So Tired

Over the past few weeks, my sleep cycle has become skewed. Instead of sleeping at night, as I usually do, my body now thinks I need to be asleep around 11:00 AM. Very difficult, considering I have a day job.

So I force myself to stay awake all day and to try to sleep at night. The awake part isn’t all that difficult. It just has me very tired. The sleep part, on the other hand, is horrible. When I do manage to convince myself to drift off I slip into the worst dreams.

For weeks now I’ve been awake every night. Either I am simply up because I don’t feel as if it’s time to be asleep or I’ve woken myself, screaming or crying. It’s to the point where I’m afraid to even try to sleep.

I’m back to prowling the house, in the dark. The cats have learned to stay out of my way. They can see in the dark. I can’t. The first night I was up I think I stepped on everyone’s tail at least twice. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing there’s a lot of shooting in my neighborhood now or a bad one. If it were quiet, I’d probably be roaming outside too.

I don’t know how long it’s going to take for things to shift around to where they should be but I sure hope it’s soon. This is really starting to get to me.

And even though I am that tired I still stopped to vote on my way home. At 5:00 I was 111 out of a potential 798. How pathetic is that? This election includes mayor of Reading, someone who has a direct effect on everyone here. Yeah, just pathetic.

So Wrong!

In 2008 Pennsylvania passed legislation regarding puppy mills. The law required larger cages in commercial kennels, solid flooring, temperature, ventilation and lighting standards, and annual veterinary examinations for the dogs. It also prohibited anyone other vets from euthanizing animals and the stacking of cages.

Recently, a resolution, co-sponsored by local politician, Jim Cox, was introduced that could reverse this legislation. The reasoning – eliminating puppy mills, which neighboring Lancaster County was well known for, also eliminated state tax dollars as well as numerous jobs.

Yes, I know economic conditions in Pennsylvania are not good and we’re in need of a financial boost. I agree, people need jobs. However, welcoming back puppy mills, with their horrendous conditions and inhumane treatment of animals is NOT the way to go about it.

I am the first to admit that I am not very political though I do make sure I vote. This, however, is so wrong that it could cause me to become more involved.

Oh, speaking of voting, there is a special election in this corner of Pennsylvania. Tuesday, March 15th. It’s to elect the replacement for long-time State Senator, Mike O’Pake, who passed away in December after more than 40 years of representing and doing very good things for this area. So, if you’re local, make sure you get out there and vote!

Politics

Calm down and keep reading. I’m not going to step up on a soapbox and spout my views on any candidates, past, present, or future. My opinions on that are rarely divulged. So what am I climbing up on this soapbox for?

Voting

This is something I feel strongly about. So strongly, in fact, that if you didn’t vote when the current administration was being elected, you’re not welcome to complain about it in my house. Yes, I really have asked individuals to leave when they’ve failed to grasp that I am entirely serious about this one. As I see it, not voting is irresponsible. It’s voluntarily forfeiting one of your rights. Why anyone would ever do that willingly, I’ll never understand.

Think for a minute. You turn 18, you fill out a form. And then you’re all set. Even with local elections included it’s not like it takes up very much of your life to go vote. I’m certain each of you has spent some of your time on things far less important over the years.

Here’s what I propose. If you’re not already registered, do so now. You still have time before November’s election. On Election Day, abandon your computer for half an hour, go to your assigned polling center and vote. Generally the pollsters will tell you what number you are. Afterwards, post a comment here and let me know what number you were and what time you voted.

Before you start making excuses, don’t bother. One vote really does count when added to all the other one votes. Just think, yours might be the one that makes the difference and tips the election the other way. Don’t worry, I’ll remind you when the election gets closer. For now, do as you’re told and register.

Okay, putting my soapbox away for now. Here’s the explanation of my shampoo bottle, reposted from my MySpace blog, just for you Amarinda.

I was standing in the shower this morning and ended up reading my shampoo bottle. I have no idea what possessed me to do that. I just did. And then I laughed. Good thing the windows were closed or my neighbors would be wondering again.

Have you ever read your shampoo bottle? You should. Apparently mine wants to be my friend. It’s chatty and chummy. I guess that’s a good thing since after all, it is in the shower with me. You see, the label’s written in first person, like the bottle is communicating directly and specifically with me. It reads “use me, hurry” and tells me to repeat because that’s “twice as nice.” It also claims that it will give me “a sense of weightlessness” and leave my hair “flowing naturally”. Quite a feat considering my hair is all of two inches long and curls however it wants to. Once dry, only the strongest wind can rearrange it. If I walk past a mirror today I’ll have to remember to check to see how it’s flowing.

One more fascinating thing I discovered on my shampoo bottle. It has herbalhead games. Never knew you could play trivia while showering, did you? The question was how many dreams does the average person have in a year. The answer, 1460. Hmm, wonder how they came up with that. Even more I wonder if I’ll have a different question tomorrow. Now that would be truly amazing.