• insomnia

    Sleep, Interrupted

    February 28, 2015 / No Comments

    I didn’t get much sleep this week; things just kept getting in the way.

    On Sunday, I was distracted by a new book.

    On Monday, I had a nightmare.

    Tuesday was not bad. The dream I had was so fascinating that I’ll probably have to turn it into a novel.

    Tree trimmers kept me awake with their chopping, buzzing and grinding on Wednesday and Thursday.

    And Friday, a day I normally use to “catch up,” was interrupted by news of Leonard Nimoy’s death. Instead of going to sleep, I read obits and tributes and cried.

    I have no big plans for tomorrow so I should be able to sleep in. I’m excited and grateful for this opportunity. Soon we’ll be moving the clocks forward and returning to a time when the daylight hours are long and brutal. Even though there’s still snow on the ground, I can already feel the summer grumpiness awakening from hibernation.

    (Photo by Hurley_gurlie182)

  • 2013: The Year In Review

    December 18, 2013 / 2 Comments

    At the end of the year, I always take a moment to examine the ups and downs I experienced, both personally and professionally. What follows is my accounting of 2013:

    * Produced hundreds of breaking news stories, including the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the intensive manhunt for the Boston Marathon bombers and countless mass shootings.

    * Blogged for The Obituary Forum, The Blog of Death, Hooked From The First Page and Afterthoughts.

    * Passed the 29,000th tweet mark on my personal Twitter account (@jadewalker) and received the “I’m real” checkmark of verification.

    * Penned 60 journal entries.

    * Worked on my novel.

    * Purchased a Fitbit, increased my daily steps/stairs and cut back on my sleep debt. Also started using FitBolt to decrease time spent sitting.

    * Subscribed to the HelloFresh and Plated food services, then cooked a ton of delicious dishes.

    * Read 38 books and countless magazines.

    * Watched more than 30 films.

    * Took classes in archaeology, disaster preparedness, health/nutrition, literature and photography.

    * Launched The 10th Muse, a mailing list of writing prompts.

    * Updated The Written Word.

    * Participated in the New York City Writers Group, the South Florida Freelancers Group and the Journalism & Women Symposium.

    * Attended The Society of Professional Obituary Writers (SPOW) conference in Canada and launched the group’s private Facebook page.

    * Created a YouTube video about the future of obituaries.

    * Featured in a CNN article about obituaries.

    * Profiled on JobShadow.

    * Built websites for my husband and grandfather.

    * Redesigned The SPOW website as well as my own.

    * Went house-hunting in New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.

    * Dyed my hair red.

    * Traveled to Burlington Vt., New York City, Toronto and Scotland.

    * Visited the monument to Phineas Gage.

    * Tended a garden of basil, oregano, catnip, romaine lettuce, mint, thyme and flowers.

    * Dealt with the libelous rantings of a couple of cyber-trolls (yes, lawyers were involved).

    * Saw Stephen King, Sting and Stuart McLean in person.

    * Leased a new car.

    * Perfected my versions of fudge, chocolate drop cookies, carrot cake, chicken pilaf and lasagna.

    * Celebrated my 4th wedding anniversary.

    * Turned 40.

    * * *

    End of the yearPlans/goals for 2014

    * Save up enough money for a down payment on a house.

    * Write more snail mail letters.

    * Work on my books.

    * Write more obits.

    * Write more poetry/short stories.

    * Experience fewer migraines.

    * Eat more fruits and vegetables.

    * Exercise.

    * Win the lottery.

  • Building dreams

    May 21, 2013 / 1 Comment

    Have you ever dreamed about a place, somewhere you’ve never been and yet it feels familiar?

    Have you had multiple dreams about this location?

    Does this place have any significant features, the kind you remember when you wake?

    And do you think you’d recognize this location if you learned that such a place existed?

    I have a place like that. I’ve never been there in real life and yet it has appeared numerous times in Morpheus’ realm. During these dreams, the features of the place are usually the same.

    For me, it is a skyscraper in some unknown city. The lobby is immense, with soaring ceilings and dark marbled tiles. The walls are made up of floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides, but it’s dark whenever I enter the building so the view is always obscured. Instead, I see the lobby’s reflection in the shimmering black glass.

    Sometimes the building is a hotel, albeit a rather unfriendly one. In these dreams, the building has the feel of a fortress, as if very wealthy or famous people are staying there and no trespassers are allowed. Other times, it is an office building, and various newspapers, publishing houses and wire services fill each floor.

    The left side of the lobby contains an immense paneled security desk, staffed by large, serious men. For some unknown reason, I always try to avoid the guards, using crowds or cunning to sneak past them and up the stairs.

    To the right are two black escalators moving in opposite directions. Frosted glass lines each side of the moving stairways and an obsidian marble median separates them. The stairs are made of thick steel, and the steps are wide enough to comfortably hold three people standing abreast. Slowly the stairs rise to a second floor and then a third. From there, I usually make a quick turn, and hop into a second elevator to reach the higher floors.

    Once the elevator reaches what the panel notes is the top floor, I disembark and walk over to another lift. The door to this elevator is more obscured, but I always seem to know how to find it. This ride takes me to the rooftop, and when I step out of the elevator, I’m treated to a stunningly brilliant view of the city’s lights.

    According to my dream dictionary: “Dreaming that you are on a roof, symbolizes boundless success.” Reaching the roof feels more successful than being on it, at least in my dreams, and I never wake feeling as if I’ve accomplished something or am about to do so. The dictionary also notes: “If you are moving up in the escalator, then it suggests that you are addressing and confronting emotional issues.” Can’t say I know what those issues are, but perhaps the answer will be revealed someday.

    I believe this recurring dream, this unknown yet familiar building, this long ride up to the roof is simply a metaphor for my work life. As such, I find myself wondering if I’ll ever reach that elusive rooftop. More importantly, if I do, will the view from the top be worth the climb?

  • It Finally Happened

    May 6, 2013 / No Comments

    For the first time ever, I am not in sleep debt. And I have proof. Feast your eyes on this:

    sleep debt

    That’s right. I’ve managed to cancel all of my sleep debt this week. Can I keep it up? Only time will tell.

    How much sleep debt have you accumulated? Are you ever able to “catch up”?

  • I’m Not Fat. I’m Sleep-Deprived!

    April 7, 2013 / 2 Comments

    At the moment, I am in debt. Sleep debt. And I am not alone.

    According to the National Sleep Foundation, humans should get between “seven and nine hours of sleep each night for optimum performance, health and safety.” When we don’t get enough sleep, we accumulate sleep debt.

    On average, Americans sleep 6.9 hours a night — 6.8 hours during the week and 7.4 hours on the weekends, Scientific American reports. Which means most of us are losing more than two full weeks of slumber every year.

    Sleep deprivation has been linked to “negative mood and behavior, decreased productivity, and safety issues in the home, on the job, and on the road,” the National Sleep Foundation reports. Scientists have also found a relationship between the quantity of one’s sleep and many health problems.

    In a landmark study, researchers at the University of Chicago had a group of student volunteers sleep 4 hours a night for 6 consecutive nights. The result?

    The volunteers developed higher blood pressure and higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and they produced only half the usual number of antibodies to a flu vaccine. The sleep-deprived students also showed signs of insulin resistance — a condition that is the precursor of type 2 diabetes and metabolic slowdown.

    Reading about this study made me want to go out and buy a T-shirt bearing the message: I’m Not Fat. I’m Sleep-Deprived!

    While all of these changes were reversed when the students made up the hours of sleep that they had lost, who has the time to play catch up? And how do you do it?

    Dr. Lawrence J. Epstein, regional medical director of the Harvard-affiliated Sleep Health Centers, offers the following advice:

    Settle short-term debt. If you missed 10 hours of sleep over the course of a week, add three to four extra sleep hours on the weekend and an extra hour or two per night the following week until you have repaid the debt fully.

    Address a long-term debt. Plan a vacation with a light schedule and few obligations. Then, turn off the alarm clock and just sleep every night until you awake naturally.

    Avoid backsliding into a new debt cycle. Once you’ve determined how much sleep you really need, factor it into your daily schedule. Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day — at the very least, on weekdays.

    Last month, I picked up a Fitbit One. This awesome little device measures my steps, notes the flights of stairs I climb, counts the calories I burn and generally encourages me to be less sedentary. The Fitbit also measures my sleep habits: how long it takes for me to fall asleep, how many times I wake up and how long I’m actually unconscious.

    In general, I strive to be above average in all things, but when it comes to getting quality sleep, I am not doing well. In fact, I am in serious sleep debt.

    My alarm is set for 7 p.m. My sleep target is 7 hours. Using the data collected by my Fitbit, the Sleep Debt website says that I am currently 15 hours in debt. Why? Because, on average, I only sleep 5 1/2 hours a night. To completely clear this debt, I’d have to sleep for 22 hours.

    This is not good.

    So, my goal for April is to change this trend and get out of debt. I’m going to sleep more, and the sleep I experience will be restful.

    Hopefully.