.... it's not a permanent affliction, but when it takes hold... it drives me nuts ....
For a man who during his time on an oil tanker at sea, once slept through it being hit by a lighting strike..... generally speaking..... sleeping is not normally a problem for me ...... thinking about that ship as I prepared this post in my head.... it's amazing the wonder of google.... here is a picture of that self same ship [sans lightening strike]...... many a time as a young man [before growing old...] did I run around the deck of that ship..... see that red chimney pot at the stern, above the accommodation ? I once painted that.... not all by my self..... but i did paint it.......
but there are times and this is one of them, when insomnia is my newbest worst friend ....we become inseparable....
The latest bout is down to the arsehole of the building trade.... yes all of it.... every last nail and screw..... whom are insistent in making my home building project seem like trying to train monkeys how to split the atom....... only 1 week after they have just learned how to mash a pot of tea..... [funny how monkeys no longer make us smile over a pot of tea].....
you hum it son I'll play it.... that line still kills me now....
So my advice to anyone wanting to avoid insomnia.... do not .... I repeat for effect.... do not ... start a building project that is any more complex than laying a few patio bricks....[or mashing a pot of tea..... builders are good at that....]
One of the tricks I try to use, to curb my insomnia is a CD by Paul Mckenna and it is quite effective, although I always smile at the start where he says.... do not listen to this audio program whilst driving or operating machinery ..... I Can Make You Sleep..... driving at the same time.... err err emmm.... maybe ? maybe not..... ?.... maybe ?..... maybe not.....
Still there is an upside to insomnia, I get to listen to some great music [well in my head at least it's great] and read loads of shit on the internet ....... seeing as it is building works keeping me awake at night it seemed appropriate that my music ended up with Red House Painters... but more of them later....
The sage advice for sleep [or the inability to get enough of it] is not to stimulate the brain, have a warm bath and drink hot chocolate.... Hey oh..... I prefer my options...... you might go to work the next day feeling knackered but at least you have loads of tunes in your head with vast sums of worthless knowledge...
The other upside is you also have more time to do stuff...... for my last trip to France I had to be out the house at 3am to head out to the airport..... so as I had shit loads to do on the build.... instead of going to bed..... not to sleep .....I didn't go to bed at all...... I worked on the build till half past midnight, came in showered up, had me tea, packed me work stuff and hey presto I was out the door at 3am and no risk of missing the alarm clock by over sleeping.....
When I don't have to be at the airport at stupid am, during the hours of sleeplessness I lie in bed and in the dark, headphones in, eyes closed listen to some fab tracks, quiet reflective tracks but at 2:30 am with no sleep in sight, the intensity of these songs in the dark with head phones is so different to perhaps say.... listening to a song on the radio in the car maybe.....
Here's a snippet of my play list [noting that most have already appeared as my SoD at sometime or other......]
Damien Jurado - Mettalic Cloud [album version] ~ Silver Katherine....... these 2 songs are just fantastic.... his voice in the dark, eyes closed [mine not his] ...... almost perfect I would say.... but hey that's just my opinion and remember this is merely the shit that's in my head.... the shit in your head is your shit not my shit..... my shit is exclusive.... to me....
Then there is Damien J and Moby with Almost home ~ an enchanting song.....
Moby ~ Last day..... great video....watching the video is cheating I know...seeing as me eyes are supposed to be closed... but I was curious....well worth the curiosity.....
James ~ Just like Fred Astaire.... this song every time.... never fails..... killer line..... I believe she fell to earth ..... From somewhere high above....
Newton Faulkner ~ If this is it ..... not really the theme tune for an insomniac....
Dido ~ White flag.... what ever happened to her ?
Paul Buchanan ~ Toledo [acoustic version] ~ he's my Elvis
David Bowie ~ Always crashing in the same car ...... oh I do hope he wasn't listening to a Paul Mckenna CD......
I am kloot ~ I still do & Not a reasonable man.... 2 recent SoD outings of mine.....
Damien Jurado ~ I am still here and..... What were the chances..... one thing for sure... DJ is not what you would class as soporific.....
Then I started to hedge towards the Red House Painters.....
It went via ..... Susie Suh ..... Love is the way & Won't you come again.... never heard her before.... but not too bad.... let's say I didn't kick her out of bed...... musically I mean....
Then on to Sun Kil Moon with Lucky man and You are my Sun. Sun Kil Moon is the incarnation that Red House Painters morphed into..... I've not listened to the Red House Painters for a very long time..... but they had a prolific output.....I was introduced to them via Vanilla Sky...... oh Penny Oh Penny forget Tom..... he's bad for you.... pick me ! pick me !.... I love ya Honey..... you're my wild Honey.....
Anyways I started with ~ Have You Forgotten ? {the song from Vanilla Sky}..... ~ All mixed up then on to ...... Moments ......then they wanted to ... Take me out...with Dragon Flies ~ and a few tracks later I ended up with today's SoD.....
For a man who during his time on an oil tanker at sea, once slept through it being hit by a lighting strike..... generally speaking..... sleeping is not normally a problem for me ...... thinking about that ship as I prepared this post in my head.... it's amazing the wonder of google.... here is a picture of that self same ship [sans lightening strike]...... many a time as a young man [before growing old...] did I run around the deck of that ship..... see that red chimney pot at the stern, above the accommodation ? I once painted that.... not all by my self..... but i did paint it.......
but there are times and this is one of them, when insomnia is my new
The latest bout is down to the arsehole of the building trade.... yes all of it.... every last nail and screw..... whom are insistent in making my home building project seem like trying to train monkeys how to split the atom....... only 1 week after they have just learned how to mash a pot of tea..... [funny how monkeys no longer make us smile over a pot of tea].....
you hum it son I'll play it.... that line still kills me now....
So my advice to anyone wanting to avoid insomnia.... do not .... I repeat for effect.... do not ... start a building project that is any more complex than laying a few patio bricks....[or mashing a pot of tea..... builders are good at that....]
One of the tricks I try to use, to curb my insomnia is a CD by Paul Mckenna and it is quite effective, although I always smile at the start where he says.... do not listen to this audio program whilst driving or operating machinery ..... I Can Make You Sleep..... driving at the same time.... err err emmm.... maybe ? maybe not..... ?.... maybe ?..... maybe not.....
Still there is an upside to insomnia, I get to listen to some great music [well in my head at least it's great] and read loads of shit on the internet ....... seeing as it is building works keeping me awake at night it seemed appropriate that my music ended up with Red House Painters... but more of them later....
The sage advice for sleep [or the inability to get enough of it] is not to stimulate the brain, have a warm bath and drink hot chocolate.... Hey oh..... I prefer my options...... you might go to work the next day feeling knackered but at least you have loads of tunes in your head with vast sums of worthless knowledge...
The other upside is you also have more time to do stuff...... for my last trip to France I had to be out the house at 3am to head out to the airport..... so as I had shit loads to do on the build.... instead of going to bed..... not to sleep .....I didn't go to bed at all...... I worked on the build till half past midnight, came in showered up, had me tea, packed me work stuff and hey presto I was out the door at 3am and no risk of missing the alarm clock by over sleeping.....
When I don't have to be at the airport at stupid am, during the hours of sleeplessness I lie in bed and in the dark, headphones in, eyes closed listen to some fab tracks, quiet reflective tracks but at 2:30 am with no sleep in sight, the intensity of these songs in the dark with head phones is so different to perhaps say.... listening to a song on the radio in the car maybe.....
Here's a snippet of my play list [noting that most have already appeared as my SoD at sometime or other......]
Damien Jurado - Mettalic Cloud [album version] ~ Silver Katherine....... these 2 songs are just fantastic.... his voice in the dark, eyes closed [mine not his] ...... almost perfect I would say.... but hey that's just my opinion and remember this is merely the shit that's in my head.... the shit in your head is your shit not my shit..... my shit is exclusive.... to me....
Then there is Damien J and Moby with Almost home ~ an enchanting song.....
Moby ~ Last day..... great video....watching the video is cheating I know...seeing as me eyes are supposed to be closed... but I was curious....well worth the curiosity.....
James ~ Just like Fred Astaire.... this song every time.... never fails..... killer line..... I believe she fell to earth ..... From somewhere high above....
Newton Faulkner ~ If this is it ..... not really the theme tune for an insomniac....
Dido ~ White flag.... what ever happened to her ?
Paul Buchanan ~ Toledo [acoustic version] ~ he's my Elvis
David Bowie ~ Always crashing in the same car ...... oh I do hope he wasn't listening to a Paul Mckenna CD......
I am kloot ~ I still do & Not a reasonable man.... 2 recent SoD outings of mine.....
Damien Jurado ~ I am still here and..... What were the chances..... one thing for sure... DJ is not what you would class as soporific.....
Then I started to hedge towards the Red House Painters.....
It went via ..... Susie Suh ..... Love is the way & Won't you come again.... never heard her before.... but not too bad.... let's say I didn't kick her out of bed...... musically I mean....
Then on to Sun Kil Moon with Lucky man and You are my Sun. Sun Kil Moon is the incarnation that Red House Painters morphed into..... I've not listened to the Red House Painters for a very long time..... but they had a prolific output.....I was introduced to them via Vanilla Sky...... oh Penny Oh Penny forget Tom..... he's bad for you.... pick me ! pick me !.... I love ya Honey..... you're my wild Honey.....
Anyways I started with ~ Have You Forgotten ? {the song from Vanilla Sky}..... ~ All mixed up then on to ...... Moments ......then they wanted to ... Take me out...with Dragon Flies ~ and a few tracks later I ended up with today's SoD.....
A fantastic cover version of
a John Denver song.....
for me say's alot....
perhaps the things I wish I could have said.....
All this thought of insomnia is making me feeling sleepy..... I think I'll go for a lie down.....
[Insomnia Postscript: I did think that the natural song of the day for this post is ..... Faithless ~ Insomnia but for those of you familiar with this song and Faithless in general.... will know it is not a get you to sleep song...... In fact having gone to see them in their last ever concert at Brixton Academy on 8th April 2011, that's exactly what happened..... Maxi Jazz {what a fantastic live act} damn near lifted the roof off the Brixton Academy that night, and didn't leave the stage until gone 1 am..... so the chances of getting public transport across London to Liverpool St Station, and then a train back to Shenfield was impossible, so it meant an all nighter at Cafe's and railway station platforms until the first mail train back to Shenfield and finally arriving back home just after dawn..... sleepless..... but if you have ever seen Faithless live... you will know just how good a night of insomnia can truely be......]
