A loss of precious sleep
Okay, I admit it. I am one of those "10 hour a night" sleep people. Or at least I used to be. I can't remember the last time I actually got that much. But my body still needs way more than some people seem to need (my husband could sleep 4 hours a night and function pretty well). I NEVER get a night of uninterrupted sleep anymore. Even with a sleep number bed, I toss and turn, and something always wakes me up...usually a child.
But two nights ago...well that was a different story. At about 5:15 Saturday morning (the day I was taking the two boys to Aquatica with my brother, so being well rested was a requirement for a happy mamma), my husband and I woke up to a strange noise outside. It sounded like...well, crying. And we listened for a moment because I thought maybe it was Mittens and another stray getting in a territory dispute (cats seem to fight over the "possession" of our porch about once a month). Then as we woke up more, it became clear that it was a human cry. A child's cry. Then the adrenaline flows because it definitely was OUTSIDE the house. At 5:15 AM. But also, a look out the window showed me that it was the grandson of our across the street neighbor (the one who cuts hair in his garage and has an affinity for yelling out to his friends "Hey M_____F____-er, what's up?"...nice, I know). So my husband and I both go out there to this maybe 5 year old child, who is standing in the street, the door to the house WIDE open, and we wonder, "What do we do NOW?" SO I walked up to the door and knocked and yelled inside for the neighbors, but no one appeared to be home. I had just heard a car leave as the crying started, so I wasn't sure if whoever left had done harm to my neighbors and not realized there was a small boy inside also, so I DID NOT want to go in. But just then, the neighbor came pulling up, and backed into his driveway like noting happened. (He could not see us at the door from where he was.) SO we walk over to the car with his grandson, and the neighbor does the whole, "Oh, did he wake up, I'm sorry...". Yep. Definitely from another generation. He had to take his wife to dialysis, and rather than wake the sleeping child to drive 4 minutes away, he figured he could sneak there and back with his grandson never knowing the difference. Know what? My parents would have done the same thing when I was little. I seems like a reasonable gamble...unless the 5 year old child wakes up, goes running out in the street crying, and your neighbors as seconds away from calling the COPS because they fear foul play. I wonder what he will do next time? Either way, I get woken up every morning when she goes to dialysis, because our bedroom faces their driveway, and either he takes her (and since he backs in his headlights shine in our room ) or the county bus picks her up...that's even more special since that's a diesel engine idling outside my window...and sometimes it even BACKS UP, BEEPING NOISE AND ALL. At 5:15 AM. I know I should have compassion for her and her need for dialysis, but have I mentioned I find sleep, well, essential?
So fast forward to THIS morning. This morning, I get woken up by every helicopter in a 100 mile radius flying overhead...at 6:30 AM. Seems there was a meth lab bust mere minutes from my house. NICE. And every news agency thought, let's wake 100 small town city blocks by flying overhead to get shots of the sheriff's officers bagging up stuff in the dark. Nope, couldn't wait until LIGHT...then they are not on the air with the 30 minute news. Must wake people with the helicopters so all of O-town can view the bagging of stuff outside a house.
All this, and I live in the GOOD part of town.
A stay in a secluded, luxury hotel is sounding really good right now.
Or even an uncomfortable hospital bed and a medically induced coma.
So today, I'll be (day)dreaming of sleep :-).
But two nights ago...well that was a different story. At about 5:15 Saturday morning (the day I was taking the two boys to Aquatica with my brother, so being well rested was a requirement for a happy mamma), my husband and I woke up to a strange noise outside. It sounded like...well, crying. And we listened for a moment because I thought maybe it was Mittens and another stray getting in a territory dispute (cats seem to fight over the "possession" of our porch about once a month). Then as we woke up more, it became clear that it was a human cry. A child's cry. Then the adrenaline flows because it definitely was OUTSIDE the house. At 5:15 AM. But also, a look out the window showed me that it was the grandson of our across the street neighbor (the one who cuts hair in his garage and has an affinity for yelling out to his friends "Hey M_____F____-er, what's up?"...nice, I know). So my husband and I both go out there to this maybe 5 year old child, who is standing in the street, the door to the house WIDE open, and we wonder, "What do we do NOW?" SO I walked up to the door and knocked and yelled inside for the neighbors, but no one appeared to be home. I had just heard a car leave as the crying started, so I wasn't sure if whoever left had done harm to my neighbors and not realized there was a small boy inside also, so I DID NOT want to go in. But just then, the neighbor came pulling up, and backed into his driveway like noting happened. (He could not see us at the door from where he was.) SO we walk over to the car with his grandson, and the neighbor does the whole, "Oh, did he wake up, I'm sorry...". Yep. Definitely from another generation. He had to take his wife to dialysis, and rather than wake the sleeping child to drive 4 minutes away, he figured he could sneak there and back with his grandson never knowing the difference. Know what? My parents would have done the same thing when I was little. I seems like a reasonable gamble...unless the 5 year old child wakes up, goes running out in the street crying, and your neighbors as seconds away from calling the COPS because they fear foul play. I wonder what he will do next time? Either way, I get woken up every morning when she goes to dialysis, because our bedroom faces their driveway, and either he takes her (and since he backs in his headlights shine in our room ) or the county bus picks her up...that's even more special since that's a diesel engine idling outside my window...and sometimes it even BACKS UP, BEEPING NOISE AND ALL. At 5:15 AM. I know I should have compassion for her and her need for dialysis, but have I mentioned I find sleep, well, essential?
So fast forward to THIS morning. This morning, I get woken up by every helicopter in a 100 mile radius flying overhead...at 6:30 AM. Seems there was a meth lab bust mere minutes from my house. NICE. And every news agency thought, let's wake 100 small town city blocks by flying overhead to get shots of the sheriff's officers bagging up stuff in the dark. Nope, couldn't wait until LIGHT...then they are not on the air with the 30 minute news. Must wake people with the helicopters so all of O-town can view the bagging of stuff outside a house.
All this, and I live in the GOOD part of town.
A stay in a secluded, luxury hotel is sounding really good right now.
Or even an uncomfortable hospital bed and a medically induced coma.
So today, I'll be (day)dreaming of sleep :-).
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