TMI Tuesday: Screams In The Night

One of the scariest sounds that I have ever heard is when we have been startled from a deep sleep by the screams from our son echoing across the room through the monitor. While my wife’s hearing is more in tune with the displeasures of our son, when I am able to remain unconscious to the troubles around us, there are times when it doesn’t matter how sound a slumber, the scream that our son makes could wake anyone up… even me!

Just over a week ago this seemed to be the pattern for a few nights as our son spiked a fever well into triple digits. It was a time of little sleep, especially for my wife, as all we could do for a couple of nights was monitor, give him medicine, hold him, and dunk him in the tub if he got too hot. Unfortunately, I am little help during these times as our son insists on having his mommy but will occasionally want his daddy within his sight line. This episode, this sequence of nights, was far beyond those that we have dealt with previously.

Even without a temperature and feeling perfectly fine, there are moments when our son will wake up and make some noise before falling back to sleep. What can I say, he is loud when he shifts just like his daddy. There are also moments when he will fuss or even whimper for a minute or two before he either screams because of some uncomfortable padding under his bottom or he will unleash a different kind of sound that fills the night, lay down, and sleep better than he did before he woke up.

There was also a period of adjustment when we moved into the house when we couldn’t quite get the thermostat right… our son has become rather particular with regard to ideal sleeping temperature in his room. Over the first couple of weeks we were able to figure it out. Who am I kidding, my wife is the one that fine-tuned the temperature. And now, if there are nights that are a little warmer or cooler, our son adjusts his position in the crib sleeping either in a slightly cooler spot near the wall or a little warmer away from it.

And while we have done everything that we can to make him as comfortable as possible, sometimes there are nights when he doesn’t feel well. Sometimes there are evenings when he is startled by a nightmare (also a scream that is hard to forget). Sometimes he simply loses track of his stuffed animal and/or binkie. And other times there are nights when he gets a little lonely being on the second floor by himself or when we didn’t spend enough time playing with him during the day and needs a little more snuggle time with mommy and/or daddy. But these nights are nothing in comparison to that heart wrenching siren.

Firearms Friday: Backyard Family Fun!

 

These days I rarely have time to head out to the range and practice. This is not something I like to admit but it is simply the fact of the matter. However, there have been a few rare occasions when I have found myself looking down the sights at a small target. One of these instances, at the very beginning of last month, kind of surprised me. Not at first… it was a rather ugly beginning… but I was content with the results at the end of the day.

While my wife and I were visiting my sister’s family (only about 90 minutes away from us) my brother-in-law, who enjoys the same relaxing hobby, invited me to take an older single shot rifle in the back yard for some plinking. I was completely unfamiliar with this 22 rifle (it fires 22LR, 22 Long, and 22 Short) and so the initial results were less than pleasing. After about 20-30 rounds, I had walked in the shots and was fairly satisfied with the results. 22 short at 25 yard off hand hitting a quarter size target… not a bad way to spend part of the afternoon.

It really came down to a remembering the fundamentals. The sights were poor on this particular rifle with little adjustment possible. After all, it wasn’t my rifle and we were trading shots every ten rounds (between a right and left handed shooter). Also, I don’t shoot a lot of 22 short. All of these are minor things if you just step back and keep the basics in mind.

The first ten shots were really just fun rounds and the results (or lack thereof) showed that fact quite clearly. After that I went through my range routine a little more deliberately than usual. Getting a solid, locked, and quiet stance, lining up and stabilizing the sights, controlling my breathing, and slowly pulling the trigger straight back. After that, with little ability to actually zero the rifle, it was a matter of tracking the shot, watching for the impact, and adjusting the hold accordingly on the follow up.

It is with this extra focus and routine that I was back to relaxing at the makeshift firing line. After all, most of the time it really isn’t about what you are shooting but on the shooting itself. When you focus on that the results will follow. After all, that is what many of us look for when we seek relaxation at the range.

Bad Tired vs Good Tired

Does Marty experience good tired or bad tired?

There are two kinds of tired in this world – the bad kind and the good kind. We all go back and forth between the two and try to find a balance between the waking hours and the unconscious void. But we have to go into this equation with the acknowledgement that we all have a balance that is unique to each and every one of us. Some only need five hours to be fully functional; a few people need small spurts of sleep; while many require something closer to ten hours a night to perform during the work day.

I have met all kinds of people who require all kinds of sleep and I have lived through different periods where I have had to accommodate various balances. And now I find myself trying to recalibrate the scales so as to get the most out of life without slowly burning myself out as the week progresses. It is a challenge to say the least but one that has brought up another factor in my search for equilibrium.

When I was working the night shift (and at times working two jobs) there were many days that I didn’t get enough sleep which left me sluggish and forgetful during the hours when my eyes were open. However, the days that I was getting enough dreaming hours I still woke up feeling as if I had just closed my eyes. This, I have found, is the definition of bad tired. It is a feeling of never being able to adequately catch up on something we all too often take for granted. It is the feeling of having to push yourself just to function during the day (or night); it is the drain of not looking forward to getting out of bed to put in another eight hours on your time card.

Even now, as I write this blog, I still find myself tired and there are a few things that I just haven’t had the energy to put into as I did before but now it is a good tired. I end my day feeling as if I accomplished something. Some days I feel as if I haven’t gotten enough done but there is still a sense of satisfaction in the effort put forth during the waking hours. While it is still difficult to rise in the morning (I have never been an early morning person), I look forward to the day, getting in the car, and going to work. I feel a renewed sense of purpose and a desire to keep pushing forward.

Now is a very good time and while I am looking forward to finishing up this post and going to bed I am also looking forward to the morning. It’s a very simple thing but it’s something that has been missing for a long time and I have learned to appreciate it unlike I have ever done before. Every day is a gift and I am enjoying the good tired that comes with it.