10 December 2007

I'm sitting in a booth at Panera's, next to the fireplace, on a gray and misty Monday morning. Cozy. Fortunately, rainy days and Mondays don't get me down. The only thing that could be better was if I hadn't picked a spot near a table that has filled up with 6 people in some type of meeting, but it's not bad. If I wasn't concentrating on writing, I might be interested in listening. I've always been curious about 'meetings' because we only have 4 a year in my salon, and for a lot of people, I think their jobs consist of meetings. When people used to ask what my ex did for a living, I'd tell them I wasn't sure, but I knew he had a lot of meetings.

I was so tired last night. Spent. Then, I couldn't fall asleep. I really didn't have much on my mind. Sleep just wouldn't come. After about an hour, I thought I should take something to help me sleep, but I was too tired to get up. Then, with a deafening siren, the house alarm went off, and I knew right away what had triggered it. I hadn't taken down the ornaments I hung in the threshold between the front door and the living room. The floor vent is right below the ornaments. The motion detector is above. The air made the ornament swing around triggering the alarm. Nothing like jumping out of bed and flying downstairs to deactivate the alarm, heart racing, thoughts of a burgler as a possibility in the back of your mind. Somehow, it didn't wake Emily. I went upstairs, took a pill and tried going to sleep. Couldn't sleep. Remembered another ornament hanging from a door frame in range of the motion detector. Back downstairs to take that down. Up to bed. No sleep. Light on, reading the Italian Classics cookbook. I think I fell asleep around 2:00 and woke up at 4:30. I decided to get a start on the day. I gathered the recipes for the appetizers and desserts I'll make for my party. Made lists of ingredients I have on hand and what I need to buy. Checked my wine supply. Made lists of paper good I have to buy. Decided to drive Emily to school, come here for breakfast and coffee, then go to Sam's Club and the liquor store. Then, I'm going home and spending the rest of the day in till Emily comes home from school. I would like to spend hours working on my cards. If we feel up to it, we'll go shopping. We both need outfits for this Saturday. And with that, I'll just say whew. And another thing: I inherited all my energy from my mother. Before she had her stroke 6 years ago, she was in constant motion. I miss that mother. She misses the person she was.

21 comments:

Happyone said...

You're not running on much sleep today!
I'm lucky - I never have trouble sleeping.
I would be like Emily and sleep through the alarm too.
Hope all goes well with your day. :-)

Jay said...

I had a friend who set up an alarm system with motion detectors after her husband died. The set it so that the dog could walk through the house without setting it off. But, they forgot that the dog liked to jump up on the couch and when he did it went off. She said the dog was sitting on the couch howling like crazy while she was trying to turn it off. LOL

Mary said...

What a night you had! Nothing like the sound of a security alarm to set your heart to pumpin'. Take a deep breath and enjoy a quiet day. I bet you sleep tonight.

Dave said...

Nothing like jumping out of bed and flying downstairs to deactivate the alarm, heart racing, thoughts of a burgler as a possibility in the back of your mind.

What I want to know Cheryl is why rush down into the arms of a burger? If my alarm went of, I would be locking my bedroom door and hopping on to the phone...

Then again...Maybe I am just a chicken! Buk! Buk!

Alarms are great when they work the way we want them to.

have a good day Cheryl! :-)

CRUSTY MOM-E said...

Happy Chanukkah!
How'd the kugel turn out?
We had Thai food last night! YUM! spring rolls and rice cream!! YUM!!!

I love the new picture of you and Em...you guys are so cute!
And yes, I agree with you From your comment in my post-amazing how all of us are bonded regardless of distance!

Always,
Crusty~

Jim Baker said...

i suck at life when I don't get enough sleep... seriously... anyway... panera's awesome... thats my spot to write I haven't been there in a while but I love their chai, i get it with soy milk though and that always drives them crazy because they have to make it from scratch instead of just pouring the already made batch...

when i can't fall asleep i try getting my breathing under control and really focus on inhaling and exhaling... and then once that becomes natural I visualize and count backward from 100 slowly and before I get to the 80's I'm out. try it. :)

Tylenol pm however is pretty amazing isn't it? I use it whenever I travel... I tried ambien i think its called last time i went over to eastern europe and that did the trick too... haha

jim baker

fiwa said...

Oh, that's such a little bit of sleep! I get 8 hours and still feel like I'm slogging through mud most morning.

I'm glad your book club went well. :)

fiwa

mosiacmind said...

so many people i know are having lots of sleep issues.i know that i still am..........

Moohaa said...

You and I both didn't get much sleep. I'm amazed at your energy. Admirable! I'm glad it was only an ornament setting off the alarm and not something serious.

Enjoy your day!

Lena said...

Love your new picture!!
Your book club is bigger than I pictured it, lol! You all look like you had a great time.

You are just amazing with all you accomplish!

Glad you liked my story :-)

Andrew said...

Mom and Dad have an alarm and it had a tendency to go off in the night, too. I am glad it was just an ornament and no interloper. Hope you are well tonight. I am missig you and I bet you are so tired and are going to sleep like a log tonight. I'm not long for the bed myself. Good night, dear friend!

Summer said...

What was it about last night that none of us could sleep? I miss my mom and the way she was too. It's so hard.

Sweet dreams tonight.

Gin said...

I sleep that way too. I'll get a couple hours and then wake up. A lot of my blogging is done in the wee hours. And it's amazing the silly things that will keep my mind going 90 mph! But, I've discovered that the less sleep I get, the more energy I have...well for a couple nights in a row...then I crash and burn!

Can't wait to hear about your party recipes!! And your party!

Ginni

CRUSTY MOM-E said...

whew! Sleep well tonite please! and don't forget to move the ornaments!
ALways,
Crusty~ :)

Mo said...

Insomnia bites.

My life seems to be a series of meetings, conference calls, training sessions, etc. Lots and lots of information going to and fro. Nothing too exciting I tell you. But a necessary part of my professional life.

Panera and you should hook up for an advertising deal. ;)

Mo said...

Oh and I hope you get some good sleep tonight. I too had issues last night and am looking forward to snuggling in and falling promptly into slumber this evening.

SOUL said...

yep, i hope sleep was better for you this time around.
maybe it's the change in the weather---or even the added stress of -- well, every thing that december brings. christmas, shopping, traffic, taxes, ugh---shall i go on?

anyhow--- there is always COFFEE. right?

i think i feel like your mom... i miss who i once was too. you couldn't stop me with a mac truck... now ya just can't get me UP with one.
ugh.
wth?

anyways... hoping you have a great day today!

C.A. said...

I feel your pain with the lack of sleep, honey. I'm running on empty myself the past few days. I so wish I could sneak off to Panera and snuggle up in a nice corner for awhile. Enjoy some of that time for me, too!

I love your new Christmas picture with the hat! It's stunning!

Hugs...

C.A.

bonnie said...

I wake up a lot during the night, and it's never pleasant. But the ALARM ! We can't have motion sensors because we have pets. But any alarm event directly notifies ADT. If I'm prepared, I call them ASAP so I don't have to wait around for them to call me. Half the time I'd already be dead and my house would be emptied by the time they call. I am so envious of your sober ability to plan and prepare. But I know that you'd love sitting in front of my wood stove and hanging out saying "forget the planning today."

dawn said...

you are so a goner.
reading cookbooks in bed...
yeppers!

Neponset River Bridge Dig said...

Just dropped by to say hello. Glad to see your still keeping the Panera connection going.

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