Sleeptalking

Adam has the funniest habit of holding conversations with people while he is unconscious. He SEEMS to be lucid, but the content of these conversations is usually completely hilarious and he never remembers them.

Last night I came into bed about an hour and a half later than Adam. He opened his eyes, looked at me and then stood up. I asked him what he was doing and he said, “I don’t know, getting ready for bed.” I said, “but you’ve been asleep for the last hour and a half.” He looked at me and then looked down at himself and said, “I was wearing less clothes.” I asked if he thought someone had come while he was sleeping and put more clothes on him and he just said, “yeah,” and then got into bed and went back to sleep.

I think my favorite sleeptalking episode was one night about a year ago when I was reading beside him as he slept. He had been asleep for about an hour when he suddenly sat up, stretched and looked at me with that “I’M AWAKE!” look which means he really isn’t. I closed my book and asked him what he was doing. He looked around, leaned back on his pillow and put his arms behind his head. “Just… taking a break.” he answered.

“From… sleeping?” I asked.

Adam isn’t the only one of my current or former housemates who has done unexplainable things in the night. I remember sleeping in our room one night at Sixth & Elm when, at about 3 in the morning, Colin got up from the room he shared with Emily and came into our room. He sat on the sofa chair near the bed and was just staring into space. I got up on one elbow and quietly asked, “Uh, Colin? What are you doing?” He looked at me, threw up his arms and stalked out exclaiming “God! Can’t a guy just sit DOWN anymore?!”

And my favorite memory on this subject is walking out of my room late one night to see all the lights on and Emily and Colin with all the sheets off the bed, halfway through flipping their mattress. I commented on the fact that that was a weird thing to be doing at 4 am and Emily just said “Yes it is,” and Colin didn’t even look up. I guess it was hot and the mattress was sweaty, but neither of them was really clear on whose idea it was to flip it at 4 am and Colin doesn’t even remember doing it.

I am not immune to unusual night-time habits. Apparently I hum in my sleep, so Adam says and he has woken me up several times to show me the weird positions I sleep in, including on my back with my arms behind my head and my knees bent with one leg crossed over the other, as if I was relaxing on a beach.

With all this night-time activity, it’s no wonder we are all so tired during the day.