My sleep patterns have been erratic lately. Don’t go saying that’s a byproduct of aging, I’m not that old. Maybe it’s stress, there’s plenty going on in the news lately; maybe I shouldn’t have any caffeine after noon, maybe I should stop looking at screens after 9 p.m., yeah, yeah, yeah. I know all the rules and all the advice. Everyone does and no one listens to it. I’m taking CBD oil, melatonin, even Sleepytime tea with valerian, which smells like feet.

Nothing works. Night before last I woke up, like, hourly. Every time I looked at my clock it was one hour later than the last time I’d seen it. Night before that, I couldn’t get to sleep until after one in the morning, just layed there turning, unable to get comfortable.