a peek inside the fishbowl

17 Jan, 2012

sleep denied

Posted by andrea tomkins in: Misc. life

It’s 2:12 when Piper wakes me. She has to poop. This doesn’t happen often, but it happens. She always wakes me quietly, with a whisper whine, as if to apologize. I blindly reach for my giant furry housecoat and trudge down the stairs in the darkness. I locate her collar by touch and hear its distinct jingle and click as I put it around her neck. I pull on my boots, put my coat on over top of my pyjamas, and unlock the front door. She sniffs the air for a moment before she crosses the threshold. The stairs creak. The snow is startlingly bright and squeaks crisply. She does what she needs to do and does a U-turn towards the warmth of the indoors. I remove all of my winter gear and watch her make a show out of making a spot for herself on her dog bed, turning around and around until she gets it right and plunk down with a groan. I choose to interpret this as an apology. I go back upstairs but it doesn’t take me long to recognize that sleep will be eluding me for awhile. The temperature re-adjustment causes me to break out in a micro sweat. And then I start to think about All The Things and I make lists. And then I realize that there’s been a song playing in my head this whole time, and it’s not the whole song, but the final line of a familiar Christmas carol: “It’s the most wonderful time of the yearrrrrrrr!” Ugh.

I get up and head downstairs because sleep won’t be coming anytime soon. And I write this.


7 Responses to "sleep denied"

1 | Lara

January 17th, 2012 at 8:21 am

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Ick. I actually I have this sleep app that drones me to sleep in times like that. Totally cheesy but really works! I think the guy’s name is Andrew Johnson if you’re interested.

2 | Misty Pratt

January 17th, 2012 at 8:22 am

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That sucks. I hate nights like that! I had one the other night, but it was the moon that woke me up – almost as bright as the sun, and we currently have no blinds on our windows :)

3 | Giulia

January 17th, 2012 at 8:59 am

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uggghhhh, hope you’re not too tired today.

4 | Natalie

January 17th, 2012 at 9:06 am

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I sympathize. It happens all the time at our house. Although it’s anybody’s guess whether it will be the dog, the kids or the husband (if you’re reading this darling, yes, you do snore, yes) who wake me up. They take turns it seems. Sigh.

5 | Lynn

January 17th, 2012 at 10:59 am

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Loved this post. It’s exactly what being up in the middle of the night is like. Hope you find time for a nap this afternoon :).

6 | Heather

January 17th, 2012 at 5:05 pm

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that put a smile on my face:) I don’t even bother with putting a housecoat on any more, just walked down and elt the dog out and in and out and in.

7 | andrea

January 20th, 2012 at 10:17 am

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Getting up with the dog is just like having a baby again!

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My name is Andrea and I live in the Westboro area of Ottawa with my husband Mark and our dog Piper who is kind of a big deal on Instagram. We also have two human offspring: Emma (24) and Sarah (22). During the day I work as a writer at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre. I am a longtime Ottawa blogger and I've occupied this little corner of the WWW since 1999. The Fishbowl is my whiteboard, water cooler, and journal, all rolled into one. I'm passionate about healthy living, arts and culture, travel, great gear, good food, and sharing the best of Ottawa. I also love vegetables, photography, gadgets, and great design.

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