Hitting Snooze
First up, an admission. People often assume that I'm a leap-out-of-bed-at-6am, run-ten-miles-before-breakfast, more-than-four-hours-sleep-is-for-wimps kind of chap, but the truth is somewhat different. I hate getting up in the mornings.
On my last expedition, I slept pretty well, which surprises a lot of people. I guess that sheer physical exhaustion overrode the fear of prowling polar bears, the -40 degree cold and the 24-hour daylight; I averaged eight to nine hours of sleep a night. But here's the weird bit – I found it harder and harder to get to sleep at the same time each night, and harder and harder to wake up at the same time each morning; it was as if my body was trying to shift into a 25-hour cycle. I put it down to the lack of true day/night, steadfastly set my alarm for the same time each morning and safety-pinned it inside the hood of my sleeping bag, right next to my ear. Each night, I'd stay up later, repairing kit, reading and scribbling notes in the back of my diary. And each morning, I'd oversleep.
Sleep is a pretty macho issue. The up-and-at-'em go-getters of this world can almost do without it entirely. In 1992, when Clinton was running for president, he boasted that he wanted the presidency so badly that he went 48 hours without sleep. Bob Dole went one further in 1996 with a 96-hour stretch during his campaign. Four-hours-a-nighters include everyone from Madonna to Napoleon and of course Ellen MacArthur sailed non-stop around the world in ten weeks on little more than 20-minute naps. Just think – going from eight to four hours a night would give you an extra two months every year!
So. It's just gone midnight. After I've finished this, I'm going to clean my teeth, set the alarm for 8:30ish (hey, it's a Sunday!) and crash out. And yet, I have a sneaking feeling that despite a healthy eight hours' kip, tomorrow morning will entail pressing snooze at least five times, followed (eventually) by a groggy crawl from the bedroom straight to the coffee maker.
Monday will be different, I tell myself. I'll get an early night. I'll set the alarm for 6am. I'll train before breakfast and I'll be at my desk by 8. Time for a bit of self-discipline! I've gone soft since I left the Army, that's all. Time to get a grip!
Or is it?
I've just stumbled across an absolutely fascinating article on sleep by a chap called Dr. Piotr Wozniak. One of the things he advocates is 'free running sleep' – in essence, going to sleep when you feel like it and waking up when you, er, wake up.
If that sounds like a notion that sits rather awkwardly with your always-on, go-getting 21st-century lifestyle, you might want to take a look at the supremely decadent 'apology' section of Dr. Wozniak's resumé…
I apologize for refusing invitations to conferences. I travel rarely and only to vacation destinations. Otherwise I am entirely stationary. I attended my last conference here in Poznan in April 1999, and the last business meeting in Poznan in Summer 1999. I had my last business teleconference in Fall 1999. Today, I strongly prefer e-mail communication… Freedom from meetings and deadlines makes it easier to use tasklists, proportional schedule, and adjust the timing of mental effort to my body clock.
Please do not see my refusal to attend important business meetings even in my home town as unkind or a sign of not attaching sufficient importance to an issue in question.
For exactly same reasons as above, I do not have a mobile phone; not even for private purposes. If I do not make it available, it is not of ill will. It is solely the question of time management. If I happen not to answer mail personally for a longer time, it comes from the fact that I frequently take "creative vacations" that usually last around two months. In those periods, I intensely focus on one vital problem and work cut off from major distractions. I believe this attitude will be increasingly prevalent in creative professions. It is not dictated by lack of concern for others. It is dictated by efficiency! I apologize to anyone who feels offended.
— Filed under Rumination