Electricity is a wonderful invention. You are using it now. With electricity you can do things like read at night, listen to music, watch videos or even travel the world wide web. But it is also true that we get about 90 minutes less sleep than earlier generations that had no electricity. This time of year, we'd be getting more sleep as the nights grow longer; in this age of electricity, there is no reprieve from the length of days.
Every morning, alarms go off all around the world. As if there is not enough stress in the world, we start our day with alarm? The way that alarms work? Electricity is triggered on automatically.
In order to help people to get more sleep, why not reverse the alarm at night? Say that you have to get up at 6 AM and you want 7 hours of sleep. You set the alarm for 6 AM and all your electricity shuts off at 11 PM. You can't read, can't watch TV, can't get on your computer. Without electricity, people might actually get enough sleep.
If an alarm turns on electricity to wake you in the morning, electricity automatically turned off at night would be the opposite of alarm, no? It actually sounds fairly relaxing.
The opposite of alarm - lowers your utility bill, increases your hours of sleep, and lowers stress. Now if only I could come up with a name, I could trademark it before GE begins to mass manufacture these.
Ideas for a name?
R World (Ron Davison muses aloud)
Call it Ike.
ReplyDeleteMilena,
ReplyDeleteIke? I bet it is going to be obvious to me once I fully wake up. Now? Now, not so much. Maybe I should have set the opposite of alarm last night.
Milena, (raises hand)I get it! I get it!
ReplyDelete(But it sounds a lot less relaxing than Ron's idea.)
Ahh.. so if alarms are the obnoxious intro, the opposite of alarm is the tranquil outro.
ReplyDeleteI actually know several individuals that hit the circuit breaker at night, in addition, they don't use any electricity in their bedroom period. Their alarm is their biological rhythm. These folks actually wake up promptly at 6 everyday by a natural "alarm"- as a result of the proper function of their adrenal glands in producing hormones (cortisol and DHEA).
Sadly, for this to work, we need to follow quite a habitual lifestyle and have control of our sleep, and electromagnetic field influence. anyway, I have a friend who wrote an interesting thesis on this very topic if your interested.
As for a name...maybe...Pre-Electricity Nostalgic Stress Reducing Sleep Assistance Device?
(*thinking* hmm..maybe thats a little long... better go with the acronym--PENSRSAD)
We can discuss marketing of this device among other things (summer trip, philosophy, etc.) maybe next weekend?
Let me know
Toby
Toby: You're funny. Listen, here's a trick. All you need do is say three times before you go to sleep the time you want to wake up at. Envision the time itself on the inside of your closed eyelids. Presto Barba! I guarantee you'll wake up within a five to ten minute time period of the time you wished to rise. Over time, you get more accurate. When I was around 14 my aunt Cusy taught me this trick. I thought it was hogwash but tried it anyway. She was a bit of a nut my aunt Cusy (but a nice nut - don't get me wrong I love the lady) I digress... anyway, to my amazed surprise, IT WORKED! Been doing it ever since. I normally wake up at around 5:20 every morning. For some reason though, I've been popping the eyes open at 5:23 am in the last month or so. Guess the internal clock needs some minute adjustment but what the hey! Like I said. It works.
ReplyDeleteJennifer: You would. Smart cookie that you are.
Ron: Awake yet? Ike, remember? Electricity gone for two weeks? Hurricane? I thought it was clever... hmmm... maybe not.
Milena,
ReplyDeleteOh. Like I said. I get it now. Yes - Ike would have been the opposite of electricity - not, however, the opposite of alarm.
Jennifer,
Showing off again.
Toby!
Yes to next weekend. That sounds great. I'm in Nor Cal this weekend, but as best as I can recollect (remember, this is the guy who couldn't even recall Ike first thing in the morning), I'm free.
Oh - and very clever and interesting comment. Worthy of its own post, really.
Milena,
I have done that one more than one occasion. I'm not sure why I don't do it more often.
I have lots of relatives in Ohio who don't use alarm clocks. But then, most of them have been farming in some capacity their whole life. What's remarkable is they all usually retire early in the evening and are up, quite literally, before the dawn. 'Course in the winter hours before dawn is pretty late. But these folks wake up every morning, w/o an alarm, around 4:45 AM. Every morning. One time I asked my Uncle Clarence how he did it. His response? "I just do".
ReplyDeleteClassic
Mr. Ala is alarm in reverse as we already discussed off line. Or Mrala which is like a cross between a miracle and ala ca zam.
ReplyDeleteAnother good method of natural early warning systems to get you out of bed is a big long drink of water before you go to bed. Then your bladder will ring the alarm bells so that your whole body will hear them in the morning like the Native Americans used to do before battle.
Sandi
I LOVE this idea.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm too damn tired to come up with a witty name for it.
Maybe I'll get more sleep and come back later.
Allen,
ReplyDelete4:45 - I just do wake up then too. But it is random. And usually involves bladder capacity issues. Classic indeed.
Sandi,
waking with you is like some cross between a miracle and ala kazam.
Pinky,
Thank you. We raise up these little posts and put them out into the world and then when someone loves them ... ahh.