If you have ever worked graveyards, you know they are hit or miss. You either have a terrible night where there is never even a chance for rest, or you don’t have much going on and you might can catch a solid nap. I work shift work, which includes nights of course. I don’t mind nights at all. Most of the time it is easy, but I am pretty much tied down to one specific area the entire shift. That area I am tied down to is very visible, not to mention the highly likely chance of a phone call from another department that I have to handle. I’m not complaining…okay I’m complaining a little bit. I just don’t get much chance to get sleep is all. There’s just too much happening. But that’s all changing. I have found myself in the best case scenario for the night shift.
The Situation
You see, the last week or so I have been training a new hire for my same position. And we have reached the point that she is capable of doing most everything. So now it is time for her to run the shift and try to take care of things on her own. So I will be doing the same thing that my trainer did to me. Disappearing for the entire night and saying “call me if you need me”. I will only be there in case of an emergency. No real responsibilities. It is going to be glorious.
I tried to sleep some last night, but as I tried to get comfortable in an office chair that would make a porcupine look comfortable I realized I needed to find a new approach. So I have made the decision that tonight will be different. Tonight I am actually going to sleep.
The Plan
So before I left for work I made my plan. I take a backpack to work every day. So I figured I would take every thing out of it except for my emergency redbull, put my sleeping bag inside and stuff in a small pillow. So I went and dug the sleeping bag I haven’t seen in 10 years out of the closet and started preparing. That’s when the first issue with my plan became apparent. I had greatly over estimated the carrying capacity of my backpack.
So an immediate pivot was required. I started scrambling to find items around my house and discovered most of my things were not going to fit in this bag. So what I ended up with was a blanket, a small My Pillow that has never been opened for some reason, and a decorative outdoor furniture pillow. Just these three things were enough to seriously test the structural integrity of this backpack.
I mean just look at that thing. If I sneeze with it on my back it is going to explode. And side note: the decorative pillow was bought for me by my mom at my previous, previous house to make the rocking chair on the front porch look nice. She made the front porch look all pretty and I never paid attention to it. I just realized today, several years later, that I had the international sign for swingers on my front porch. I am probably more disappointed that in all that time I was never once approached by a swinger. Maybe that says my neighbors just weren’t into that stuff. Maybe it says I’m hideous and gross and nobody would even entertain the thought of bringing their significant other into my presence. Who knows.
The Night Of
Anywho, I had already picked the spot I was going to set up my camp. And it was perfect. It’s a small storage closet just down from where I work. There is no reason for anyone to ever go in this closet and it’s underneath a ramp out of the way. I could easily slip in there when no one is around, set up my base, and get the sleep I need. It’s a great plan.
So after I got to work and everything was setup for my trainee, I waited to make my move. When no one was around I made my way to the closet and laid out my bed. It was everything I hoped it would be.
I know it looks like a room at the Four Seasons so I’ll forgive you for thinking I added in the wrong picture. But I assure you it is the correct picture. As you can see I folded the end of the blanket over for a little extra cushion, and placed the pineapple pillow on the packaged My Pillow to create a headboard. I placed all of this in the least dusty corner, right next to the paint can that acts as a table. There’s just enough light that gets in through the cracks that you can see and if you don’t move too much the dust settles and you can breathe pretty easily. Truly the best case scenario.
Review
I slept on this set up for about 5 hours last night. My plan was to wake up about 4:00 AM and get back to my area before anyone came in for the day shift. What actually happened was I slept until about 5:15 AM and had to peer out of the door to make sure no one saw me leaving. That’s how luxurious this experience was.
To those of you who say that there is no way this set up is more comfortable than an office chair, you might be right. But being able to lay all the way out helps me sleep. Plus the calm that is no one catching you sleeping is enough to rest easier. Would I try this again? If I found myself in a similar situation yes I would. It was probably more trouble than it was worth but I caught up on sleep you can’t put a price on that.
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