8 Ribena Lollies for £1

Someone told me the other day, "Working nights must have stuck with you". He said it as a joke, but I don't think he's that far off the mark. I've never been a morning person. I rarely go to bed early to wake up early, and I will be the first to admit that I like my sleep, a little too much. I never like waking up early, (let's face it, who does?), but I think I'm different. I will do ANYTHING to not wake up early. I will only wake up unless I really have to, or if I've had 12 hours of sleep preceeding it.

I've had a few cases of feigning illness to avoid school in the past. On a cold, wet, Monday morning, the last thing you want to do is leave your cosy, warm bed, so I didn't. I never did it for work though, because even I felt that was a bit childish, even if it looked like I did a couple of times. Coincedence. I never had to wake up that early for school either. I only live 5 minutes away, so I woke up at half 8 for a 9am start. Some people woke up at half 6! Half 6?! How?! This trait, or habit, has never really helped me. I've grown into a lazy, and some would say, idle, human being.

This is why I got a night shift job. I thought that, because I was definitely more of a night person, that I would find it easier. Sleep wise, I did. Socially, I almost became an outcast. Friends at university, and the people who stayed behind on a completely different sleeping pattern, matched with my habit of sleeping longer than I should, meant I became lonely. I thought, that when I quit, this would change.

It hasn't. The pattern of sleep is etched into my brain and with no structure or routine to work around, I gradually end up back to where I was for most of 2010. Sleeping away the mornings and staying awake with the owls. My weekdays become a classical version of the unemployed person and my weekends become a tiresome and exhausting journey as I pick myself up to do something, feeling massively lethargic along the way.

I figure that when University finally gets here, I will end up working at night and sleeping through the day, except for waking up early for the 2 full days of lectures I will have per week. This will be a challenge in itself. I do think I will work when I get there. I want to do the subject, and I think I know what I want to get out of it aswell, and this always helps. I'm starting to become conscious of what my peers think of me...

I had a dream last night. I say last night, it was probably around 10am. It was a simple dream. I dreamt I was at University, and I was sitting at my desk, researching the Development of Grassroots Football or whatever. I looked up at my wall, to see the words 'Make Them Proud' etched into the wallpaper. Then I woke up. That was it. And I haven't really stopped thinking about it since.

I attempted, and failed, to get back into what you would call a "normal" sleeping pattern, by going to sleep at 8pm, but I awoke at 12.30am, completely wide awake. The consequence of sleeping too much. A human being can only sleep so much, I suppose.

Which brings me to the title. Kettle was home from Coventry, so we had our belated trip to Tesco's at the ungodly hour of 3am. As I stepped out into the mild night air, I wondered what the hell we were doing, but we had a good catch up for an hour, going to Tesco's and buying 8 Ribena lollies for £1 and a bottle of Red Bull, driving around town laughing at drunk people falling over. Before the inevitable text from Mother Mitten asking where I was.

It's currently 05:18, and I suppose I should attempt another go at the whole sleep thing. Despite seeing off the whole stash of lollies, that will no doubt keep me awake. I have my usual game to referee tomorrow, adding 1 to my target of 20, and putting money into my wallet, but I get the feeling I'm not going to enjoy it.. Same old story.