Wednesday 21 December 2011

The longest of shortest days

Well, it feels that way, anyway. I'm at home at the moment, having travelled down on the overnight train last night. I was on lates yesterday, and I'm using my day off to collect my wife's car - I'll be driving back up to Surrey in the morning - so that I can get back home on Saturday evening after my late shift then, allowing me to have Christmas Day and Boxing Day at home. Apart from an hour or two on the train last night, and a couple of short power naps this afternoon, I've been awake for getting on for 36 hours, yet another test of my resilience. Good job that my stamina is holding up, given my age and condition.
Another advantage of the overnight trip, given my wife's kindness in coming to the station well before 'the crack of dawn' this morning, was that we managed to get the Christmas grocery shopping done at our regular supermarket, which is open 24 hours. It's a much more civilised time of day to shop, I find, especially at this time of year, when the worst problem you have is slaloming around the shelf stackers and their trolleys, rather than the rapacious hordes of locusts masquerading as Christmas shoppers that make such places like bearpits during the day.
Having finally arrived indoors, around 6:00 this morning, I haven't had any ambition to go out again. I've been quite happy, as is often the case when I'm here, to do little more adventurous than chill in my living room. I have won a brownie point or two in sorting out a couple of very minor domestic jobs, which took me a grand total of about a quarter of an hour, but, that aside, I've been thoroughly lazy.
On the basis of wanting to be accurate, I've just checked on a calendrical website whether it actually is the shortest day of the year here today - and it isn't! Tomorrow, in terms of the time between sunrise and sunset, is apparently one second shorter! There's obviously a conspiracy afoot to make me out to be dishonest! They're out to get me - or as Kurt Cobain memorably wrote, 'Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after you"!

Love & best wishes to all
Sammy B

4 comments:

  1. Welcome home! Hope you get some quality SLEEP!

    Peace <3
    Jay

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello Jay
    I finally conked out about 10:00 last night, so I managed about 8 or 9 hours sleep, which is quite a lot for me. Up and about now, though, and back off to Surrey in an hour or so. Just remind me how much fun I'm having!

    Love & best wishes
    Sammy B

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi there, Sammy

    I think you have a lot more stamina as regards lack of sleep than I do (though I guess a lot more practice too, given your shift work) - I don't think I could do what you've just done, nor face the drive you have tonight after a day's work.

    Anyway, I hope you have a happy Christmas, and I also hope that 2012 is a better year for you than 2011 - you deserve it.

    Take care

    Mark

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello Mark
    Years of practice undoubtedly help! Given a fair wind, I should actually get home today, albeit barely - I'm hoping to be back shortly before midnight, but then, at least, I have got two clear days.
    I wish you a happy Christmas, and all the best for 2012. Thank you for being such a good friend to me.

    Love & best wishes
    Sammy B

    ReplyDelete