ASHLAND —
I woke up on the wrong side of the bed Thursday morning.
Literally.
When the alarm sounded just before 8:30 a.m., I squeezed my eyes shut and held my breath for a moment to see if my husband would hit the snooze button first. It was his day off, so he didn’t budge. It was then I realized he wasn’t on his side of the bed.
I was.
After at least three more snooze sessions, I finally turned the alarm off for good. When Carl finally opened his eyes, as I headed past him for the shower, I asked: “Why are you on my side of the bed?”
He laughed before explaining. “I got up to shut the door to keep the dogs out, and you rolled over to my side. So I got back in bed on your side.”
Hmmm. I didn’t remember that.
It was the second time in the last two weeks we have switched sides in the middle of the night — both times unknowingly prompted by me.
I have a long history of trouble on both ends of the sleeping process. It often takes me an hour or two to calm my mind and drift off to sleep. It always seems to race with ideas for stories, actual stories and a long list of things I should have gotten to but didn't.
I also have a problem waking up in the morning. Our alarm clock is on the other side of our bedroom for a reason. If the clock is within arm’s reach, I often turn it off and fall back asleep for hours. Later I’ll swear the clock failed at its job. I simply have no memory of switching it off.
I was once fired over that. In college, I had a 5:15 a.m. lifeguard shift. During the winter quarter when my roommate withdrew from classes and I was alone in our tiny room, I frequently would turn off the alarm and fall back asleep. In a month, I missed not just work, but my 8 a.m. class about five times. I got fired, but my professor was more lenient.
This bad habit improved in adulthood, but only after I started putting the alarm clock in a place where I had to physically get out of bed and take a step or two to turn it off.
I have had relapses; just last week there was one.
But deciding in the middle of the night to migrate to the other side of our king-size bed is another phenomenon entirely.
For as long as Carl and I have shared a bed, I’ve always slept to his left, whether in a tent, a hotel room or on our own cozy mattress. It’s just an automatic thing.
Every couple I know has a designated side. One may venture into the middle more often than the other, but they always stick to their established sides. Strangely enough, I along with all my married sisters sleep on the left side. In each case it is the side closest to the door.
My mother slept on that side, too. She tells us now it was a mistake because it was the side the kids always came to, so she never got a full night’s sleep. I never fully understood until Carl and I got a new puppy.
I can clearly hear him whining outside the bedroom door. I’m also the first to get a cold nose in my face. Or a slobbery ball.
Maybe that’s why I keep stealing Carl’s side of the bed.
CARRIE STAMBAUGH can be reached at cstambaugh@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2653.
Local News
CARRIE STAMBAUGH: The left side of the bed is the right side
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