I hate 3 a.m.

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Source: Vectorfree

There is something sinister about 3 a.m.

All goodness is fast asleep along with common sense and any level of sanity I have left. It is not a good time to reflect on anything.

It’s the time when any ache is fatal and any noise will result in death.

Back in the day, 3 a.m. was when I was taking off my mascara and getting ready to hop into bed for a good night’s sleep. Now it’s when I am waking up for my first (or maybe second) bathroom trip.

Sometimes it’s a long time before I go back to sleep and those brain cells work overtime turning the banal and mundane into scary life-ending experiences.

It’s also when I remember that I need to update my will, check my life choices and revisit the music I want played at my funeral.

Did I put my credit card back after my last purchase?

Did I lock the back door?

Is there any wonder why I don’t enjoy sleep like I did in the old days?

I blame having so many cats on 3 a.m. I used to have one cat. Any noise during the night would be attributed to that cat. I would roll over and go back to sleep immediately. There was no threat lurking. It was just the cat.

Source: Iconbug

Source: Iconbug

Then the cat died. In the interim until I adopted another, I noticed all those noises that I was sure were caused by the late cat, were still there. Could this be the ghost of cats past?

Not likely. More likely it was the moans and groans of a house with plumbing and heating systems that breathe and heave. They aren’t heard during the day because of all the other noise.

To finish the cat story, I keep multiple cats to ensure there is at least one to blame for all noise and odd occurrences (like books falling off of shelves and misplaced keys). Four cats ensure my sanity. (I know that sounds counter intuitive but go with me on that one.)

Many years ago, I spent an hour checking a water gushing sound that I was sure was a massive broken water pipe coming to flood the house and wash it down the street. It was that or a tsunami although I don’t live anywhere near an ocean. I was thinking of that ark.

How long does it take to build an ark? Do I have the right stuff? Is Home Depot open?

It was the water softener back flushing. (I came close to calling my brother at 3 a.m. about that one!)

Yes, in the old days sleep meant climbing into cool, soft sheets, occasionally with a cat.

It meant drifting off to mostly good places and dreams of hope and promise.

I would so enjoy one of those “sleeps” now!

 

51 thoughts on “I hate 3 a.m.”

  3. Don’t be alarmed…it’s only me…living and trying to sleep in your spare bedroom. I’m surprised we haven’t passed each other on the way to the loo. Oh…my two cats came with me…you’ll not be surprised at how quiet they are…not. I’ve put the kettle on…how about a cuppa? Meet you in your kitchen….

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  4. My bladder wakes me up sometimes to listen to water softener or the heater going off and on. But most of the nights during the school break I have slept well. When school’s on, I often have those middle of the night wake-up sessions reviewing what happened, what should of happened, what needs to happen, and so forth. The only good thing about it is that the next night I’m exhausted and sleep well.

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  6. Pingback: A near coup d’état! | For animal lovers | Views and Mews by Coffee Kat

  7. Kate … Here’s some good news that I hope will let you sleep thru the night: You were among my top five commenters in 2014 according to WordPress’s annual report. Thank you for your support. (You were number 2 of the top 5.) 😉

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  8. I can’t believe you blamed cats for this sinister time of night! My kitties never wake me up. They lie there, all snuggled up in their blankets and/or beds (depending on whether they are sleep with mom and dad cats or sleep by myself cats), all night long. They don’t even get up until they are sure I am up for good.
    So sorry you don’t sleep well . . . .

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  9. They say your bio clock has a low around 3 AM …and it’s stresses the body to be awake then…great…now there’s something else to fret over while trying to get back to sleep…
    I had managed to retrain my self to sleep/turn over respecting the cat’s self assigned seat (launching her off the bed in the middle of the night was simply too disturbning and loud), but when the dog stopped sleeping in the crate and moved to the end of the bed – wait…is that a chewing sound – yes, it’s ripping and tearing sounds. “Molly, don’t eat your bed!”…worse she has figured it out, so now when she feels bored or lonely in the middle of the night….or if she’s upset the cat is playing toss and scramble after the mousie in the bathtub…
    Yes, official nuts…comes with sleep deprivation…
    Hilarious post!

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  11. May I join you in hating 3 am? This morning 3 am was way too early for me. Until a few weeks ago, I had a great reservation for my return from Indianapolis. It was supposed to be early this afternoon. But Frontier totally cancelled it and put me on a 6 am flight, which meant I had to get up at 3:30 (12:30 am Seattle time). I am not an early riser, and in recent years I can’t seem to take a nap. Plus we had this big Medieval feast last night, which kept me from going to bed early. So I’ve spent the afternoon half-asleep, waiting for my real bedtime. I don’t think I’m going to wake up at 3 am tonight.

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  12. I don’t mind 3 AM and am usually getting up then. It’s the only time my ISP has any speed to it. 😦 By about 8 AM I finish posting and commenting. It is 6:30 PM now and thought just perhaps maybe no one else would be pulling the power. No, wrong.

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    • Somehow things were simpler when it came to sleeping. Maybe with the hectic schedule I was exhausted. Then again the need to sleep lessens with age. Sure could have used some of these extra hours when I was young!

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  14. I have no trouble falling asleep, it’s staying asleep. I usually wake up by 2:30 am. My alarm is set to go off at 4:00, but I never need it. I can only imagine how much more energy I would have if I could sleep six or seven hours uninterrupted…sounds wonderful.

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    • Why would you set your alarm for 4? That sounds soooo early! I haven’t set an alarm in years even when I was working. (Well, if I was catching a plane I would set one just in case but it was never necessary as I would wake up every hour to check the time.)

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  15. I was going through my credit card receipts last night and found a mystery purchase (actually 2 @ $9.99) on a Target receipt. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what I bought that day several weeks ago. So, this morning at 3am I decided – since I was awake anyway – to walk through Target in my mind, visiting each department trying to figure out what it was. When my virtual tour got to the electronics department, I remembered! So, not only did I get a little virtual exercise (does that count towards my 10,000 steps?), but I solved the mystery. A most productive bout of insomnia.

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    • You’re lucky. Most of my bouts are not that productive. I have learned even if I compose an entire blog post in my head, I won’t remember it the next morning. If it’s good enough, I’ll get up and type it out.

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  16. When I was a kid, I slept thru everything: fire trucks roaring past our home, lightning, sirens, the dog howling. Nothing woke me up.

    As an adult, I recall one night when I awoke and thought I heard typing in the next room. I’d recently taken a temporary job at an intense work place. I hesitated to move. My brain quickly computed that it was unlikely that any one would break into our apartment to use my portable typewriter. Just as I slowly moved to crawl out of bed, the noise stopped. I have no idea what it was other than my overactive brain.

    Hope 2015 is more restful, Kate.

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  17. Ah yes…3:00 AM…I was up. Had a fever…took tylenol…but my being up at that hour is also pretty routine! Night so magnifies every sound and every thought one has!

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    • My Mom always had trouble sleeping as she got older and I never understood it. Now I do. She blamed it on getting up at 5 for most of her younger years. (My Dad started at 6 and was out the door at 5:30 or so.) So true about magnifying.

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  19. This was great and so redolent being the insomniac I’ve become. My latest thing is to count presidents and if I’m still awake at Teddy Roosevelt, I flip the light on to read.
    Do your cats sleep with you? That must be so cozy 🙂

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  20. I know that routine. I often wake about 4:30 am and think about work or the to-do list until it is 6 and time to get up. Love those nights when I actually sleep through…they don’t happen often enough.

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    • During the night I tiptoe around so I don’t wake the cats because that makes them think it’s breakfast time. Then they get pesty. Last night I heard a catnip mouse getting flung all around the bedroom. We have a lot of other rooms but obviously it’s more fun to make noise where the big two-legged cats are sleeping.

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