Head hits the pillow, eyes close quickly, tuning out from the everyday worries.  No matter what happens during the day, come night or sometimes mid-afternoon, it is my time to forget about earthly problems. 

    Some call it a guilty pleasure I call it a necessity.  Without sleep the world would not function and effectively fall apart.  Sleep is actually one of the best things you can do for your body and is part of a healthy lifestyle. 

     I can practically fall asleep everywhere.  No matter what the atmosphere is, if I am tired enough I will be able to rest my eyes and check out for a quick cat nap or a long deep slumber.  Falling asleep with my head out the window on the highway….no problem, I have done it before.  Falling asleep on the back of a cruising boat…you bet I have done it.  It honestly doesn’t matter where I am, if I am tired enough I will be able to shut my eyes and relax. 

     However I can see how sleeping can become a guilty pleasure.  If one oversleeps and skips a class then this would become a guilty pleasure.  Also when sleeping gets in the way of your social life then it becomes a problem.  My best advice for those people would be to go to sleep earlier and not to procrastinate on school work until the last night.  I’m not saying that I have ever done this, but it will definitely help to eliminate the problem.

     No matter how long or where it is, sleep is sleep and I will forever treasure the act and not abuse it.

 

Pawn Stars

Nothing….Nothing is on TV at this time of day, beside the occasional soap opera or talk show.  Thankfully I have a Netflix account which is very convenient for times like this, where there is nothing good to watch on TV.  Scrolling through the Netflix queue I immediately find several shows that look good.  I finally choose Pawn Stars, arguably one of the best shows on TV and also one of the most informative!

      The pawn shop located in las vegas draws in many people from around the country looking to sell or pawn rare and collectible items all in hope of making a quick buck.  As the title sequence is playing I settle into the futon with the computer on my lap.

     The first man that walks into the pawn shop has hair as silver as a wolves coat, with wrinkles in his face that look as if they could tell his life story.  In his hand is an Ansel Adams print.    As he hands it over the counter to Rick who is the owner, Rick looks very amazed and happy with the print in his hands.  He tells the grey haired man that the print if real could fetch good money but rick would have to check with an expert to double check its authenticity and worth. 

     As the silver haired man leaves, the scene shifts outside where there is a 1987 jaguar parked outside with an eager owner ready to get it off his hands.  The jaguar has a rounded body type with great lines and a spectacular wood finished interior.  As Rick and his old man look over the vehicle they notice some minor imperfections such as a ding in the door.  When asked about it the owner of the car replies that his wife must have done that.  The owner of the car that has a thick Western European accent asks for $5,000 for the car but after some haggling and hard negotiating like always with Rick the price is lowered to $2,500.  Rick picked up a very cool car that he believes he can turn around and sell it to make a profit.

     The next man to walk into the pawn shop is wearing an orange and white stripped polo with khaki shorts.  His voice is clearly that of a New Englander not pronouncing his r’s.  In his hand is what looks to be an old deflated football with black signatures haphazardly about.  As he places the football on the counter he describes that it is a football signed by the 1942 Chicago Bears team.  He got the football through his wife’s aunt that had recently passed away.  Chicago was the team to beat back in the day as they won many championships.  Rick and the owner of the football negotiate a price which is much lower than the owners original asking price.  This always seems to be the case when negotiating with Rick, in the end Rick always seems to come out on top.

     As the episode wraps up images of the items and the final prices flash across the screen.  Yet another great episode I think to myself.

     It is that time again, time for a random stranger to pry their white gloved hand into my mouth just to prod around and check each tooth meticulously.  Filling out the paper work is very time consuming as each line has to be filled out to the fullest and each bit of information checked twice.  Thumbing through the pages of a Sports Illustrated, the images seem to come alive as the superhuman athletes run, jump, throw, and swim through the pages.  Seconds tick by that seem like hours.  A very distinct smell encircles the room as it wafts passed my nose.  This unique smell is familiar yet very uninviting.   The room is white except for several decent sized posters reminding small children to brush their teeth.  The image is of a small boy looking so overjoyed to be putting an unnecessary amount of toothpaste on his purple dinosaur toothbrush.  In the far corner of the room where the two walls with the posters converge is a book stand from which I picked out the Sport Illustrated which I am currently reading.  The magazines and books are littered through the stand and are haphazardly placed on random shelves.   Each book and magazine looks as if it has gone through a storm if not a lower level hurricane, with the pages tattered at the edges and covers bent back. Tick, Tick, Tick, the time passes so incredibly slow as I sit in this very uncomfortable excuse for a chair.  Looking at my phone occasionally pretending to do something, I grow more and more impatient by the minute.  Nurses peek their heads out from the doors in the back to pluck someone from the waiting room as the receptionists are busily filing and talking on the phone all the while writing information down.  Finally, from the far door I hear my name “Andrew Thomas, follow me right this way”.

writing environment

     My room dark all except for one solitary light illuminating my desk which is of course scattered with papers.  As I sit down in my chair I think of the work ahead of me and what must be done.  Reflecting, editing, and jotting down ideas as the shadows of the room grow nearer.  Closer and closer they come as I watch the time pass.  My fingers whizzing across the keyboard, the only sound in the room is the taping of the keys.  At this point I am in the zone, in my own world, connecting ideas and writing them down.  One page, two pages and eventually three pages completed.   As I sit in my desk chair I read over my work time and time again, picking it apart with a fine comb brush.  Highlighting and underlining mistakes and spelling errors that I see.  After the editing and revision process, it is now time to print a final copy of the paper.  Picking up the paper out of the printer with care to not smudge the ink, it is warm to the touch.  My eyes are set into motion as I begin to scan the page for mistakes not caught in the first round of editing.   Once satisfied with the completed work, it is time to make some food or get a drink.  This seems to always get my mind off of my work, so that once I am done taking a break I’ll be able to look at my work again with fresh eyes and a satisfied stomach.  One last time I look over my work and at this time and only after this time, I am finally done.