" time aka "act like an asshole on the bed" time.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:51 PM on August 22, 2021
Whenever I go lie down in the bedroom for a nap, the cats always join me for "snuggle" time aka "act like an asshole on the bed" time.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 3:51 PM on August 22, 2021
The spirit is willing to nap, but the flesh's veto in this matter means I am a stubborn non-napper. I've tried, lord knows, but maybe one time in a hundred that I lie down in mid-afternoon do I actually drift off.
Of course, I do not sleep all that much at any hour. The only time I have consistently cracked six hours a night was when I was on some medication that my doctor warned me might affect my sleep cycle.
Boy howdy. The first couple of days I was sleeping nineteen hours a day. Stumble groggily out of bed at 5:00 PM, eat a meal or two, maybe read a bit, then be yawning and stretching by 10:00. That's no way to live.
I eventually stabilized in the eight-to-nine hour range after week or so but the first few days were a little alarming.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:06 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
Of course, I do not sleep all that much at any hour. The only time I have consistently cracked six hours a night was when I was on some medication that my doctor warned me might affect my sleep cycle.
Boy howdy. The first couple of days I was sleeping nineteen hours a day. Stumble groggily out of bed at 5:00 PM, eat a meal or two, maybe read a bit, then be yawning and stretching by 10:00. That's no way to live.
I eventually stabilized in the eight-to-nine hour range after week or so but the first few days were a little alarming.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 4:06 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
Flew to Denver for work on Tuesday - my first flight since Feb 2020. It was surprisingly normal, just with masks. My flight home Friday involved me stuck in a security line that extended outside the Denver airport and me running through the terminal to arrive at the gate 5 minutes after takeoff...but the door was still open. Never been so happy to have a middle seat at the back of a Southwest flight. And my 30th anniversary passed while I was in Denver - we waited to celebrate this weekend....which I would have missed if I had been 90 seconds later getting on that flight home!
In other news, I didn't miss air travel.
posted by COD at 4:29 PM on August 22, 2021 [12 favorites]
In other news, I didn't miss air travel.
posted by COD at 4:29 PM on August 22, 2021 [12 favorites]
I'm gonna use this thread as a place to put some things I'm grateful for, because I have so many things I'm struggling so much with and it's easy to drown in negativity. So... good things:
1. I'm slowly working my way through painting every room in my house, and it's so great to have a project with my hands where I see the physical results. Unlike so much nowadays, it is something I can control, some way of making the world nicer for me and my family. When I'm done, I'm going to expand outside and tackle my insane and overgrown garden.
2. My 8yo has discovered Scratch (the programming language) and is obsessed with it. I've known since he was two that he had the kind of brain that would like this stuff, and as someone who loves coding myself, it does my shrivelled heart good that every day he's jumping around with excitement about VARIABLES! and THESE THINGS CALLED LOOPS! and he even taught himself some basic trigonometry so he could do animation and it's just really great.
3. My other kid is a huge Calvin & Hobbes fan and just sits around and reads it to himself and asks wonderful questions inspired by it (this morning: "what is amnesia?" and "what is a checkbook?"). I still laugh whenever I think of the time I overheard him tell a kid that the reason he did something was because of the inscrutable exhortations of his soul. (No, I don't think he knew exactly what it meant, but lol anyway).
4. We're in lockdown here in Australia and it's TERRIBLE and I'm SO MAD at our feckless, stupid government for many reasons, but I thank goodness that my kids and family are safe and I don't have to send them to school unvaccinated. And I'm not in danger of losing my job, which I can do remotely.
5. From upthread: I bought myself a weighted blanket for my birthday and it was the best purchase I made all year. Highly, highly recommend.
posted by sir jective at 4:58 PM on August 22, 2021 [14 favorites]
1. I'm slowly working my way through painting every room in my house, and it's so great to have a project with my hands where I see the physical results. Unlike so much nowadays, it is something I can control, some way of making the world nicer for me and my family. When I'm done, I'm going to expand outside and tackle my insane and overgrown garden.
2. My 8yo has discovered Scratch (the programming language) and is obsessed with it. I've known since he was two that he had the kind of brain that would like this stuff, and as someone who loves coding myself, it does my shrivelled heart good that every day he's jumping around with excitement about VARIABLES! and THESE THINGS CALLED LOOPS! and he even taught himself some basic trigonometry so he could do animation and it's just really great.
3. My other kid is a huge Calvin & Hobbes fan and just sits around and reads it to himself and asks wonderful questions inspired by it (this morning: "what is amnesia?" and "what is a checkbook?"). I still laugh whenever I think of the time I overheard him tell a kid that the reason he did something was because of the inscrutable exhortations of his soul. (No, I don't think he knew exactly what it meant, but lol anyway).
4. We're in lockdown here in Australia and it's TERRIBLE and I'm SO MAD at our feckless, stupid government for many reasons, but I thank goodness that my kids and family are safe and I don't have to send them to school unvaccinated. And I'm not in danger of losing my job, which I can do remotely.
5. From upthread: I bought myself a weighted blanket for my birthday and it was the best purchase I made all year. Highly, highly recommend.
posted by sir jective at 4:58 PM on August 22, 2021 [14 favorites]
I would love to hear all your gratitude things, if you all feel like sharing. Could use some positivity these days. Some evidence that there are still nice things in the world.
posted by sir jective at 5:00 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by sir jective at 5:00 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
A good nap - to me - results from the perceived safety of letting the world ignore you while it continues its diurnal and shambolic hunt. But, gah, nighttime sleeping: everyone else's dreams need to back the f' off.
posted by DeepSeaHaggis at 5:10 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by DeepSeaHaggis at 5:10 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
Happy (belated) anniversary, COD.
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:16 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:16 PM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]
I was tired. I foolishly reposted an article questioning the greenness of electric vehicles. It seemed reasonably well-referenced. Turns out the author was a shill for hydrocarbon cabal. argh. ugh. Moderators stepped in for a rapid delete, thank goodness.
Decided to take a nap. It was only twenty minutes but I felt much better after.
posted by storybored at 8:16 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
Decided to take a nap. It was only twenty minutes but I felt much better after.
posted by storybored at 8:16 PM on August 22, 2021 [3 favorites]
Gratitude - something I have tried to steep in since my cancer diagnosis May of 2020. I am grateful for my neighborhood community that rallied to help us over the last year.
I threw a party for these fine people over a week ago, (titled “Gratitude is the Attitude”) and 38 people showed up. I’m still happy thinking about what a good time everyone had.
I am so grateful that I am a cancer survivor, thus far.
I am grateful that robust health has returned, and memories of illness become more distant with each passing day.
I am grateful that I have a brain that actively seeks the positive.
I am grateful for my husband, without whom the last year would not have been possible.
I am grateful for life, and life in the Pacific Northwest. I’m so lucky I get to live here.
posted by dbmcd at 8:26 PM on August 22, 2021 [16 favorites]
I threw a party for these fine people over a week ago, (titled “Gratitude is the Attitude”) and 38 people showed up. I’m still happy thinking about what a good time everyone had.
I am so grateful that I am a cancer survivor, thus far.
I am grateful that robust health has returned, and memories of illness become more distant with each passing day.
I am grateful that I have a brain that actively seeks the positive.
I am grateful for my husband, without whom the last year would not have been possible.
I am grateful for life, and life in the Pacific Northwest. I’m so lucky I get to live here.
posted by dbmcd at 8:26 PM on August 22, 2021 [16 favorites]
The spirit is willing to nap, but the flesh's veto in this matter means I am a stubborn non-napper.
Same. This is a joke with my partner because he looooooves to nap. I have occasionally been able to sleep in (or nap) with him but otherwise if I am napping it is because I am sick or something is seriously wrong. So if I am talking to him and am out of sorts he's like "Why don't you nap?" and I always reply I DON'T NAP and he will say "Well you do when I am around" and I think it makes it more confusing for him, my insistence.
One of the absolutely normal side effects from my vaccine was 36 hours of serious fatigue which, since I knew what it was, wasn't concerning, just "Wellp I guess I'm going to eat and go right back to bed" As someone who has had lifelong, likely genetic at some level, sleep problems, I was not only thrilled to get vaccinated but also thrilled to have some completely effortless sleep.
Even with all my sleep hygiene routines, sleep still takes WORK for me (i.e. if I do nothing, my mind will keep chattering, I have to concentrate on specific stuff to drift off) and as much as I love sleeping, I resent the work it takes a little and I resent being on a sleep schedule that is so off of everyone else's (I am usually asleep from 2-10 or 10:30). I think I'd like to travel more in a post-COVID world if sleep weren't such a wrassling match.
But for gratitude? I love where I live. I like this small town and my neighbors. I am grateful to be in a community with a lot of civic-minded people. I am so happy to have my LDR partner back in my life, I missed him more than I could say. My sister and I are a great team cleaning out my mom's house and I am grateful she is there for the loud cussing and absolute fuck-this aspect of it as well as the "awww, look what I found" parts. I'm grateful my elected officials aren't assholes. I am grateful that public libraries exist. I like it here on MetaFilter and I'm grateful it exists also.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:52 PM on August 22, 2021 [19 favorites]
Same. This is a joke with my partner because he looooooves to nap. I have occasionally been able to sleep in (or nap) with him but otherwise if I am napping it is because I am sick or something is seriously wrong. So if I am talking to him and am out of sorts he's like "Why don't you nap?" and I always reply I DON'T NAP and he will say "Well you do when I am around" and I think it makes it more confusing for him, my insistence.
One of the absolutely normal side effects from my vaccine was 36 hours of serious fatigue which, since I knew what it was, wasn't concerning, just "Wellp I guess I'm going to eat and go right back to bed" As someone who has had lifelong, likely genetic at some level, sleep problems, I was not only thrilled to get vaccinated but also thrilled to have some completely effortless sleep.
Even with all my sleep hygiene routines, sleep still takes WORK for me (i.e. if I do nothing, my mind will keep chattering, I have to concentrate on specific stuff to drift off) and as much as I love sleeping, I resent the work it takes a little and I resent being on a sleep schedule that is so off of everyone else's (I am usually asleep from 2-10 or 10:30). I think I'd like to travel more in a post-COVID world if sleep weren't such a wrassling match.
But for gratitude? I love where I live. I like this small town and my neighbors. I am grateful to be in a community with a lot of civic-minded people. I am so happy to have my LDR partner back in my life, I missed him more than I could say. My sister and I are a great team cleaning out my mom's house and I am grateful she is there for the loud cussing and absolute fuck-this aspect of it as well as the "awww, look what I found" parts. I'm grateful my elected officials aren't assholes. I am grateful that public libraries exist. I like it here on MetaFilter and I'm grateful it exists also.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:52 PM on August 22, 2021 [19 favorites]
My favorite dog, the dog who got me over my lifelong wariness of dogs and turned me into a puppy-lover, has two different forms of inoperable cancer. He also lives on the wrong side of the Canadian border from me. He was diagnosed the spring before the pandemic. With the border closure extended from month to month, I had fallen into despair, almost certain I'd never see him again.
...He had a near-miraculous response to the last off-label drug they decided to give a try before going to palliative care a couple of months ago. And Trudeau relented. I spent most of this past week petting him and slipping him outrageous quantities of treats.
It can't last, but I'm good for the year, universe.
posted by praemunire at 9:03 PM on August 22, 2021 [35 favorites]
...He had a near-miraculous response to the last off-label drug they decided to give a try before going to palliative care a couple of months ago. And Trudeau relented. I spent most of this past week petting him and slipping him outrageous quantities of treats.
It can't last, but I'm good for the year, universe.
posted by praemunire at 9:03 PM on August 22, 2021 [35 favorites]
Gratitude:
3. My other kid is a huge Calvin & Hobbes fan and just sits around and reads it to himself and asks wonderful questions inspired by it (this morning: "what is amnesia?" and "what is a checkbook?"). I still laugh whenever I think of the time I overheard him tell a kid that the reason he did something was because of the inscrutable exhortations of his soul. (No, I don't think he knew exactly what it meant, but lol anyway).
Some of the best conversations we have had with the kiddo have been inspired by a Calvin and Hobbes comic.
Gratitude:
I got a lecture from my sibling yesterday over stopping one of the new asthma medications too soon, as what I thought were the side effects from the drug were almost unbearable. As it turns out, a second short-term medication is the most likely culprit of my misery. They gave me instructions on when to go back on the drug and how long to take it before giving up altogether.
Sibling is an NP whose primary job is to track and manage drug interactions for patients, but my family culture is the kind where we don't ask our professional relatives for free advice so I had not reached out to them before. The lecture came up in the course of planning to visit them this week for the first time in 18 months. The visit will be taking place later this week.
posted by theBigRedKittyPurrs at 3:35 AM on August 23, 2021 [7 favorites]
3. My other kid is a huge Calvin & Hobbes fan and just sits around and reads it to himself and asks wonderful questions inspired by it (this morning: "what is amnesia?" and "what is a checkbook?"). I still laugh whenever I think of the time I overheard him tell a kid that the reason he did something was because of the inscrutable exhortations of his soul. (No, I don't think he knew exactly what it meant, but lol anyway).
Some of the best conversations we have had with the kiddo have been inspired by a Calvin and Hobbes comic.
Gratitude:
I got a lecture from my sibling yesterday over stopping one of the new asthma medications too soon, as what I thought were the side effects from the drug were almost unbearable. As it turns out, a second short-term medication is the most likely culprit of my misery. They gave me instructions on when to go back on the drug and how long to take it before giving up altogether.
Sibling is an NP whose primary job is to track and manage drug interactions for patients, but my family culture is the kind where we don't ask our professional relatives for free advice so I had not reached out to them before. The lecture came up in the course of planning to visit them this week for the first time in 18 months. The visit will be taking place later this week.
posted by theBigRedKittyPurrs at 3:35 AM on August 23, 2021 [7 favorites]
So let’s talk about hay, whatever. This year has been so damn wet in the northeast that hay farms all over have lost crops to mold and rot. You don’t hear much about it but it’s a crisis.
posted by spitbull at 4:26 AM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by spitbull at 4:26 AM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
I am exhausted after a week of musical tech week. Why did I wake up at 3:11 am utterly unable to lose consciousness again? Why?
I can't nap either.
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:11 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I can't nap either.
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:11 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I don't really like sleeping during the day, but I've just now had my afternoon "waking nap". I noticed that I tend to get a bit depressed in the afternoon, and in general I'm trying to slow down and be kinder to myself. So now I have a habit of finding a comfortable spot, after lunch, and listening to an episode of the "Nothing Much Happens" podcast, while I sort of drift in and out of a not quite nap. The narrator has a very reassuring, gentle voice, and the stories are kind and cosy. I just listened to "Summer Storm" which was perfect for today.
Things I'm grateful for:
I'm so grateful I'm getting my second pfizer jab on Thursday. It's a very big deal for me. I made myself a T shirt to wear for the occasion - I got a phrase from Susanna Clarke's book, Piranesi printed on it, in the same font the book uses. It says The Beauty of the House is immeasurable, its kindness, infinite.
I'm grateful that I had such a lovely cycle with friends on Saturday, 55km on sunny roads through vineyards.
I'm so pleased that my writing is going well at the moment. It's a big comfort to me, to be able to escape into the world my characters inhabit.
I'm grateful for having made a new friend over the lockdown period, what are the chances - we go walking together and talking to her really helps me feel balanced and at ease. I'm going to spend some time this afternoon putting some files on a disk for her, shows she can watch, and some movies.
Praemunire, I'm so sorry about your dog. I'm glad you can spend some time with him. I still so miss my Pippin.
posted by Zumbador at 5:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
Things I'm grateful for:
I'm so grateful I'm getting my second pfizer jab on Thursday. It's a very big deal for me. I made myself a T shirt to wear for the occasion - I got a phrase from Susanna Clarke's book, Piranesi printed on it, in the same font the book uses. It says The Beauty of the House is immeasurable, its kindness, infinite.
I'm grateful that I had such a lovely cycle with friends on Saturday, 55km on sunny roads through vineyards.
I'm so pleased that my writing is going well at the moment. It's a big comfort to me, to be able to escape into the world my characters inhabit.
I'm grateful for having made a new friend over the lockdown period, what are the chances - we go walking together and talking to her really helps me feel balanced and at ease. I'm going to spend some time this afternoon putting some files on a disk for her, shows she can watch, and some movies.
Praemunire, I'm so sorry about your dog. I'm glad you can spend some time with him. I still so miss my Pippin.
posted by Zumbador at 5:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
Nap attack. Was up far too late last night reading and currently am working (freelance) at a level which I am not comfortable with. Also there is a lot of emotional labour telling technical male colleagues, almost certainly paid more than me, what a good job they are doing. Am a bit overwhelmed by all the things. A friend is giving me her loom, which means I have three weeks to remove many, many books from the room it's going to live in and find them new homes. I have logistical and motivational problems with this. I have a fairly tight deadline for a book introduction I was asked to do (1940s children's book), and on re-reading the book I find it is rather dull. And I am finding it difficult to schedule in time to see my father, who has dementia, once a week (two-hour journey away).
I do intermittently feel grateful for having work, the gift of a loom and the opportunity to do the book introduction, plus friends, family, books to read, somewhere to live and an enormous bitey black cat, but not as often as I should.
posted by paduasoy at 5:41 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I do intermittently feel grateful for having work, the gift of a loom and the opportunity to do the book introduction, plus friends, family, books to read, somewhere to live and an enormous bitey black cat, but not as often as I should.
posted by paduasoy at 5:41 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I am a bad sleeper, and don't often nap because it is often impossible to actually sleep. But when I have someone to nap WITH, their sleep helps me sleep. This does not work at regular bedtime, but for some reason it does for naps.
I am grateful for honest conversations with the new person in my life, and that person in general, and Henri not being too bad where my parents are.
In other news, I was on a bus yesterday and it jerked a bit and to catch myself, I hooked an arm around a metal pole...it gave me a hickey. Bright purple!
posted by wellred at 6:06 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I am grateful for honest conversations with the new person in my life, and that person in general, and Henri not being too bad where my parents are.
In other news, I was on a bus yesterday and it jerked a bit and to catch myself, I hooked an arm around a metal pole...it gave me a hickey. Bright purple!
posted by wellred at 6:06 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Naps make me feel like a bag of shit, and totally throw out my (very weak) circadian rhythm.
My partner is a terrible sleeper, but they do enjoy and benefit from naps, for which I am a touch jealous. I'm more likely to save the tiredness up for a week and then waste most of day in bed (thus fucking up said shitty rhythms. Rinse, repeat).
But hey, whatever, lockdown again. What even is time?
Seperately:
sir jective: I love that your kid is into Scratch. I think it looks cool, but I've not really seen any kids use it. I started with Applesoft BASIC, and when I saw scratch I was all "Oh, I'd've loved to have had that". Have you seen Turing Tumble?
Gratitude:
I got an extension on a uni assignment that I'm this close to finishing, and was stressing me the fuck out. My partner was great about leaving me alone all weekend so I could complete the other assignment due today, being the first Uni assignment I've completed in >25 years. I completed high-school, they have degrees and a doctorate, so I feel a bit weird about my shitting myself about these things.
Oh, and no contact from my not-my-favourite-person boss today, even when I bunked off the team meeting because I was queuing for 90 minutes for a COVID test. That was nice.
posted by pompomtom at 6:43 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
My partner is a terrible sleeper, but they do enjoy and benefit from naps, for which I am a touch jealous. I'm more likely to save the tiredness up for a week and then waste most of day in bed (thus fucking up said shitty rhythms. Rinse, repeat).
But hey, whatever, lockdown again. What even is time?
Seperately:
sir jective: I love that your kid is into Scratch. I think it looks cool, but I've not really seen any kids use it. I started with Applesoft BASIC, and when I saw scratch I was all "Oh, I'd've loved to have had that". Have you seen Turing Tumble?
Gratitude:
I got an extension on a uni assignment that I'm this close to finishing, and was stressing me the fuck out. My partner was great about leaving me alone all weekend so I could complete the other assignment due today, being the first Uni assignment I've completed in >25 years. I completed high-school, they have degrees and a doctorate, so I feel a bit weird about my shitting myself about these things.
Oh, and no contact from my not-my-favourite-person boss today, even when I bunked off the team meeting because I was queuing for 90 minutes for a COVID test. That was nice.
posted by pompomtom at 6:43 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
In 2020 when our entire family was working/schooling in our (small) home, I got into this habit of going to my wife's empty office (she's a therapist) and napping after lunch on her comfy couch.
To fall asleep, I have this one weird trick™: After watching a lot of the Penn & Teller show "Fool Us" on YouTube, I came up with my own "act" that I mentally visualize performing, all the way from the introduction to the end. It's a form of meditation I guess, every-time my mind wanders off, I bring it back to the performance. I used to have a hard time falling asleep, but using this technique, I'm often out like a light within 5 minutes.
To avoid sleeping too long and feeling like shiznit for the next few hours, I use the Power Nap app which starts a countdown after you stop tossing and turning and plays an alarm before you drift too far into deep sleep.
posted by jeremias at 6:45 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
To fall asleep, I have this one weird trick™: After watching a lot of the Penn & Teller show "Fool Us" on YouTube, I came up with my own "act" that I mentally visualize performing, all the way from the introduction to the end. It's a form of meditation I guess, every-time my mind wanders off, I bring it back to the performance. I used to have a hard time falling asleep, but using this technique, I'm often out like a light within 5 minutes.
To avoid sleeping too long and feeling like shiznit for the next few hours, I use the Power Nap app which starts a countdown after you stop tossing and turning and plays an alarm before you drift too far into deep sleep.
posted by jeremias at 6:45 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Just to reiterate:
Everyone needs a hug.
posted by pompomtom at 6:46 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
Everyone needs a hug.
posted by pompomtom at 6:46 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
I was rejected from a social service job I applied for (a second time), although the hiring manager said some extremely kind things about me along the way of telling me I didn't get it (which wasn't surprising, since my experience in the area is all volunteer, and I was up against people with professional experience).
My gratitude, though, is that I'm pretty sure I've convinced my day job to donate one of my work days each week to the group I volunteer with. Essentially, instead of one community service day each year, I'm trying to get them to give me 50. I have informal approval from everyone, just need to get it formalized.
And also that my partner and I are healthy, and that I'm running again.
posted by Gorgik at 7:05 AM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
My gratitude, though, is that I'm pretty sure I've convinced my day job to donate one of my work days each week to the group I volunteer with. Essentially, instead of one community service day each year, I'm trying to get them to give me 50. I have informal approval from everyone, just need to get it formalized.
And also that my partner and I are healthy, and that I'm running again.
posted by Gorgik at 7:05 AM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
I can combine gratitude and napping!
So I have this couch. I got it free about 20 or so years ago now, when I was living on the Lower East Side; it was your classic late-in-your-20s apartment, midway between "I'm broke as hell" and "I'm actually starting to make some money". I was casual friends with two other dudes down the hall who were roommates; one of them worked near me and sometimes we'd split a cab ride to work. When they moved out, they were each moving into separate apartments, and neither of them wanted to take their foldout couch so they came to ask if I wanted it. At the time I was using a futon with a weird frame that I wasn't fond of, so I accepted.
It was already kinda beat up at the time, and I was never able to stop my cat from scratching it so I just gave up and let him. But one of the guys who offered it said "it's a great falling-asleep-on-the-couch couch", and he was so right. I brought it along when I finally moved out of that apartment to Brooklyn - adding a slipcover to hide the spot where my cat had scratched one arm down to the bare wood - and it stayed with me for 15 years in that first Brooklyn apartment, hosting at least ten people on the foldout mattress.
When I was getting forced out of that last apartment, I thought it wouldn't fit into the new space and that I would have to give it up. My roommate and I discussed a few options - for a while we thought he would get it in HIS downstairs space, and I would take the loveseat for my upstairs. But he decided against it. I was looking into how to give it up when I had the idea to measure it finally - and compare it to the loveseat I was thinking of taking.
They were the same size. The loveseat was only a loveseat because it had puffier arms.
I had the movers bring The Couch to my new place - going so far as to pay off the movers when some last-minute accident kept The Couch off the inventory list - and it was one of the first things that got placed in the new space. I've been treating it to some new cushion covers, got a floor lamp with a little reading light right peering over one arm, and set my TV up next to it so I can lie on the couch and watch movies without craning my neck.
It is still a great falling-asleep-on-the-couch couch.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:14 AM on August 23, 2021 [11 favorites]
So I have this couch. I got it free about 20 or so years ago now, when I was living on the Lower East Side; it was your classic late-in-your-20s apartment, midway between "I'm broke as hell" and "I'm actually starting to make some money". I was casual friends with two other dudes down the hall who were roommates; one of them worked near me and sometimes we'd split a cab ride to work. When they moved out, they were each moving into separate apartments, and neither of them wanted to take their foldout couch so they came to ask if I wanted it. At the time I was using a futon with a weird frame that I wasn't fond of, so I accepted.
It was already kinda beat up at the time, and I was never able to stop my cat from scratching it so I just gave up and let him. But one of the guys who offered it said "it's a great falling-asleep-on-the-couch couch", and he was so right. I brought it along when I finally moved out of that apartment to Brooklyn - adding a slipcover to hide the spot where my cat had scratched one arm down to the bare wood - and it stayed with me for 15 years in that first Brooklyn apartment, hosting at least ten people on the foldout mattress.
When I was getting forced out of that last apartment, I thought it wouldn't fit into the new space and that I would have to give it up. My roommate and I discussed a few options - for a while we thought he would get it in HIS downstairs space, and I would take the loveseat for my upstairs. But he decided against it. I was looking into how to give it up when I had the idea to measure it finally - and compare it to the loveseat I was thinking of taking.
They were the same size. The loveseat was only a loveseat because it had puffier arms.
I had the movers bring The Couch to my new place - going so far as to pay off the movers when some last-minute accident kept The Couch off the inventory list - and it was one of the first things that got placed in the new space. I've been treating it to some new cushion covers, got a floor lamp with a little reading light right peering over one arm, and set my TV up next to it so I can lie on the couch and watch movies without craning my neck.
It is still a great falling-asleep-on-the-couch couch.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 7:14 AM on August 23, 2021 [11 favorites]
I woke up when my head hit the keyboard. So, do I just lay my head down on my desk or go lie down on the couch?
Never mind. I figured it out.
posted by mule98J at 7:46 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Never mind. I figured it out.
posted by mule98J at 7:46 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
To avoid sleeping too long
Conceptually I can understand this, but I DO NOT grok this.
Maybe I'm suicidal or just avoidant of some things, but these days I often want to always have been asleep. I don't think that's suicidal, but seeking Poe's "little slices of death" mightn't be best.
posted by pompomtom at 8:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [6 favorites]
Conceptually I can understand this, but I DO NOT grok this.
Maybe I'm suicidal or just avoidant of some things, but these days I often want to always have been asleep. I don't think that's suicidal, but seeking Poe's "little slices of death" mightn't be best.
posted by pompomtom at 8:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [6 favorites]
Yesterday was a great napping day in Portland--cool, cloudy, with even some rain! (apologies to those enduring downpours, but it is SO dry here...)
I wasn't even napping, though -- and yet still managed to be completely oblivious to a big Proud Boys/antifi clash taking place one block from my apartment. It'd been clear for a week that there would be some demonstrations and conflicts on Sunday, but like everyone else I'd expected it to be downtown, or at least not in my fairly obscure and remote corner of NE Portland. Even with windows open, I was apparently completely oblivious to fireworks being set off, chopper overhead, cars being flipped over, etc. etc. I vaguely thought at one point in the afternoon about walking over to to pick up some milk at the 7-11 (which you can see in the second video here), but was, fortunately, too lazy.
posted by Kat Allison at 8:28 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I wasn't even napping, though -- and yet still managed to be completely oblivious to a big Proud Boys/antifi clash taking place one block from my apartment. It'd been clear for a week that there would be some demonstrations and conflicts on Sunday, but like everyone else I'd expected it to be downtown, or at least not in my fairly obscure and remote corner of NE Portland. Even with windows open, I was apparently completely oblivious to fireworks being set off, chopper overhead, cars being flipped over, etc. etc. I vaguely thought at one point in the afternoon about walking over to to pick up some milk at the 7-11 (which you can see in the second video here), but was, fortunately, too lazy.
posted by Kat Allison at 8:28 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I'm going to blame the recent fatigue on acute anemia due to it being an absolutely terrible mosquito season.
Great weather for mushroom foraging, though. I found two huge chicken of the woods over the weekend, only one of which required a large blood sacrifice to the local insect population. I also found another big patch of black trumpet mushrooms, but they were all pretty well past their sell-by date so I marked it on the map for next year.
posted by backseatpilot at 8:35 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
Great weather for mushroom foraging, though. I found two huge chicken of the woods over the weekend, only one of which required a large blood sacrifice to the local insect population. I also found another big patch of black trumpet mushrooms, but they were all pretty well past their sell-by date so I marked it on the map for next year.
posted by backseatpilot at 8:35 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
Any tips for someone who has historically never been able to take a nap and would like to start?
When I was younger, I resisted any napping; figured they make it more difficult to fall asleep at bedtime.
Now, in my late 60s, I have a nap almost every day. Usually sleep well at night, also.
So, my solution is just - get older. It helps if your neighbors (and their dogs & kids) aren't active at nap-time.
posted by Rash at 8:58 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
When I was younger, I resisted any napping; figured they make it more difficult to fall asleep at bedtime.
Now, in my late 60s, I have a nap almost every day. Usually sleep well at night, also.
So, my solution is just - get older. It helps if your neighbors (and their dogs & kids) aren't active at nap-time.
posted by Rash at 8:58 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
Naps have always been confusing as fuck for me. You sleep at night. You're awake during the day. The few times I fall asleep during the day (after eating on Thanksgiving, etc.), I am totally disoriented after I wake up with a weird panicky feeling, convinced that the rest of the day is ruined, or something.
When I visited Australia and came home again, I was convinced that my sleep schedule was going to be screwed up for weeks. Nope, I was fine within a day, because you sleep at night, and are awake during the day.
posted by Melismata at 9:30 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
When I visited Australia and came home again, I was convinced that my sleep schedule was going to be screwed up for weeks. Nope, I was fine within a day, because you sleep at night, and are awake during the day.
posted by Melismata at 9:30 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
>To avoid sleeping too long
>>Conceptually I can understand this, but I DO NOT grok this.
>>Maybe I'm suicidal or just avoidant of some things, but these days I often want to always have been asleep. I don't think that's suicidal, but seeking Poe's "little slices of death" mightn't be best.
Heh, I hear you, my comment was specifically related to what happens during a daytime nap if I slip into the REM stage of sleep, typically more than 60 minutes. If I do this, then I typically feel groggy for hours and I have reduced "sleep pressure" at night, stay up late and the whole cycle begins again.
(Related topic: Sara Mednick's discussion of sleep cycles and napping is pretty interesting.)
But to your larger point: I am an avid sleep-seeker these days. Over the last 18 months my schedule radically shifted and I am now officially a morning person, sometimes waking up as early as 5am and crashing around 10pm.
This is absolutely pandemic-related IMO: at the height of my existential dread, I wanted nothing more than to switch out the lights and disappear from this world as long as possible. Waking up with the sunrise and the birds now feels very natural, and right now my 20-something past self is staring at me in horror saying "Dude, who are you and what happened to our night owl ways?"
posted by jeremias at 10:28 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
>>Conceptually I can understand this, but I DO NOT grok this.
>>Maybe I'm suicidal or just avoidant of some things, but these days I often want to always have been asleep. I don't think that's suicidal, but seeking Poe's "little slices of death" mightn't be best.
Heh, I hear you, my comment was specifically related to what happens during a daytime nap if I slip into the REM stage of sleep, typically more than 60 minutes. If I do this, then I typically feel groggy for hours and I have reduced "sleep pressure" at night, stay up late and the whole cycle begins again.
(Related topic: Sara Mednick's discussion of sleep cycles and napping is pretty interesting.)
But to your larger point: I am an avid sleep-seeker these days. Over the last 18 months my schedule radically shifted and I am now officially a morning person, sometimes waking up as early as 5am and crashing around 10pm.
This is absolutely pandemic-related IMO: at the height of my existential dread, I wanted nothing more than to switch out the lights and disappear from this world as long as possible. Waking up with the sunrise and the birds now feels very natural, and right now my 20-something past self is staring at me in horror saying "Dude, who are you and what happened to our night owl ways?"
posted by jeremias at 10:28 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
hi this was on chat, it seemed ... relevant? ???
posted by aniola at 10:32 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by aniola at 10:32 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Absolutely relevant. I am a midnight eater who has been trying to stop for longer than I will admit. I just cannot go to sleep without eating something, a piece of cheese, a handful of Cheerios, something. I could lose 10 pounds in a week if I could stop my late night emotional eating.
I am a terrible sleeper. I sleep from 3:30am to 8:30am. As my grandfather used to say, "I sleep fast." The odd thing is, I have that enviable (?) ability to fall asleep anywhere any time. I have fallen asleep standing in the shower, during an emergency landing of a flight, during an Elton John concert (I blame the extra curriculars). If I am bored and the situation calls for a nap, I close my eyes. Trains, planes, cars, bars...
posted by AugustWest at 10:52 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
I am a terrible sleeper. I sleep from 3:30am to 8:30am. As my grandfather used to say, "I sleep fast." The odd thing is, I have that enviable (?) ability to fall asleep anywhere any time. I have fallen asleep standing in the shower, during an emergency landing of a flight, during an Elton John concert (I blame the extra curriculars). If I am bored and the situation calls for a nap, I close my eyes. Trains, planes, cars, bars...
posted by AugustWest at 10:52 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
if you are one of the tragic ones for whom napping is elusive:
you need a sunbeam (comfy couch/chair/bed), a cat, and a book you really really want to read. you will be out like a light. don't try to nap, try to read. multiple cats even better. (in desperate straits, try eating a burrito first. I DEFY you to stay awake!)
posted by supermedusa at 11:04 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
you need a sunbeam (comfy couch/chair/bed), a cat, and a book you really really want to read. you will be out like a light. don't try to nap, try to read. multiple cats even better. (in desperate straits, try eating a burrito first. I DEFY you to stay awake!)
posted by supermedusa at 11:04 AM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
One thing I miss about living in Chicago and commuting via train is the built-in nap time. In the morning I'd usually be eating breakfast and reading the paper on the way in, but on the way home I'd set the alarm on my phone and hold it while I conked out for about 40ish minutes. It was great.
posted by Sparky Buttons at 11:11 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Sparky Buttons at 11:11 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
I am a terrible sleeper. I sleep from 3:30am to 8:30am. As my grandfather used to say, "I sleep fast." The odd thing is, I have that enviable (?) ability to fall asleep anywhere any time. I have fallen asleep standing in the shower, during an emergency landing of a flight, during an Elton John concert (I blame the extra curriculars). If I am bored and the situation calls for a nap, I close my eyes. Trains, planes, cars, bars...
Soldier, law, or finance.
posted by praemunire at 11:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
Soldier, law, or finance.
posted by praemunire at 11:13 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
But yeah lately unconsciousness seems like one of the most appealing states.
posted by praemunire at 11:14 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by praemunire at 11:14 AM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
Soldier, law, or finance.
Yup, equities trader.
posted by AugustWest at 11:17 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
Yup, equities trader.
posted by AugustWest at 11:17 AM on August 23, 2021 [3 favorites]
I also have that sleeping skill (including at a punk rock concert) and am none of the above.
posted by aniola at 11:40 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by aniola at 11:40 AM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Don't usually plan naps, but sometimes they happen in the afternoon on the couch, with two cats nearby and the TV in the background.
Grateful that Henri passed us by, so only saw some rain and a little bit of wind.
Also grateful for my little air conditioning unit, as the humidity is very high, and we're getting a heatwave for the next few days, which will break on Friday.
Assuming the cats are grateful for their new cardboard scratch pad, which I sprinkled liberally with catnip.
Grateful for a pot of my version of Persian beef stew on the stove, which is tiny pieces of browned beef, onion and fried parsley, spinach, kidney beans, and a regular lime (no dried limes here, I always forget that I could have ordered them, but I have regular limes). It's simmering away, while I'm watching episodes of my latest YT find:
Craft in America.
It's getting to be that time of year when I start thinking about taking up crafting again. I'm just an amateur hobbyist, and sometimes get the itch to make something. One of the videos from this channel (about Joyce J. Scott) was suggested to me, and it was really good, so I am working my way through the rest of them. Lovely stories of artists, from all walks of life, and how they got into their craft, their process, and lots of social justice themes from pre-2016, which both heartens me and makes me wistful. I tend to think of nostalgia as being from the 1960's or 1970's, when I was a child and during my formative teenage years, but am discovering it can also be from just a few years ago. All of the artists depicted are very down-to-earth, and also very inspiring. Kind of a cool thing to find on a humid, dark, and cloudy day, while I'm waiting for my stew to finish simmering.
I have some decisions to make about my future, things I've been putting off while I've been working through my grief, and I had a very emotional chat with my bereavement counselor today, who told me that none of us can think about everything all at once. To put some of it in a box and only deal with one thing at a time. So this afternoon has been a balm to my soul, and I highly recommend that YT channel to anyone who needs a break.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 2:23 PM on August 23, 2021 [6 favorites]
Grateful that Henri passed us by, so only saw some rain and a little bit of wind.
Also grateful for my little air conditioning unit, as the humidity is very high, and we're getting a heatwave for the next few days, which will break on Friday.
Assuming the cats are grateful for their new cardboard scratch pad, which I sprinkled liberally with catnip.
Grateful for a pot of my version of Persian beef stew on the stove, which is tiny pieces of browned beef, onion and fried parsley, spinach, kidney beans, and a regular lime (no dried limes here, I always forget that I could have ordered them, but I have regular limes). It's simmering away, while I'm watching episodes of my latest YT find:
Craft in America.
It's getting to be that time of year when I start thinking about taking up crafting again. I'm just an amateur hobbyist, and sometimes get the itch to make something. One of the videos from this channel (about Joyce J. Scott) was suggested to me, and it was really good, so I am working my way through the rest of them. Lovely stories of artists, from all walks of life, and how they got into their craft, their process, and lots of social justice themes from pre-2016, which both heartens me and makes me wistful. I tend to think of nostalgia as being from the 1960's or 1970's, when I was a child and during my formative teenage years, but am discovering it can also be from just a few years ago. All of the artists depicted are very down-to-earth, and also very inspiring. Kind of a cool thing to find on a humid, dark, and cloudy day, while I'm waiting for my stew to finish simmering.
I have some decisions to make about my future, things I've been putting off while I've been working through my grief, and I had a very emotional chat with my bereavement counselor today, who told me that none of us can think about everything all at once. To put some of it in a box and only deal with one thing at a time. So this afternoon has been a balm to my soul, and I highly recommend that YT channel to anyone who needs a break.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 2:23 PM on August 23, 2021 [6 favorites]
Count me in as another who can't nap without a series of unpleasant side effects, and so generally avoids them. But lately a combination of work and travel and heat have conspired to make me the Most Exhausted Ever, and for the first time ever it's been enough to affect my night-owl nature. For several nights in a row now I have fallen asleep at 11 or 11:30 pm (normally when I'm just getting started on my real evening, tbh) on the sofa. Sitting up, even! During shows I normally find compelling, and which I turned on fully expecting to watch all the way through.
It's absolute trash and I hope it's over soon, because if I have to start taking disco naps I'm going to be a very sad panda.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 2:44 PM on August 23, 2021
It's absolute trash and I hope it's over soon, because if I have to start taking disco naps I'm going to be a very sad panda.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 2:44 PM on August 23, 2021
sir jective: I love that your kid is into Scratch. I think it looks cool, but I've not really seen any kids use it. I started with Applesoft BASIC, and when I saw scratch I was all "Oh, I'd've loved to have had that". Have you seen Turing Tumble?
We definitely have Turing Tumble -- a Christmas gift -- and I think that was a bit of a gateway drug for the kids into real programming. And, yeah, likewise all the way around: I too learned with BASIC, by reverse-engineering games by stopping them in the middle and looking at their code, and I'm pretty envious about how quickly my kid has been able to make some pretty awesome programs. It's pretty great!
posted by sir jective at 2:48 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
We definitely have Turing Tumble -- a Christmas gift -- and I think that was a bit of a gateway drug for the kids into real programming. And, yeah, likewise all the way around: I too learned with BASIC, by reverse-engineering games by stopping them in the middle and looking at their code, and I'm pretty envious about how quickly my kid has been able to make some pretty awesome programs. It's pretty great!
posted by sir jective at 2:48 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
I don't really nap. If I am sleeping during the day it's generally because I was about to pass out for some reason.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 3:28 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 3:28 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
Actually one of my BEST naps was during a Guster concert in a gymnasium at a college. Obviously they had their own sound techs, so once the show got started I didn't really have anything to do, and something about how their loud guitar stuff reverberated and echoed around this huge space turned everything into this sort of full-body all-enveloping drone (especially with earplugs in), and I just drifted blissfully off.
To this day I still don't really know what Guster's music really sounds like, and I kinda don't want to.
posted by soundguy99 at 4:52 PM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
To this day I still don't really know what Guster's music really sounds like, and I kinda don't want to.
posted by soundguy99 at 4:52 PM on August 23, 2021 [4 favorites]
Wednesday was my birthday and it was pretty good up until the moment I fell off my window sill (long story) and stood up to see that my left-hand middle finger, which I'd bashed on the hearth, was bent at a 45 degree angle to the left.
I've never broken a bone and immediately started whimpering. I drove to urgent care and spent about 15 minutes in the waiting room shaking and sweating and trying to whimper quietly enough that I didn't disturb the other people waiting.
Finally they called my name for X-rays which I assume were really blurry because my hand was still violently vibrating.
It was determined that the finger was only dislocated and I stopped shaking a little bit. When they asked me if I had any allergies I just said "needles". I stared up at the ceiling as I got a shot of sedative on each side of my finger and again, a few minutes later, when someone pulled the finger straight.
Back to the X-ray room for another round. I was shaking less violently this time because, ya know, sedative. After that I was splinted up, given a couple pages of instructions and sent on my way.
With the splint and bandage on my middle finger making it so wide I can flip people off in a way that they will never not notice.
When I was driving home from urgent care the splint kept hitting the windshield wiper stalk and turned on both the front and back wipers. Since I haven't driven my car in two years I'd forgotten how to turn them off. It was a very sunny day.
Many other good things have happened during my birthday week, so all things considered it's been a net positive.
posted by bendy at 6:54 PM on August 23, 2021 [9 favorites]
I've never broken a bone and immediately started whimpering. I drove to urgent care and spent about 15 minutes in the waiting room shaking and sweating and trying to whimper quietly enough that I didn't disturb the other people waiting.
Finally they called my name for X-rays which I assume were really blurry because my hand was still violently vibrating.
It was determined that the finger was only dislocated and I stopped shaking a little bit. When they asked me if I had any allergies I just said "needles". I stared up at the ceiling as I got a shot of sedative on each side of my finger and again, a few minutes later, when someone pulled the finger straight.
Back to the X-ray room for another round. I was shaking less violently this time because, ya know, sedative. After that I was splinted up, given a couple pages of instructions and sent on my way.
With the splint and bandage on my middle finger making it so wide I can flip people off in a way that they will never not notice.
When I was driving home from urgent care the splint kept hitting the windshield wiper stalk and turned on both the front and back wipers. Since I haven't driven my car in two years I'd forgotten how to turn them off. It was a very sunny day.
Many other good things have happened during my birthday week, so all things considered it's been a net positive.
posted by bendy at 6:54 PM on August 23, 2021 [9 favorites]
I have fallen asleep ... during an emergency landing of a flight
You weren't the pilot were you?
posted by bendy at 7:05 PM on August 23, 2021 [7 favorites]
You weren't the pilot were you?
posted by bendy at 7:05 PM on August 23, 2021 [7 favorites]
When I was a teenager and needed more sleep (but obviously before I knew that was A Thing), I would often come home from school, sit on the side of my bed, and then just wake up an hour later, lying on my back, sideways across the bed with my feet on the floor.
I wish I could still do that.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 7:43 PM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
I wish I could still do that.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 7:43 PM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
To this day I still don't really know what Guster's music really sounds like, and I kinda don't want to.
FAA FA FA FA FA FA FA
posted by bendy at 8:31 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
FAA FA FA FA FA FA FA
posted by bendy at 8:31 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
Going against the ethos of this Talk but it's the middle of the night here in (looks out of window) England and I'm very awake. We appear to have avoided the much predicted August heatwave (good) and, while some bleat about how disappointing a summer it's been, I'm glad that apart from eight days it hasn't been a scorcher.
Until a few years ago I was utterly unable to nap but then I guess ageing and metabolic changes, or something, meant it not only became possible, but also desireable. So now I sometimes grab between twenty minutes and an hour at some vague time in the afternoon. One of my principle reasons for going self-employed in 2001 was so I could sleep in whenever I wanted, and go for long walks during the better weather. I guess another reason, more recently, is the ability to nap when required.
I have nothing of interest to say. There are biscuits here. That's about it, I guess.
posted by Wordshore at 8:38 PM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
Until a few years ago I was utterly unable to nap but then I guess ageing and metabolic changes, or something, meant it not only became possible, but also desireable. So now I sometimes grab between twenty minutes and an hour at some vague time in the afternoon. One of my principle reasons for going self-employed in 2001 was so I could sleep in whenever I wanted, and go for long walks during the better weather. I guess another reason, more recently, is the ability to nap when required.
I have nothing of interest to say. There are biscuits here. That's about it, I guess.
posted by Wordshore at 8:38 PM on August 23, 2021 [5 favorites]
Oh, I consider biscuits very interesting - both English and American kinds.
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:43 PM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:43 PM on August 23, 2021 [2 favorites]
Wordshore, when I lived in England the late late sunsets in the summer were entrancing. I'm a night owl and having a bit of light around midnight justified my staying up late.
posted by bendy at 11:38 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by bendy at 11:38 PM on August 23, 2021 [1 favorite]
I tend toward insomnia the way some tend toward dyspepsia -- every little thing sets it off. The other day it was worry that my house was succumbing to oily horrors from beneath (thanks to the friendly folk at AskMe for helping me trace the issue to a much more benign source). Not sure what woke me up in the wee hours today. School, probably, the way it looms. Everyone in the house has nerves about this, for a variety of reasons, but on balance I'm optimistic, I think. We had what passes for an IEP meeting when you have no legal rights and that went okay, we've got a stash of at-home COVID tests and a lukewarm thumbs-up from Little e's ped on proceeding; I think we're as ready as we're gonna be. Sure is fun parenting through a weird dystopia!
posted by eirias at 4:05 AM on August 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by eirias at 4:05 AM on August 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
Gratitude: my friends give me confidence to try neat things!
So, I usually ride a few bike century (100+ mi / 160+ km) events every year with bike club friends. Last year I didn't get one for obvious reasons.
Six weeks ago, one of my three dear "bubble of cyclist friends" was like "we should ride a century this year" and talked me into it. Because of COVID cautiousness, I'm just not riding as much or as far as I was so I'm well out of shape.
(For non-cyclists, a century is something like a marathon: totally doable by a lot of folks if you train for it. But it's going to be tough for most folks.)
So we made a rough plan of what lead-up rides we'd do each weekend to make us feel like we were well-prepared. We stuck to the plan (as much as the weather would allow), and I'm happy to say that two of those close friends and I totally rode 103 miles on Saturday and really enjoyed it. We took it slow, talked a lot, ate way too much lunch at a little Amish store / sammidge place (fresh-fried doughnuts!), and I finished feeling better than I ever have at the end of any century! I could've ridden the double metric! :)
posted by introp at 7:20 AM on August 24, 2021 [11 favorites]
So, I usually ride a few bike century (100+ mi / 160+ km) events every year with bike club friends. Last year I didn't get one for obvious reasons.
Six weeks ago, one of my three dear "bubble of cyclist friends" was like "we should ride a century this year" and talked me into it. Because of COVID cautiousness, I'm just not riding as much or as far as I was so I'm well out of shape.
(For non-cyclists, a century is something like a marathon: totally doable by a lot of folks if you train for it. But it's going to be tough for most folks.)
So we made a rough plan of what lead-up rides we'd do each weekend to make us feel like we were well-prepared. We stuck to the plan (as much as the weather would allow), and I'm happy to say that two of those close friends and I totally rode 103 miles on Saturday and really enjoyed it. We took it slow, talked a lot, ate way too much lunch at a little Amish store / sammidge place (fresh-fried doughnuts!), and I finished feeling better than I ever have at the end of any century! I could've ridden the double metric! :)
posted by introp at 7:20 AM on August 24, 2021 [11 favorites]
I am not very good at napping, and fall into the dreaded Death Nap when I aim for a gentle 45 mins. 3 hours later blurry and sweaty and somehow freezing cold I awaken, and then can't sleep at night.
My partner does what he calls Pencil Napping, which is when you hold your body in a straight line, facing downwards with arms tucked up by your sides. He has lots of success, I am envious.
I just wish I could wake up alert and active in the mornings, instead of the now-normal exhaustion and heaviness. There are many things I could try and haven't, and I suspect I am anemic again and that's part of the problem. Slogging through middle age, y'all.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 7:38 AM on August 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
My partner does what he calls Pencil Napping, which is when you hold your body in a straight line, facing downwards with arms tucked up by your sides. He has lots of success, I am envious.
I just wish I could wake up alert and active in the mornings, instead of the now-normal exhaustion and heaviness. There are many things I could try and haven't, and I suspect I am anemic again and that's part of the problem. Slogging through middle age, y'all.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 7:38 AM on August 24, 2021 [2 favorites]
Among my mother's superpowers was that she could decide to take a nap for a set period of time, lie down and immediately fall asleep, and then wake up from the nap on time.
posted by slkinsey at 8:27 AM on August 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by slkinsey at 8:27 AM on August 24, 2021 [3 favorites]
Happy birthday, bendy. Sorry about your injury but it's pretty darn eponysterical.
posted by mpark at 9:47 AM on August 24, 2021 [6 favorites]
posted by mpark at 9:47 AM on August 24, 2021 [6 favorites]
My naps revealed that I actually need to sleep during the day, so now I do and I am happier for it. I go to bed at 6pm ish, wake up around midnight, do random stuff till 4, then wake back up around 8. If I am stressed, I go to bed at 2pm and adjust accordingly. Friday I slept 16 hours (no dreams!!!!) which was wonderful. Any time I can nap or sleep without dreams is a blessing.
posted by Hermione Granger at 12:32 PM on August 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
posted by Hermione Granger at 12:32 PM on August 24, 2021 [1 favorite]
Guys I'm tired. I'm so tired every day.
I posted this question in the expectation that I would enjoy smelling things again, but it turned out that what I have is a litany of chronic sinus problems that may require surgery and at best will require Big Pharma's most expensive bullshit to cure. On top of that I am getting hyperthyroid again, I know it, and I can't see the endocrinologist for three weeks.
Also I somehow caught poison ivy, probably from a dog, and when it breaks out there is sometimes nothing better for it than a Benadryl nap.
I am lucky to be in a situation where I can take naps more often than most people can, but I am just tired of being so tired.
posted by Countess Elena at 2:44 PM on August 24, 2021 [5 favorites]
I posted this question in the expectation that I would enjoy smelling things again, but it turned out that what I have is a litany of chronic sinus problems that may require surgery and at best will require Big Pharma's most expensive bullshit to cure. On top of that I am getting hyperthyroid again, I know it, and I can't see the endocrinologist for three weeks.
Also I somehow caught poison ivy, probably from a dog, and when it breaks out there is sometimes nothing better for it than a Benadryl nap.
I am lucky to be in a situation where I can take naps more often than most people can, but I am just tired of being so tired.
posted by Countess Elena at 2:44 PM on August 24, 2021 [5 favorites]
It is day 1830 and I'm still editing this dissertation and feeling whiny. I could definitely use that nap.
posted by joycehealy at 3:13 PM on August 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by joycehealy at 3:13 PM on August 24, 2021 [4 favorites]
Sorry about your injury but it's pretty darn eponysterical.
OMG I'm eponysterical for the first time ever!
posted by bendy at 12:24 AM on August 25, 2021 [8 favorites]
OMG I'm eponysterical for the first time ever!
posted by bendy at 12:24 AM on August 25, 2021 [8 favorites]
More good things to add to everyone else - just treating this as a yay thread.
1. Despite no mask mandate, students at my kids' school look like they are 90% complying, and the teachers are on point and seem to get it (hand sanitizer everywhere, basically treating it as if its a mask mandate, etc).
2. I get to call a whole bunch of my staff this week and collectively give out a couple hundred thousand dollars worth of unexpected additional bonuses our leadership team decided to provide over and above normal compensation and bonuses. Best calls in the world to make - including to people I know but have never met in person - getting to IM them and say "hey I have a little good news for you....can I call quickly?" and then unexpectedly drop an extra $10k on them on an otherwise ordinary Wednesday morning........I wish I could do more, but holy cow does that feel like the right thing to be doing right now.....I've had squeals and "holy shits" and even a dead silent line for 5 seconds followed by a quiet "you have no idea how much that helps right now" that almost made me tear up.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 9:13 AM on August 25, 2021 [16 favorites]
1. Despite no mask mandate, students at my kids' school look like they are 90% complying, and the teachers are on point and seem to get it (hand sanitizer everywhere, basically treating it as if its a mask mandate, etc).
2. I get to call a whole bunch of my staff this week and collectively give out a couple hundred thousand dollars worth of unexpected additional bonuses our leadership team decided to provide over and above normal compensation and bonuses. Best calls in the world to make - including to people I know but have never met in person - getting to IM them and say "hey I have a little good news for you....can I call quickly?" and then unexpectedly drop an extra $10k on them on an otherwise ordinary Wednesday morning........I wish I could do more, but holy cow does that feel like the right thing to be doing right now.....I've had squeals and "holy shits" and even a dead silent line for 5 seconds followed by a quiet "you have no idea how much that helps right now" that almost made me tear up.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 9:13 AM on August 25, 2021 [16 favorites]
Update - rang one person to give them their bonus...and they opened up they had just been diagnosed with cancer a few weeks back. Told them they were getting a not life changing but still very large dollar amount, and they almost broke down about how much medical bills are and how much it helps. Dear reader I had to go take a walk after the call..... Fuck cancer, and fuck medical bills in the US....bonus's should be about doing something nice for your family and yourself, not to scrape by with medical care.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 12:38 PM on August 25, 2021 [21 favorites]
posted by inflatablekiwi at 12:38 PM on August 25, 2021 [21 favorites]
I don't know if there are any Destiny (the videogame) fans on here, but the new season (S15) just launched and the new DLC, The Witch Queen, is out next year. I only started playing at the tail end (I think literally the last week) of S13 and I've been having a blast. And they just announced platform crossplay, so if there are any MeFi Destiny players who want to squad up and shoot some baddies, hit me up!
posted by turbid dahlia at 5:17 PM on August 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by turbid dahlia at 5:17 PM on August 25, 2021 [2 favorites]
you have no idea how much that helps right now
Fuck cancer, and fuck medical bills in the US.
Both of your posts made me tear up.
posted by bendy at 3:54 PM on August 28, 2021
Fuck cancer, and fuck medical bills in the US.
Both of your posts made me tear up.
posted by bendy at 3:54 PM on August 28, 2021
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posted by biggreenplant at 10:41 AM on August 22, 2021 [2 favorites]