It is 3:15 on a Sunday afternoon. And as I am writing, my eye lids are slowly, unwillingly closing; my fingers are losing consciousness – typing a row of ZZZZZZZZZZZZ’s; and I know, from these telltale signs, it must be time for a nap.
But don’t think I am just another old codger who needs his afternoon nap. Napping has taken on added significance in this fast pace world – a new way to increase employee productiveness where companies including Apple and Googe are allowing employees to take naps on the job. Research has shown a nap can boast the brain’s learning capacity, improve memory, increase creativity, and is more effective than caffeine. And even a short nap can have a marked effect on your health.
The article “The Science of the Perfect Nap” that I discovered on the website Lifehacker, offers several suggestions on how to take the perfect nap. I’ll try to share it with you – before I fall asleep.
1. Watch the time. Twenty minute naps work well. 2. Find a quiet and dark space. (Unfortunately during my college days, the library was quiet and dark and I often slept there more than I studied.) 3. Lie down. It takes significantly more time to fall asleep while sitting. 4. Get in your napping zone. Concentrate on your breathing, relax your muscles, and use visualization techniques. 5. Plan naps into your day. Take a nap before you get to the dangerous point of drowsiness. 6. Set an alarm. You don’t want to sleep longer than you desire.
Naps are natural and beneficial. And even the younger generations are now learning about the advantages of naps -reaping the benefits of improved productivity, energy, and mental capacity. So no longer think of napping as an essential guilty pleasure. Napping is a good thing – and at any age.
This is from the Center’s bulletin board for all you family history buffs out there. There is a free Family History Workshop on Saturday, October 20th from 9 am – 2 pm at the Mid-Columbia Family History Center inside the LDS Church on 18th and May Street in Hood River. There will be mini classes for beginner and experienced researchers including “Beginning Your Family History”, “DNA Testing and Your Family”, “Online Vital Records” and “Creating Heritage Albums”. For more information call 541-490-0344.
The Center’s Saturday Breakfast on the 20th (serving from 8:00 – 9:30 am) will include hearty Texas French toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, fruit and your favorite beverage all for only $5.00. This month the breakfast is sponsored by the Wasco County Democratic Central Committee. (And with the Republican Central Committee having sponsored the breakfast in August, are there any Ron Paul Libertarians out there who would want to sponsor the breakfast in November? Mike, are you listening?). Also on Saturday there is Old Fashioned Bingo: simple, inexpensive and fun from 3:00 – 4:00 pm, before Saturday Night Bingo which starts at 6:00 pm.
I’ll keep it simple this week – no secret code or secret messages for the unsuspecting. Tonight at the Center, Truman will be playing his Country Gold and on the Tuesday the 23rd, the Dufur Boys will be back playing their crowd pleasing country/western. And you know the rest of the story: music starts at 7:00, everybody is welcome and donations are appreciated.
Rin-Tin-Tin and his offspring were the stars of radio, film and the television series “The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin” that ran on ABC from 1954 through 1959. (And the winner of a free Saturday Breakfast is Shirley Christiansen.) But before there was TV, there was radio. What was the name of the radio series aired on NBC from 1941 – 1957 that was a spin-off from “Fibber McGee and Molly” and featured a confirmed bachelor who oversaw his late brother-in-law’s estate while raising his orphaned niece and nephew? Email your answer to the mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, call 541-296-4788 or mail it with a water bill from the City of Summerfield Water District.
Well, it has been another week trying to remember what I have forgotten. Until we meet again, take time to close your eyes and imagine the impossible- but try to stay awake!.
“I love a good nap. Sometimes it’s the only thing getting me out of bed in the morning.”
– George Costanza from Seinfeld