::A Geek in Korea::

If anything, I am a creature of habit. When I go to work, I purchase a T.O.P. Espresso from the same smelly store because it’s the cheapest. I bring the same cheese rolls to work from a bakery because they are easy to finish during the day. I work as soon as I sit down at the computer, and I get my planning out of the way as fast as possible in case I need to design tests, or make copies for students. I work diligently for about 40 minutes, then do whatever I need to prepare for the rest of the day before students arrive.

When I return home, it’s much the same. I eat, and if I’m finished and we have nothing else to do, I go to the computer. She watches her dramas while I surf the web for a bit, then hit my blog to post something. I spend about an hour, all told, thinking of something to post and trying to write. It takes longer if I have a mental block, and I might sip a beer, snack, or surf until inspiration its me. If I have a solid idea, I’ll post while listening to music, if not, I’ll find it distracting. I can not listen to new music while I post. It must be something I know well and work as background filler.

When I go to bed, I should be sleepy. If I am not tired, I’ll lie awake at night, toss and turn, and never get restful sleep. Worse, I’ll keep my wife awake, which is bad for everybody involved the next morning. Breaking the pattern leads to problems and grouchiness, so I stick to my rules and make a routine of everything.

Last night, for example, I had finished my blog post, and found nothing holding my fancy on the Internet, so I went to bed at 11:00. My wife noted that this was unusually early for me. She was right. Normally I go to bed an hour or two later than she does, but last night I was beating her to the pillow. Odd. We talked like we normally did, but by the time she was ready to drift off, I was no closer to sleep.

I got up, put a movie on my PMP, laid down on the floor on some sheep skin rugs my brother game me as a wedding present, and watched nearly the entire movie from start to finish. My wife asked me why I wasn’t just watching the movie in bed, since she could sleep without fear of me waking her up a second time. I told her that I treated the bed as a place for certain things, and if I added “a place to watch movies”, I’d never get around to using it for sleep because I’d be too busy thinking about other stuff I could be doing.

Eventually I did get to bed, and I woke up relatively well rested. I went to bed after the movie around the same time as if I had just spent the time on the computer or doing something else. It’s strange my body has such a regulated routine that I can’t get more rest if I try.

I’m not looking forward to the idea that I won’t be able to get sleep for several months when the baby comes.

Eek.