I wrote this shortly before my computer issues arose last week.
It’s bright outside. Awfully bright. I’m not used to this.
For the past 3 or so months, I’ve enjoyed living as a creature of the night. While you arose at 6 am, punched in at 9, and crawled home at 5, I enjoyed my breakfast around that time. Then work began at about 7pm and straight through ’till sunrise.
There’s nothing like the peacefulness of having your music cranked to 11 with your headphones sitting comfortably around your neck — all while the rest of the household, and what seems to be the World, is silently asleep.
I’ve known for quite some time that I have a serious case of Attention Deficit Disorder. It began in early high school and has snowballed since then. Deficit is such an awful term. I’m not disadvantaged because of it, I’ve simply had to experiment with and make note of the environment, actions, and factors that allow me to perform at my peak.
It seems these factors will only coincide when the sky is dimly lit.
This is far from a monumental discovery. I’m certain many owls and midnight shift workers would attest to the benefits of a nocturnal lifestyle.
While simulating an Australian schedule, I’ve also come to appreciate how it and music are an inseparable couple. Much like a light switch, evening and tunes automatically enable tunnel-vision for me, in a good way. Objectives and tasks seem to present themselves in an orderly manner while I hum to Hotel California. From the music comes a rhythm that makes my keystrokes and mouse clicks sound harmonious.
Potential distractions such as prime-time are replaced by infomercials, which automatically cues my trigger finger for the power button. The telephone no longer rings. E-mail notifications are nowhere to be seen. All is well.
There are days, much like today, where I sit in my client’s office shortly after lunchtime, struggling with the weight of my eyelids. I can hear the fax machine, the crackly radio station playing mid-80s music you’d usually hear while on hold with tech support, and the sounds of a warehouse as products are picked, packed, and shipped. Thankfully, these days are few and far between each week, and I’ve become accustomed to quickly recover from the jetlag of a nine-to-five stopover.
As I collect my misaligned eight hours of rest, my mailbox usually collects several dozen messages. By the time I reply to each of them, most respondents are well on their way home for the evening and won’t process them ’till the next day. Will the world end because of this delay? Not a chance. You don’t always have to answer the phone when it rings.
There are times when I have to follow the rest of the herd for weeks on end and attempt to be diurnal. A project, event, or long design shift can discombobulate my habitual nocturnality, but things always seem to restore themselves to a comfortable state after a while.
Would I recommend such a lifestyle? If you’re over 25 and not self-employed, no. Mainly because the amount of responsibilities you’ve accumulated to that date, will demand an almost immediate response or action. Heck, even if you’re under 25, it takes quite an abnormal mindset to sprint through the night.
Thankfully, I’m as abnormal as you can get, and have done more all-nighters than I can confidently recount. So if you have the hutzpah, give it a try on a holiday break or extended weekend. What’s the worst that could happen? Hoot, hoot.
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