Hidden paths

I will be upfront with you. It has been too long since my last post. And my excuse is that I have been working and sleeping.

I am a night shift nurse. And while most people say that it takes special people to be night-shifters, I say it takes someone who is a little more than special to stay on night shift. It takes someone bordering on the edge of crazy. Nurses promote healthy living to their patients, but many of us are not allowed to practice the most basic functions of healthy living.

Let me explain.

I like to stay up late. Always have. I also like to sleep. A lot. I do not like mornings. Other than the occasional amazing sunrise (which is not as amazing as a sunset), there are very little redeeming qualities to mornings. I do like my friends and family. Most of whom are on "normal" people schedules. And did I mention that I like sleep? But while most people follow the normal circadian rhythm and sleep at night, plenty of healthcare professionals (myself included) stay up most or all of the night, then juggle the remaining hours (most of which are daylight) between sleep and living with "normal" people.

So...how does one balance a night-shift life with a bunch of "normal" people? Add some careful planning, subtract a bunch of sleep, and you will have about the right equation (multiply your final answer by x amount of caffeine).

my friends, Karin and Lauren

The last few days, I have been working all night, and sleeping only a small portion of the day (usually I sleep all day). The first 2 days, I managed to use my extra "non-sleeping" time as "time to exercise." The last 2 days, I have used that as "time to catch up with friends." Neither of these do I regret, however, I always find myself wishing for more hours in the day to be dedicated to sleeping and exploring.

Having the next 4 days off and having no plans for three of those days, I think I shall be taking some time to follow the advise of the poem:
"Still round the corner there may wait
A new road or a secret gate,
And though we pass them by today,
Tomorrow we may come this way
And take the hidden paths that run
Towards the Moon or to the Sun."
(from LOTR, the "Walking Song")
While I plan on taking some "hidden paths" to various places, I shall also be storing up some sleep (because as any true night-shifter will admit, there really is no such thing as catching up on sleep).

Today, a hidden path led me to say "Goodnight sun!" and, in a little bit, another path will lead me to say "Goodnight moon!"
:)