The Random Jottings Of The Jet Lag Without Flying That's Shift Work

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

For the past five days I've been doing the early morning - afternoon shift at work. Now many people do such work. I'm in no way special. And it's no way a complaint, needs must after all. Still I had written down some jottings that I hope would be interesting.

I've admitted in this block that I'm not the most sociable of people. In that regard shift work is perfect. For you have a reasonable excuse not to act sociably. "Do you want to come with us and see my brother?" says the wife. No because I'll be asleep sometime around seven thirty. No arguments will ensue.

However once waking up at three am and after a shower you will find that the world, both the immediate and distant, have been happily going on without you. That feels disconcerting. You're superfluous to requirements.

(Now I know that the above two paragraphs make no sense. But both are true and anyway life sometimes makes no sense)

I've been in bed at around seven thirty in the evening and you know what I feel a little excited when I say goodnight to wife/daughter and then go to the bedroom. Can't say why.

Sleep is rarely easy when you're on the early shift. I find myself restless. As if despite having two alarms on the go I'll sleep through them and be late for work. That's never happened. If anything I've woken up earlier than the alarm because I can't sleep.

When you wake up you have to do all the things you need to do in the bathroom, to dress and make yourself some breakfast without disturbing wife/daughter. It's not easy. I find myself changing my clothes in the living room/kitchen part of the apartment. It seemed I found out later that was not as quiet as hoped for. Not really bothered. Wife can turn to the other side of the pillow and instantly doze off.

I look out at the apartment block around me. Judging purely on weather the lights are on it appears that I'm the only person awake.

The journey time from the village of Sully to Bridgend is about forty minutes. A large part of it is on the A48 from Cardiff. During the day it's actually a pleasant enough road to travel through with green fields and small villages (though you wonder for how longer with the signs suggesting new housing is on it's way. Not I suspect for people who truly need it). At around five o'clock though it's just one area of darkness with the occasional brightness of electric light.

And speaking of darkness. You learn that there are degrees of the stuff. The darkness when I'm returning from the afternoon evening shift when the world is still awake and preparing to slumber is different to that on a weekday morning which is in itself different to Saturday and even more so on Sunday. You might be working, but it's Sunday and the world wants its extra hour of sleep thankyou very much.

Work is basically the same as the afternoon-evening shift. I learn as a quick digression that my work colleagues are also having this early flu bug that wife/daughter/mother got. I've not been affected which means to repeat myself means I'm either a) Superman b) typhoid Mary or C) the germs are gathering together to attack me.

I leave work at two in the afternoon. As I make the forty minute return journey I feel I've rejoined the planet for a while. However my body clock is about two hours ahead of the actual time. Consequently I'm not really all there. I'm out of my groove. Have had domestics with the wife/daughter during these periods (including this one) where I know that being in this jet lag state has not helped. I'm just too out of sorts and irritable to enter rational debate.

An example: Daughter has had her hair cut and restyled. She's proud of it. Wife is happy. My response, (baring in mind it's shown to me when I've returned from work jet lagged) is "I don't care as long it doesn't look stupid. It doesn't look stupid. Now I want to make myself lunch".

Not I would admit my proudest moment as a parent, though admittedly true, but if this was any other shift my answer would have been more diplomatic.

But until the next time the early morning shift is now over.

Until the next time.