Sleepless in South Africa

I have a rather fixed routine before I turn off the light and go to sleep. I usually indulge in a good book in order to clear my head and immerse myself in a realm of fantasy. Let's face it, everyone loves a good story! The fact that I know a few people who never read anything except food labels and the occasional Facebook post sort of horrifies me! But I digress. After reading a few chapters (and if it's a really good book, quite a few chapters, after which I am angry with myself) I usually turn the light off and think about what I've read. But there are times when the following is true....

It's like my brain has decided to go into overdrive and play back the day's events, or think about upcoming events, or tries to solve world hunger, or contemplates why Justin Bieber is so popular, or relives an awesome birthday cake I had when I was 4. It really was an awesome cake, by the way! But the point is that my body is begging me to go to sleep, but my brain is defiant. That got me wondering (with the lights out, while trying to fall asleep) why this is. Why, when we are exhausted and need our 8 hours of beauty sleep (or in my case, just sleep), do our brains decide that, "No, there are more important things to do right now. Sleep is very low on the priority list!" I have a friend who suffers from chronic insomnia for this very reason. His brain is way too active! So I decided to look into techniques to make you fall asleep. Counting sheep is out. My brain is like "1-2-3-4....hang on, what kind of sheep are they supposed to be? How high can a sheep jump? Am I making the fence too high? And what kind of fence is it supposed to be? If it's a picket fence, will they impale themselves? And when do sheep jump over fences? In winter, or summer? Should it be day or night?" And so on. Oddly enough, reading has been put forth as a way to gear your brain down and prepare for sleep. So I am on the right track. A glass of warm milk before bedtime has also been suggested, but if you're lactose intolerant, then you are screwed. All I know is that reading works for me, every time. So if you are suffering from overactive brain, curl up with a good read....

To the Polls Once More!

My lovely companion recently decided to enter our little angel in a baby competition. All of our friends and family have made comments along the lines of "You should lock yourselves in a room and just make babies, because you make beautiful babies!" Well, I can see their point:

So once again I humbly ask that you would vote for my cause. It is quite simple, painless, won't subscribe you to a monthly, weekly or daily thing where you get cute pictures or pithy sayings and won't use your vote to spam you with baby products. Please click on the link below and cast your vote. And as always, I will be ridiculously grateful!

Vote for our little angel here!

Sunlight

The other day I had a thought (something that happens to me when I least expect it). Everyone is on the global warming bandwagon. We are supposed to plant more trees and eat grass. Cows have become public enemy number one. In a recent study it was determined that the most greenhouse gases come from the rear end of cows. Yes, farting cows are destroying the planet!

In my opinion, that's just one more reason to eat meat! Save the planet! Have a steak! There has also been talk that pollution is contributing to global warming, and while I can understand the reasoning, I think all the scientists out there are missing one simple fact....the reason that the planet is gradually getting warmer, the reason that the polar ice caps are melting (time to stock up on inflatable pool chairs) is simply this, the sun is expanding.

Not as dramatic as most people would like, I know. But think about it. Our sun is classified as a yellow dwarf star. But that's not how it's going to stay. Because of many complicated (and highly nuclear) things that are happening inside the sun, it is slowly but surely evolving into a red giant star. Now before you run screaming to the supermarket for 1000 SPF sunscreen, I have been assured that this change actually takes a while. 5.4 billion years, to be exact. So you definitely have time to finish reading this post!

While I agree that humans aren't exactly the best at nurturing the planet, I do believe that thinking about this simple fact will put a few minds at ease. So for now, enjoy a beautiful sunrise, or marvel at a breathtaking sunset. Enjoy the sunlight on your face and the wind in your hair. The sun isn't going to kill us all just yet.....