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Right by Night.

There are times when I seriously just space out and think about how much more success I'd find in life if the accepted "active hours" were reversed and people slept by day amd worked by night.


It's after 2 AM as I write this. I wouldn't really call myself an insomniac, because I'd sleep all day tomorrow if I could. But I can't, because that's when everyone works. I've sent all the e-mails I needed to send and did all the little things I needed to do, but that won't matter if I'm dead asleep at 10 AM and somebody wants to know why I italicized certain words and didn't offer the same graces to others.

It occurs to me that I've been more or less tweaking my professional life for the past several years not so much to work less, but to allow for the maximum number of times that I can stay up all night and not need to be coherent the next day.

It's pitch black right now, and there are only three audible noises: The keyboard, the hum of the fish tank filter, and an assload of crickets outside. At least, I'm pretty sure that they're crickets. Do any other bugs sound like ambient sound effects from old Eurythmics songs? I'm pretty positive that only crickets do.

I know I'm not alone in this peculiar ideal; I just wonder why it is this way. And, if I got what I wanted, would I end up wanting to stay awake all day instead? Is this all just some alien form of anthropophobia? I can joke about hating sunlight and do an Oscar-worthy impression of eleven-year-old Kirsten Dunst's vampire death scream, but maybe the sun ain't the problem. Maybe you're the problem. You, you awake people. Sleep while I move. Let's switch off.

Posted by Matt on 09/04/2007. E-mail me!



Discussion Thread: 123 comments

Damn! How did I miss this blog post considering I was up till 4 AM (Chicago time) last night?

Like many here I am also a classic night-owl. The second that I lack a reason to be up early, such as a job or school, my sleep schedule instantly changes. In a matter of weeks I’ll convert from usually falling asleep between 11PM – 12AM to staying up as late as 4 or 5AM. Of course this ends up being slightly annoying too as I’ll typically sleep until 2 the next afternoon. If I were to get up any earlier, and not allow my body 8 hours of sleep (kind of like today), then I will feel sick. My body just doesn’t function well without sleep. I’ll feel a bit like I have the flu, slightly nauseous all day. Fun stuff.

I always feel a little bad though when I sleep much of the day away. It can sometimes make me feel a little isolated from the other people in my life, even though they are working and I wouldn’t have been around them anyway. If that makes any sense. Even with the guilt I will still partake in my “night-life” as long as I don’t have a reason to be up at 7AM. It is just too much fun. Everything is better after midnight. Everything except fried chicken if you are a mogwai, I guess.

Chestnuts roasted by Magic Toy @ 09/04/2007 1:01 PM

i just had a cup of espresso. i’m zooming… at least it’s already 1:00 ! 5 more hours to go!! its better than 10 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chestnuts roasted by Andrew @ 09/04/2007 1:07 PM

Oh yeah man, for many many years now, i’ve been a nightowl.I’ve always preferred the night for some reason, maybe because it’s quiter, cooler, i dunno, it just feels better to me.Plus i hate the sun, it’s just too damned bright, and too damn hot in the summer.That’s why i love cloudy days and rainy days, as well.Especially rainy days.

Chestnuts roasted by BloodMist @ 09/04/2007 1:07 PM

I’ve been nocturnal as long as I can remember. I definitely get that from my mom. I can remember being sent to bed as a kid and just staring at the ceiling for hours. I still do that. I have found that I hate working nights though. I like to save my best hours for me, and I think part of the appeal of night for me is the freedom of obligation.

My father-in-law pretty much functions on farmer hours and gets smug satisfaction by finding out what time we got up on any given weekend morning and letting us know how much stuff he’d gotten done by then. What he doesn’t seem to understand is that when he crashes into bed at night, we still have 5 or 6 good hours ahead of us. We’re awake just as many hours as he is. Just because the hours are different doesn’t make us lazy. And even though he’s so proud that he gets up at 6, he seems to forget about that nap in the middle of the day he can’t seem to go without. At least when we’re up, we’re up. Ugh. That gets me riled.

I can understand why everyone has to work at the same time though. I worked at a company where the owner tended to spend time with her kids during the day and do most of her work at night (she worked from home), which was a huge problem because I’d need her to deal with something right away, and either I couldn’t reach her, or she was off at some soccer field somewhere and couldn’t deal with it. Sometimes you need everyone accessible at once. By the end of my tenure there, pretty much everyone was working their own hours and it was becoming a real headache. There were only two of us in the building for the entire duration of the business day because we were the only ones who hadn’t made some life change (like having a baby or moving to the country) and demanded special treatment. Hmmm…how do you like that? Guess I’m still a little bitter.

Chestnuts roasted by Lori @ 09/04/2007 1:08 PM

Ah! Gotta love caffeine! There have been many a day I wouldn’t have made it without that wonderful stuff!

Chestnuts roasted by Dan @ 09/04/2007 1:10 PM

Manimal I need your love tonight! Can I get a gold star? :-)

Eddie Lightning Frog I didn’t think people could be allergic to Ferrets. I thought they were a good stand in for people with cat issues for that reason. That aside, I think you should go for the pygmy opposum so your house doesn’t stink like a Ferret. The more you bathe them the more scent oil their skin produces so the stink just gets stronger despite being descented (removal of anal gland). Plus Ferrets have a sadly short life span and are very prone to cancers. I had 2 at one point so I can speak from experience on this one. My boy was all fat dumb and happy all the time and my female was the spawn of Satan and evil to the core. She hated everyone except my husband and would even bite my pillow when he had her on the bed and she could smell me. It turns out she was actually a succubus in disguise because my boy got sick and the sicker he got the healthier her coat and skin got. She was sucking the life out of him. I miss my little man. Incidentally they were named Sugar (f) and Spice (m).

Chestnuts roasted by Cricket @ 09/04/2007 1:27 PM

my friend has a ferret, he puts him on a leash and takes him outside… haha.

Chestnuts roasted by Andrew @ 09/04/2007 1:42 PM

I too find that I function more creatively after the sun has gone down. I suppose that has a lot more to do with not being at work than it does with the position of the sun.

I make time for fun/personally rewarding things at night after dinner and grading papers. I think that the association dark = creativity is based on who you’re working for at a given time of day.

If I taught Algegra 1 at 3:00 am, I’d probably love noon because that’s when I could blog about the dice tower I’m in the middle of planning (or whatever.)

Chestnuts roasted by penguin_poet @ 09/04/2007 1:46 PM

I also prefer night. Although when I’m off work, I just go to sleep whenever and wake up whenever. Sometimes I sleep a six hours, sometimes I can occasionally sleep twelve. Who cares. When I’m not working, it’s my time to relax. I hate it when people brag about how early they got up. I get plenty of sun at work so when I can, I try to avoid it. I hate the hot weather and bright light.

Chestnuts roasted by Scott @ 09/04/2007 1:48 PM

I had two ferrets too but mine were the opposite. Sammy(f) and Simon(m). Sammy was as sweet as could be, she would come up and give you kisses or curl up around your neck and go to sleep. Simon HATED me but loved my wife. He would go under the hide-a-bed couch we had at the time just so he could crawl thru the fram and bite me on the rear! Sadly Sammy passed away and Simon went into mourning so we gave him to another family that had ferrets so he would have company. Now we have guines pigs, much easier to handle and a lot less smelly.

Chestnuts roasted by Dan @ 09/04/2007 1:51 PM

Morning just sucks. I’m sorry, but there it is. My parents used to tell me that nothing good happens after 11:00 at night. WRONG! Nothing good happens BEFORE 11:00 in the morning! All of my co-workers know that if they need my help before lunch, they better come bearing coffee or coke. Otherwise they can fully expect to be treated like idiots.
I didn’t realize the Great State Fair of Oklahoma was approaching so quickly. What will they fry this year??? No gimmick that Oreo has put out there comes close to batter-dipped, fried Oreos!!!

Chestnuts roasted by Saint @ 09/04/2007 1:53 PM

holy hell, fried oreos? i always wanted to get a fryalator (sp?) and fry like… everything.. but fried oreos? and they’re good?

Chestnuts roasted by Andrew @ 09/04/2007 1:55 PM

Right. You are now officially taking cooking advice from a single American male you met on the Internet. God help you all.

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef (greasy chili sucks)
15 oz ranch style beans (1 regular size can)
16 oz tomato sauce (2 small cans)
1/2 bottle Guinness Extra Stout or other dark ale
1 tsp-1/3 cup chili powder
1/2 tsp oregano (if it’s not already in the chili powder…check the label)
1/2 tsp cumin (optional)

Note: This recipe generally comes out slightly thicker than the stuff you get in a can. I’m aware that some people like their chili to be more stew-like, with mostly-liquid sauce, and some prefer it thicker, to the point that a fork is not out of the question. It’s pretty easy to tailor to your needs, but keep those definitions in mind for the “thinner,” “thicker,” and “default” chilis in this recipe.

Instructions:

1. Brown the hamburger meat in a frying pan. For best results, start thawing in the refrigerator the day before. Season lightly with salt and black pepper, then drain. If you’re going for a “thinner” chili, you can probably skip the draining.

2. Put the meat, beans, and tomato sauce in a saucepan over medium heat and mix well. Pour in half the ale while stirring until evenly mixed and drink the other half while you ponder the proper amount of chili to add. After a certain point, adding more chili powder will add more flavor without too much additional heat. I generally go with 1/3 of a cup, but I’m from New Mexico and have generally evolved to meet a different standard of spiciness. If you’re from up north or don’t really like spicy food, you might start with a tablespoon full for your first attempt and adjust up or down from there to suit you. Chuck in any other spices you’re using at this point.

This is the time where you really need to decide how thick you want it. If you want a thinner chili, you can add the whole bottle of ale and up to a cup of water. If you like it thicker, toss in a tablespoon or two of corn meal. Note that it’ll thicken up considerably as you cook it, so don’t get too carried away.

Oh, and I wouldn’t use regular Guinness. I haven’t tried it in the chili, but I’ve made a great many meat pies in my day, and it tends to leave a pronounced and bitter aftertaste. Extra Stout is the way to go, but feel free to experiment.

3. This is where people generally screw up. Chili is a stew. You gotta let it stew. So once you have it all nice and mixed up and it’s bubbling nicely, put a lid on it, crank the heat down to “low,” and leave it. The longer it stews, the more flavorful the end product. On most stoves, the low setting should work just fine, but I had one in my last apartment that would burn the chili unless it was all the way down on “warm.” So stir it periodically to make sure it’s not sticking to the bottom, and adjust it if you need to.

4. Serve. Get into a massive argument with everyone else at the table about how you should arrange the layers of cheese, chips, and chili. As all True Believers know, the proper configuration is a layer of Fritos on bottom, a generous stratum of cheese, then the chili, and then a sprinkling of cheese on top. My favorite cheese is a mix of cheddar and mozzarella, for the perfect fusion of flavor and melting characteristics. Should serve about four, but I’ve dealt mainly with college students, so your mileage may vary.

Oh, and I suppose you can put lettuce and diced tomatoes on top of it, but if you do, I really don’t want to hear about it. Infidels.

Chestnuts roasted by Jedoc @ 09/04/2007 1:56 PM

They fry everything at the fair. Oreos, Snickers, Twinkies, I even heard they are going to have a “fried latte” this year!

Chestnuts roasted by Saint @ 09/04/2007 2:00 PM

Hmm…It looks like there will be a Ghostbusters 3 but this one will be CG. I don’t know what to think about that.

Chestnuts roasted by Bill @ 09/04/2007 2:02 PM

Thanks Jedoc! I’ll give that a shot for dinner on Friday. Sounds really good!

Chestnuts roasted by Dan @ 09/04/2007 2:03 PM

okay, i’m going to make frito pie. then i’m going to fry it. along with candy bars and anything else.

Chestnuts roasted by Andrew @ 09/04/2007 2:12 PM

I’m going to sit on my porch and watch the fire trucks drive by to put out the grease fire at Andrew’s house.

Chestnuts roasted by Dan @ 09/04/2007 2:22 PM

Is a malt cup and a ding-dong a good lunch? I can’t tell. I swear, you guys, I’m not 300 lbs.

I would be excited about a new ghostbusters flick, but the cg does make me leery. No getting around it nowdays I suppose.

It would absolutely HAVE to have the original cast though. All of the guys would HAVE to be in it for me to even bother.

Chestnuts roasted by MaryJane @ 09/04/2007 2:25 PM

From what I understood all the original cast is supposed to be in the film but Murray is only going to lend his voice to the movie, not appear in person. Not sure excatly how they are gonna work that out but I guess we’ll see.

Chestnuts roasted by Dan @ 09/04/2007 2:28 PM

I once read on a website somewhere that nocturnal people served an important and highly respected role in early human communities. While everyone else was asleep, they would tend the fire and watch out for danger. It’s more than a choice or a habit, it’s in your DNA. It has something to do with body temperature peaking at a certain time.

This makes me feel a little better since I’ve been a night person from day one.

Chestnuts roasted by GloomyJack @ 09/04/2007 2:31 PM

Maybe he will be a CG ghost.

Today sucks so much it’s getting a hickey.

Chestnuts roasted by MaryJane @ 09/04/2007 2:33 PM

I’m fine with just Bill Murray.

Normally I’m also Anti-CGI, but I really don’t see another option (that the mainstream audience would identify with). Ah… the days of blues and green screens living in harmony…

Chestnuts roasted by Cotter @ 09/04/2007 2:33 PM

One thing I like about September, besides the State Fair, is cicaidas chirruping like hundreds of tiny, tiny metal guitar solos.

Chestnuts roasted by kingklash rockin' out to insects @ 09/04/2007 2:34 PM

Dan- i loled.

i remember watching a king of the hill episode where boomhower and bill fried everything they could get their hands on because after trying a fried bannana (sp?) they wanted more. i do wonder what a fried candy bar tastes like……. i’d fry like everything: turkey, steak, chicken, candy, cookies, chips, fruit, vegetables…. oh my.. hahaha…

Chestnuts roasted by Andrew @ 09/04/2007 2:35 PM

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