Poly-propylene

Whew, okay, here I am, update time.  And regarding how I moved a week ago and have been fighting my way back from a brush with the local plague, please just assume that those are always true and coloring all the "update" material in this post, even when they’re not mentioned, eh?  Okay.

That said, some interesting polyphasic (and some other) stuff has been learned recently…

Nearly mono:  First, I came about 1/4" from declaring that I was back on monophase and just going to have to re-adapt.  Post-nasal drip is EVIL and keeps me from napping like nothing else, so even after I stopped being need-to-sleep-a-lot ill, I had almost a week where I was lucky to get one nap a day in, and sleeping 6-7 hours most nights.  But I was also too busy to update, and now that I have the chance, I have to report that as soon as the snot-problem ended, so did the mostly-monophasic period.  As of today I’ve had two pretty-much-perfect days this week, though yesterday I missed a nap and slept 4.5 hours at night.

The lazy core:  I actually caught a post in the polyphasic group considering that practice, by the way — sleeping an extra 90 minutes at times — and it was fascinating that someone else seems to have come to exactly my conclusion, independently.  As long as you go in 90-minute blocks, it seems that sleeping extra doesn’t really hurt; but he also pointed out that it’s much, much better to take the extra time at the beginning of your core, rather than the end.  I haven’t said that yet it so many words, but I couldn’t agree more.  If I realize that I’m overtired, either from missing a nap, working too much, emotional strain or whatever, and I just go to bed by 11:30 and wake up at 4 (instead of the usual 1-4), things roll along just fine.  I don’t even have trouble with my next naps, nor feel groggy later, or anything.   And that’s good to know, since many of us — especially those who opted for Everyman to begin with because they needed the flexibility — know that life can throw you some curve-balls, and it’s great that one doesn’t have to suffer everytime that happens in order to enjoy the benefits of polyphasic sleep.

The long-awaited:  Man, I’ve been chomping at the bit to improve my efficiency, up my output, rev my crankshaft and all that, but what’s happening is that I’m having to learn a lot of patience.  Moving (nevermind while sick) takes a lot out of you, and it’s a long, long process, especially with a kid and two households and contractors involved.  We still aren’t even remotely "done" or settled in, though progress is certainly being made.  However, I don’t have a desk upstairs (yet!  I finally got the one I wanted just yesterday; now I have to build it.  Ikea is my best friend for having cheap awesome furniture that you get to build yourself!  I <3 building stuff.) and my art-area in the basement is still a total shambles.  I also have no leads on the exercise equipment I want (though I do have the area for it cleared out, and a TV hooked up), so most of my desired nighttime activities are still only pipe dreams.  Boredom is still a bit of a problem under these conditions, but it’s getting to be less of a problem every day as I adjust to the new space and what I can do with it.  (Yesterday I realized:  I can cook!  And make good herbal remedies again!  HOLY CRAP!)  However, one thing I am doing that was very important to me is writing every single morning at 4 a.m. (even when it involved sitting on a tupperware container in front of a tray-table, daring the Gods of Chiropracty to issue their smackdown).  I’ve decided that a major goal of mine is to finish a particular one of my novels before I go into grad school, so it’s great to be making real progress.

Ramadan:  I live near a very middle-eastern-populated area, so I hear about things like Ramadan regularly.  (And for the record I think Ramadan is an awesome way to have a yearly holiday.  If I could make Christmas more like Ramadan, I totally would.  Plus, come on, it’s a kick-ass word.)   Anyway, recently it occurred to me that polyphasic sleep might be perfect for things like Ramadan, where you’re fasting regularly and there are lots of night-time activities.  In that kind of environment — where everyone in a group is doing these things, fasting and feasting and hanging out at night, together — how hard do you think it would be to adapt to a polyphasic schedule?  I bet it’d be pretty easy, and worth it, too.  On the severe off-chance that I have any Muslim readers, I’d love comments on the idea.

Ego City:  Why do I always end up involved in things that mean I love what I’m doing/studying but hate the people doing/studying it with me?  Sheesh!  Philosophers have been horrifying me lately, in spite of my undying enthusiasm for the pursuit of wisdom.  Gah, the arrogance of people whose primary job is supposed to be to ask questions!  It’s just unbelievable.  Anyway, today one of them snarked at me that I must be inferior, brain-wise, because I was interested in studying an outdated idea that is not viewed as good theory by most philosophers.  (And it’s true, it probably isn’t a good theory.  But it’s a damn compelling idea, and it’s fascinating–to me, anyway–that someone would come up with it, and that it IS so compelling in spite of probably being factually wrong.)  For a field of study that ought to have THERE ARE NO STUPID QUESTIONS, BUT ALMOST ALL ANSWERS ARE STUPID as its motto, it’s amazing to me how snotty and herd-oriented philosophers can be.   It does speak highly of the power of logic that any learning at all has ever managed to be smashed through the adamantium skulls of these people.  Good grief.

Speaking of No Answers:  I owe replies to several people, mostly on religion-related stuff.  I apologize if it takes me a while, possibly until the weekend, to get back to you — I haven’ t had nearly enough time lately to tenderize my brain with the spiked mallets of your questioning.

An 18-minute Mystery:  One thing I’ve noticed since my schedule re-started itself about four days ago, is that my naps are about 18-19 minutes long.  It is taking me longer to fall asleep, so maybe that’s why.  (Actually, last night and today I fell asleep faster and slept 20-21 minutes.  So maybe this is a temporary readjustment thing.)  Anyway, I’ve been waking up, looking at the timer, seeing 2-3 minutes left on it and laying back down, usually just to rest and meditate but sometimes to go back to sleep — and I’ve been thinking all the time that I shouldn’t be, that since I’m waking up fully and quickly after 18-19 minutes, I should get up, that laying there for two more minutes is just lazy.  Well, yesterday I did the same thing, only when I sat right up after 19 minutes, I got right up, no lazing around.  And you know what happened?  I was groggy as a midwinter grizzly, for almost an entire hour afterwards.  It SUCKED, and I haven’t experienced anything like that, even while readjusting from my illness…zow!  So my guess is, for people adapting or re-adapting, consider staying down until your alarm goes off, even if you wake up beforehand. If you consistently do it, and really don’t need the extra minute or two, fine, but if my experience is any indication, then you may actualy need that one-more-minute even if you don’t sleep for it.  Weird.

And that’s the deal for today. 

Hope the weather is as end-of-summer-gorgeous where you are as it is where I am!