1 day left
Blake
The hour is nigh. The moment for action is at hand. This is officially the point of no return.
Does that sound melodramatic? It kind of feels that way. We're stepping into this big experiment with very little concrete knowledge of how our bodies will react.
The closer it gets, the more the gravity hits me. I really am going to give up the 8 hours of sleep I've spent my whole life protecting at all costs.
Last night was my last 8 hour bout of sleep for an indefinite amount of time. To be honest it was perfect. It started raining halfway through the night which is always my favorite kind of sleep. It was warm and I woke up feeling awesome. It made it that much harder to get up. My pillow didn't want to let go.
But I got up, and here I am. Melodramatics aside, I am pretty excited. And, as far as our actual safety goes, I'm not that concerned. The way my body works, if I push it too hard it'll just go to sleep.
Also, Bethany and Scout are looking out for us, and they'll let us know if the green fairies we discovered behind the television set aren't real. Although sleep hallucinations might be fun. Or not.
I'm going to a movie festival tonight and then packing up my video games and computer and headed over to Caitlin's house for an all night gaming marathon. We'll see how I feel after my first night. Keep an eye out for us. Let the experiment begin...
Wish us luck!
Caitlin
Some people are expressing some concerns for our health during this experiment. I've done some research on just how unhealthy this could be. The thing is, no one really knows. Some people think that it's horrible, others think that it's actually pretty good for you. No concrete support for either side.
But what I do know is this:
- Severe problems (going literally insane) occur from sleep deprivation. I think the record is somewhere around 18 days (could be passed, I just found a single search); and after sleeping for a few days after that, he was back to normal.
- We aren't actually sleep depriving ourselves, even though it may seem like that in the beginning. We'll be sleeping 2 hours a day.
- We know our bodies. If we start to feel like we are headed in a wrong direction, we'll be able to call this whole thing off.
- Also, our sig figs know us pretty well, too. They'll probably be the first to know if something is starting to go seriously wrong. And they'll take over and make us go to sleep.
I'm pretty paranoid about things, so I made sure that I was going to feel safe doing this. Plenty of research on possible long term side effects and such.
Also, we aren't the first people do this . There are several online polyphaser communities who all live like this. People who have slept like this for years. Leonardo da Vinci advocated polyphasic sleeping. Buckminster Fuller did it successfully for at least two years (and continued to live until his late 80s). I think we'll be okay. =)
Good Luck!
I, for one, look forward to messing with them if/when any hallucinations occur. Sorry, guys. I can't pass up an opportunity like that.
Some ideas for late night activities:
I've been trying to get into canning. The possibilities are endless: apple butter, pear raspberry jam, strawberry preserves, pickles, pickled...most anything (I'm not even being very creative. You can seriously get crazy with this, and it doesn't really cost a lot)
Soap-making (If you start with glycerin rather than lard it's way less intense but probably less gratifying as a consequence)
Jump Rope
If you have a patio and some sidewalk chalk...four-square (I realize that there are four squares and only two of you, but I'm sure you could find a way to make it work)
You should DEFINITELY make videos!