How I (Don’t) Lay Me Down to Sleep
At 2 AM, when others sleep,
computer solitaire I keep
in front of me on lap or chest,
for part of me decrees it best
to put off sleep an hour or so.
That precious time I often blow
on playing Spider Solitaire.
At my computer screen I stare,
moving little clubs or hearts
here and there in fits and starts,
trying to beat my own best time,
this silly game becomes sublime.
I know not why I love it well—
and so I cannot really tell
why I prefer it over all.
Deluxe Free Cell can be a ball,
In fact, I play it hours on hours
trying to deplete those towers
of mismatched cards, quickly I bring
them from below, from Ace to King.
Card by card, I pile them high—
my laptop balanced on my thigh—
until the cards become hypnotic,
my moving of them now Quixotic.
Too sleepy to beat my own time,
my need for rest becomes sublime.
Then sleep fills up my empty cup
till seven or eight, when I wake up
to spill night’s cards clear of my screen
so this day’s daily prompt is seen.
And this is how I start my day.
This time, it’s words I choose to play!
The Prompt: Now? Later!—We all procrastinate. Website, magazine, knitting project, TV show, something else — what’s your favorite procrastination destination?
This big fella appeared on my steps last night—perhaps a harbinger of what I was going to write about today. He’s the first tarantula I’ve ever seen at my house—four inches across, he is a formidable addition to my garden menagerie!
I just have to add a postscript. This reply to my today’s post was just sent to me by my three- months-a-year housemate. I feel a bit like Jeanette MacDonald to his Nelson Eddy! Ha. I absolutely love it, by the way. This is what he posted on his blog this morning:
To your addictions I can attest.
You’re clicking, clicking. You need your rest!
“Sleepy time,” I do proclaim,
And you reply, “Just one more game.”
And so I roll upon my side
and let your clicking, clicking guide
me off to sleep, to dream, to waken
to morning to find that you’re makin’
words to poems to fill your blog.
Keep writing, Dear. I’ll feed the dog.
lifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown 
Spider Solitaire–another legacy from your big sister. I have so much to answer for….
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Patti–I would (if necessary) have staked my life on the fact that you would comment on this. Just a small shared vice, but must admit I thought of you at your kitchen counter playing solitaire on your laptop a dozen times as I wrote this, quickly, this morning. How do you like my new mascota (pet) found in my garden last night? Luckily no free fall presaged my other vice.
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That cascade of cards when you win at solitaire really is unduly satisfying. Just one more hit, I tell myself. Whole days have been lost chasing that dragon.
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It is how I relax enough to be able to sleep. My sister is addicted, too, as you see in the message above. We used to spend hours playing double solitaire (before computers) and got into our last huge fight over it. Now we play singly via computer. Even my friend who hates games of all sorts comes to watch that final automatic cascade. He loves to watch it. So satisfactory—winning coupled with someone (something) else doing your work for you.
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To your addictions I can attest.
You’re clicking, clicking. You need your rest!
“Sleepy time,” I do proclaim,
and you reply, “Just one more game.”
And so I roll upon my side
and let your clicking, clicking guide
me off to sleep, to dream, to waken
to morning to find that you’re makin’
words to poems to fill your blog.
Keep writing, Dear. I’ll feed the dog.
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I love it! Better than the original! This is sort of like a cyber-age Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy “Indian Love Call,” no? “”When I’m Blogging you ooo oo oo oo oo ooo.”
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What a great response from your housemate – the human one, of course! You obviously have a great pool of creativity around you, but I am constantly in awe of your productivity. Now I know you do it by not sleeping, I’m just impressed that your brain still works without its proper rest. 🙂
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You are a relief teacher, you maintain your home, have three(?) children and a husband and serve as taxi for your kids. Amazing that you have time to read blogs let alone write one. We all amaze each other in different ways, but actually I will tell you and you only that I surprise myself as well. Up until 16 months ago, I never would have guessed that i could write a poem a day under pressure. I have discovered the power of mornings as all my writing in the past was done at night. I must say it is a great incentive to have a clever reader such as you who is faithfully reading me every day and commenting at times. Judy
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Hehe. I don’t teach any more; I work from home as a copywriter. Arthritis got the better of me – I just can’t stay on my feet all day or bend to check work or talk to tiny children any more. I have four offspring but two are adults. I’m still their taxi-driver and happy to do it as they’ll soon enough leave and I’ll miss them like mad. Mornings are good for me too, but I get most of my ideas as my head hits the pillow – ‘Hello insomnia!’ 😉 I hope you’ll continue to be so productive, even if you do put us all to shame.
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I hate all games except scrabble. I can’t even watch game shows on television. They make me nervous. I loved the back and forth poems and Patti’s comments. How did I get back to 2014. Time for bed!
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Love that you are wandering through my past poems, Mary…
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