Dawn Ruminations

The cold snap continues this morning; it's -24°C/-11°F out there. It's just past seven o'clock, and I have been up, more or less, for hours already. While I lay about hoping to fall back asleep, I finished listening to two of Oprah's webcasts from the past week — Bob Greene from Monday and Dr. Oz from Tuesday. I upload them to my iPod and hope to fall asleep as these smart people speak in my ear. Sometimes, it works but not this morning. I guess I woke up around 4:30 AM and finally gave it up at around 6:30 when Dr. Oz was done with me. I turned up the furnace, put on the coffee, made a piece of toast, and headed to the keyboard.

I wasn't amused to discover that we're almost out of coffee cream, however. Should I hope that it lasts through the morning, or should I bundle up and make the short walk to Shoppers when it opens at eight? I really don't want to go out there into the Arctic-like air so early, I tell ya, but Cuppa will surely need her cup of coffee when she awakes. Maybe I'll go down and shake the carton again. Maybe there was more remaining than I thought in my bleariness.

Normally, if I'm to experience sleep problems, it's at the early end of the night, not after several hours of sleep. But sleep is an ongoing issue with me. On most nights I move from easy chair, to guest bed, to our bed: not necessarily in that order. And then I do it again. Last night, my back which has been yippy, as I said yesterday, may have increased my discomfort and, therefore, decreased my rest, but who's to know the cause for sure? I really took it easy yesterday, and the back felt pretty good when I went to bed but not so good after a few hours of being horizontal.

Why is it that at a certain age, we may be more uneasy in a supposedly comfortable bed than in any other location? Perhaps, it's because we assume a postion for much longer. When we're up and at it, I suppose we shift and shuffle much more and manage to alleviate aches and pains before they really have a chance to set in? I hate sounding old because I'm not. I'm in good health except for these minor arthritic irritations that sometimes cause me to feel older than my years.

One of the things that I learned from Dr. Oz tonight was that we are meant to be active and vigorous into our eighth and ninth decades, and I guess I am in many ways. However, having a body that experiences somewhat premature aches, pains and stiffness doesn't actually help me to feel as young as my years.

Now ... to shake the coffee cream carton and hope for the best.