Porthole

Early bird catches the worm. Second mouse gets the cheese.

The early bird catches the worm. The second mouse gets the cheese.

Good Morning?

Robert Waltz makes a valid point. Not all of us function at the break of day.

I'm not a morning person. Not exactly a night owl either. Afternoons are probably the most energetic time for me although I been know to take a nap.

In Missoula, Montana, the winter sun reluctantly peeks from behind the mountain around 9 a.m. Some days it's not bright until 10. Other days there's a grey pall over it all for a week. In summer sunset is after 9 and it's twilight for another hour.

Not in Costa Rica. The sun burns through your eyelids at 6 a.m. and sets with the pitch black curtain pulled down in 15 minutes 12 hours later.

Before electricity, there were good reasons why rural people slept at 8 and got up at 4. In Costa Rica many still do.

Then there's Tromsø where the sun sets for two months (one month more to go) and stays up for two. I've been there in both seasons. I was very sleepy in winter even though the college town parties and folks are out and about at midnight. I was also there for 6 days in summer when a storm set over us and I didn't see the sun at all.

So what am I? I'm not sure. My energy level does not seem to be well regulated.

1. Sun matters. Sitting here in the rays energizes me.
2. I'm light sensitive. Unnatural light can keep me from falling off to sleep. Natural isn't quite so bad.
3. I'm sound sensitive. And most places have a rhythm of sound depending on the day of the week and the season. Some sounds soothe. Booming bars don't.
4. My eating habits are irregular as well.
5. My depression and anxiety can affect my ability to function. Neither seems to be cyclic.

I cope.

Since I haven't worked for years I have little obligatory structure. In Costa Rica I tend to function okay in the morning (kinda). Here in Montana that's a major struggle. Early morning is anything before 11. When I travel it depends on the rhythm of wherever I'm staying and whether I'm sharing a room or not.

But responding to the title: Usually I can find a bit of cheese; I'm not into worms.

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