Creatures of the night.

It is 3 am. And I’m blogging at this supposed ungodly hour because I cannot sleep. Now some may call me an insomniac or possibly ask me to seek help if this is a common occurrence. But I’m definitely not an insomniac, I’m just a creature that functions better at night.

Picture this.

8 PM

You listen to fluffy, pop and uncouth rap music while having some soggy ‘instant pasta’. You have your books open in front of you and you study as you eat. You are just warming up.

9 PM

Take a long, hot shower and get into some old, crumpled, holey tracks and a tee. Arrange all the requisite books for the night on the table and snuggle into the cushy, familiar swivel chair.

12 AM

A mini- break. Some bitter, black coffee and chocolate chip cookies to fight the acrid after- taste. Some neck extensions and five cat stretches. The room’s all dark, only the white light of the reading lamp glimmers bright. You put Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 on loop, and adjust the volume  to “barely audible”. And you get back to work.

1 AM

This is the hardest time. The dreaded 1 to 2 AM bit, where every cell in your brain screams for you to do the decent thing- SLEEP! Get past this, and you are through.

2 AM

It gets easier. In fact you are getting into the most productive hours. The next two hours are golden. They are equivalent to about 6 hours of studying during the day. Your senses are hyper- alert and your brain is uncommonly receptive. 

3 AM

You feel invincible. You move on to Bach’s violin concertos. Your spirits rise. And your pages fly, you scribble furiously.

4 AM

Another coffee (or tea) beckons. Maybe some dark chocolate too. You trudge on. The body starts to complain. You walk around a bit, to slacken your muscles. Your poor neck is ragged and twitchy. You tell him rest is near.

5 AM

The humanity around presents the first signs of waking up. The birds chirp and the milkman’s bell tinkles. You have done well. But you ain’t “done” yet. You find some Bollywood 90’s hits to help you out.

6 AM

The long- hand slowly drifts past 12. You rush through the last page. You pick up the paper with your time- table, and place a tick beside the last line. You crack your knuckles and stretch.

It’s been a good night.

You brush your teeth, not to face the world but to rid the guilt of all the sugary things you put into your mouth in the past few hours.

All the world around you opens their windows to let the rays of the rising sun in, you pull your curtains closed and try to shut them out as best you can.

As your neighbors make their beds and their morning coffees, you put your coffee mug in the sink and fluff your pillows. 

You snuggle in. 4 hours of the most content, blissful, restful sleep awaits.

On extra- special nights, you don’t go to bed immediately. You change, have a banana, tie up your sneakers, blare some trance from your iPod and do a short lil’ 5K. Then shower and snuggle in. Aah! Heaven!

This is how the creatures of the night function. I have done this for weeks on end, at different phases of my life. Standard ten and twelve board exams. Pre and post -graduation entrance exam preparation. Graduate and post- graduate boards and finals. Days before my thesis submission. Eve of important presentations.

Sleep after sunrise. Everyday.

But the problems arise when you have no exams or presentations to prepare for. What does a night creature do then?

Till next time..

Dr J.