Is it a blessing or a curse that I’m such a light sleeper? I’d vote the latter. In fact, I require total darkness, a box fan buzzin’ and an occasional cup of Natural Vitality Calmful Sleep for a restful slumber. For me, anything can offset my sleep schedule, including the time change, a long nap or in most cases, my overly active brain.
Am I the only wife who selfishly gets aggravated when my husband snoozes beside me as I flip flop trying to find a comfortable position? Like, your beloved can’t sleep so you shouldn’t be able to either. However, I suppress the urge to pop him with my pillow just because he can sleep and I can’t. (Thank goodness Ross doesn’t snore!)
At 2 a.m. last night, we both heard a loud noise causing us both to sit up abruptly in bed. I watch too many crime shows so I’m jumpy in the daylight much less at night. Still, as my cloudy brain cleared, I had an inkling about the cause of the thud. It sounded familiar. I followed Ross into the bathroom to discover both extension shower rods had fallen.
We struggled to put them back up rather unsuccessfully. I finally gave up and relinquished the rod to Ross. He managed to reposition one back into place before coming back to bed. The problem was neither of us could go back to sleep afterward. Nothing like a little adrenaline to kick start your body in the wee hours of the morning.
These types of situations cause a little PTSD for Ross though. When we were dating, he lived in Nash-ville on Blackman Rd. behind Crieve Hall Church of Christ. That area was beginning to get sketchy at that time. One night while Ross was sleeping, someone drove by and shot at the house. The bullets shattered the storm door and left two holes in his front door.
Ross and I believe it was a random shooting incident to gauge how long it would take police to get to the area. Two weeks later, someone robbed a convenience store just down the road. The experience left Ross a little rattled. He was happy to leave Nashville shortly after we got married.
Still, I noted some after effects lingered. He’d leave lights on and precautionary things of that nature. At one point, we had an unspoken battle of the lights. He’d turn them all on. I’d sneak around and turn them off. Now that we’re back in Mac town, we compromise with one kitchen light. Victory!
I’m not naive enough to believe that bad things don’t happen in small towns. After all, I’m a reporter and the niece of a law enforcement officer – Marc Martin. I know how to shoot a gun (and I’m a gun owner), I carry pepper spray and Uncle Marc taught me pressure points at an early age.
However, it’s comforting to be in a neighborhood surrounded by family and friends close by. So, if you ask me, “who you going to call?” I got a long list on speed dial just in case.
Standard reporter Lacy Garrison can be reached at 473-2191.
