January 20, 2007

Morning

They say you need 8 hrs of sleep...I need at least 9.
I'm definitely not a morning person, but I'm not really a night owl either.
I don't wake up to an alarm unless absolutely necessary...
Instead, I just sleep until I'm ready to get up, which is usually between 8 and 8:30.
When I do need to set the alarm, I wake up many times during the night in panic that I've overslept.

I always maximize my sleep time - I sleep as late as necessary, then get up and get ready to go to work in record female time.
During the work week, I don't mess around in the morning - while I want to ease into my day mentally, I physically just want to get up and out of the house as quickly as possible.

So when I finally get up in the morning, I want to be left alone for that mental ease.
I don't like sharing the bathroom or the closet - stay out of my way or deal with the consequences.
I don't like morning chit-chat (at home or at work) until the coffee's had a chance to kick in.
I purposely wait until my roommate is gone in the morning before getting out of bed...it's better for both of us that way.

I'm lucky to have a job with flexible hours.
They seem to understand that letting their employees work the hours that suit them best is much more efficient, and the company benefits from that.
But I still have to bill my 40 hrs every week, so that means that I normally work later at night.
Which is fine and dandy until race season rolls around, and I have to be at Opus by 5:30.

I actually worry about being a bad mother because mornings are so painful, and kids don't care what time it is.
People with kids say your schedule will change, but I'm skeptical.

One recent morning, I decided to go to the gym before work because I had something going on that night.
It was a good idea in theory.
At one point during my workout (at 6:30 am), I thought how nice it would be to do morning workouts on a regular basis.
By the time I was done, I thoroughly regretted my poor decision.
I could hardly function all day, and that two hours of missed sleep affected me for two days after.

I'm sure there are plenty of non-morning people out there who embrace their anti-morning-ness, and just deal with it.
But I've always wanted to be a morning person, so I can't seem to let it go.
Yet I'm apparently not willing to do anything about it.
So perhaps it's time to embrace.
I'll think about it over coffee.

11 comments:

Gilby said...

Since I was very little, my dad started work at 5:30 or 6 am, and had an hour commute. I would get up early and chat with him while he was having his morning coffee. I've been a chatty morning person ever since, more or less. The downside to getting up so early is that I get cranky if I'm not winding down by 9 pm.

nathan said...

You know I've never been a morning person either. Same thing with the alarm too. A couple months ago construction began on a big new building about a 1/4 mile away from my house, and they were using a pile driver to establish the foundation. I sleep with my window open and the pile driver would start about an hour and a half before I usually got up (about 9). I became a very hateful and angry person :) For about a week, and then I tried earplugs and I have never slept so well since. I feel awesome every morning when I wake up. So give earplugs a shot and see how you sleep. They're cheap, just get the foam kind at a drugstore, the silicone kind are uncomfortable.
-Nathan

mtb05girl said...

I know exactly how you feel. I need at least 8 hours of sleep or else the day is pretty crappy. Not a morning person either. I'd rather stay out late and get up late.

Eclectchick said...

I'm 100% a morning person. At night, I have to keep moving cuz the minute I sit down, I fall asleep, double espresso or no. My hubby's snoring keeps me awake some nights. His suggestion is that I get earplugs. But seeing as I am the only morning person in the relationship, and get up with my alarm clock super early to get a workout in (as well as to be the alarm clock for the hubby) I don't get how earplugs could work. I'd either never hear the alarm, or would be so hyper about possibly not hearing the alarm, I STILL wouldn't get any sleep. Oi.

pattycakes said...

I'm just glad you made a new post something to kill some time for me down here in Mankato.

Pete said...

Roommate?

Chadley said...

How about we just change the typical work day from 8 hours to 6 hours? Hmmm?

Chuck said...

I read this last night. I was a little afraid to talk to you this morning when you were getting coffee.

Strats said...

You are a smart man Chuck!

Anonymous said...

I need someone thats a high caliber blogger like yourself to reintroduce me to the blog world.

Chadley said...

I forgot to mention . . . Nicely written. If the whole science/-ologist thing ends up not working out for you, you've got a future in writing. That is, if you don't mind making about 1/16th of your current salary.