June 2, 2006

• Why is it so important to wish someone good sleep?

  I'm sure this is a cross-cultural phenomenon - the nationalities that have wished me a good night's sleep recently include English, Brazilian, Polish, American and South African.  As a planet, we are obsessed with the idea of sleeping well, or so it seems to me.  Do bear in mind that my anthropological experience is limited to that book about 'Watching the English' and the odd historiography lecture during the third year of my degree, which may or may not have been about Levi-Strauss.  Sociology and anthropology is not my forte, folks.  Damn interesting on occasion though.

  
  

  Sweet dreams also seem to be important, but the focus for those is more European.  I have been wished "sweet and colourful dreams" recently, which I think is what's prompted this musing: I dutifully ate some cheese before bedtime to try and encourage the colourfulness, but it didn't help much.  Leerdammer cheese is not good for dreams.  Really strong cheddar produces a far more vivid result.  I digress.  It did strike me, however, that sweet and colourful dreams was a somewhat unusual thing to wish someone.

  
  

  Then there's the whole question of bedtime rituals (for me, they involve quantities of lavender oil in order to induce a feeling of restfulness, as well as the first three tracks of a Debussey piano CD).  Night night, sleep tight, see you in the morning.  Or, as Dad used to put it "Nightle nightle, sleeple tightle, see you in the mornal-ningle".  Which is practically a Spike Milligan poem without even trying (it's the second one in the list).  Mind the bedbugs don't bite.  Or the dustmites.  Having someone to snuggle round (or a teddy bear: or a Canadian moose) is important.  I might not sleep so well if I've got someone wrapped round me, but boy, do I like the feeling of being wanted.  I'm too little to wrap myself round anyone else terribly well.  But I want to know they're there.

  
  

  (Speaking of littleness, I do know that I need to eat.  But people will keep pestering me on the subject.  This is not encouraging me to eat, quite the reverse.  Note that I am the sort of perverse person who, when told that they must do something, probably won't.  I may not necessarily claim that what you think is black is actually white, but, believe me, it's not black.  It's grey at the very least. And, if someone could tell me exactly why a banana, a bag of crisps and a large milky coffee do not a good, albeit rushed, lunch make: there's protein, carbs, fibre....well, tell me and I'll be grateful.  I am not hungry enough for much more!).

  
  

  xxx

  • 6:06 am
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