At night, there sometimes is a really dark space between someone's ears. In August 2011, rioters in Manchester used the dark night for setting a building, next to us, on fire. It was almost midnight, and at some point Pirjo and I put the clothes on and packed passports in handbags as we thought also our building would be evacuated, but for smoke.
For some weird reason, stupidness seems to condense most effortlessly in a big group at night.
For the most of us, the nights are dedicated for sleeping and dreaming whereas the days are for more active purposes. Savielly Tartakower, a Polish Chess Grandmaster, sometimes explained to his students: "Strategy is knowing what to do when there is nothing to do; tactics is knowing what to do when there is something to do”. According to this, the nights would be more or less the time for planning things and the days for executing the plans. However, in my opinion, the utilization of night- and daytime is somewhat inconsistent. There are things that can't be done in any other way, but then there are some that could be done also in a different way.
It all started at some point in the late 1950's when I was hunting worms at night in our garden. I had a torch that revealed the daredevil creatures that poked their heads up from the ground. They did it at night as night is their working time, and the dew helped their survival. Except if they met me. The hunt was so exciting that I had the janitor of our house as a sidekick. I was about five years old. After collecting a large enough sample, we added some fresh grass on top of the soil in a tin jar where the worms were hidden. The jar went to a shady place in the garden, and was taken along when fishing was topical. Many, many years later, at night one August, I tried torch-fishing with a fishing-spear and a friend. It was fun, although we didn't get anything. The fish should be struck with the spear spikes longitudinal to the fish, not perpendicular, as we later learnt. For its fast reactions, the fish always turns before the spikes reach it.
Anyway, for a small kid the nights were something different. It wasn't possible to go out every night, but when it happened, there was something special in the air. Probably it was only the dark. Some years later, I learned that at night it was (and is) possible to do things that in daylight would be more difficult, or forbidden by my mother. It was much easier to hide and move unseen; this was extremely useful when trying to frighten the s..t out of our neighbour, a single middle aged lady. Even the thought of being invisible made my spine shiver, or was it the skin(?); some parts of the body shivered anyway. The nights at that time were a bit chilly too. I wasn't afraid of the dark; it was me who was the ghost. Nowadays, the nights stay pretty warm as there is no need to go out hunting worms. Moreover, it would be awfully difficult in our today's backyard; a worm that can poke its head through fresh tarmac would be a rare and a frightful opponent to anyone. And this would cover the fish, our janitor and me. Still, I'm not afraid of darkness; I only have to be careful about not hitting my toes on furniture when going to the fridge in our unlit apartment. As an interim conclusion, I would say that hunting worms, playing a ghost, torch-fishing and kicking furniture with bare toes is definitely best to do in the dark.
So, considering the night-time somewhat special, started early. On the other hand, it is no wonder as in the most parts of Norway, Sweden and Finland the days of short summers are about 24 hours long, but during long winters darkness or night is the prevailing condition. If you go and review the situation north from the Polar Circle (66° 33′ 44″ N), you'll be able to experience the so-called midnight Sun in summer, and no day at all in winter. In Tromsø, Norway, where we lived some three years, in summer the Sun literally didn't go down for three months, and in winter it didn't go up. One January, when my wife was visiting our son in Montreal, I once woke up after a Sunday afternoon nap, at around 6pm. I took a shower, had "breakfast" and went to work. It was first in my office at the university that I realised it was still Sunday evening.
Already in May, the day in Tromsø lasts 24 hours as in February the first sunrise is still a couple of weeks ahead. High in the mountains, you can already see some signs of light, but sun rays do not yet bend down on the earth here.
The ration of being awake and asleep and the management of darkness have to be under control, otherwise something like what happened to me in Norway may occur. The so-called sleeping stages were first described in 1937 by Albert Lee Loomis. Nowadays, we know that surfing in delta-wave is easy with even not so good balance, and that the periods of rapid eye movement (REM) are those when you are dreaming and more prone to wake up. Also, in the beginning, right after falling to sleep, delta sleep (or slow-wave-sleep - SWS) is more common than REM sleep. Perhaps for this reason, at least I don't see dreams on airplanes as sleeping periods there are short, and I'm only SWS'ing. Would be practical to be able to record the dreams that one is too tired to watch or has missed for other reasons. Also, sometimes the dreams end at a critical moment, and it would be great to see the sequel later in privacy. As far as I remember, a few days ago in BBC News they told that recording dreams and storing them on a DVD disc could be possible in future. On a flight from North America to Europe, where you move your watch about five hours ahead and which in terms of illumination is a "twilight zone", setting your biological timer for recording the thing you want, could be a problem. Also, "dreaming hygiene" could become an everyday worry for many if "dream catchers" became real.
There are many who treat jet lag with Melatonin hormone, the "hormone of darkness" as it's called too. Melatonin secretion takes almost completely place in darkness, and light blocks it. Melatonin causes drowsiness unlike Melanin or (even worse) Melamine. A couple of years ago, when we still lived in Kuwait, I heard that someone had, in a pharmacy, asked for Melamine pills for jet lag. Well, with a Melamine supplement you may really get thoroughly fixed. It goes well together with Formaldehyde if someone would like to try. As a result, you could have a future as a table top. Which ever of the three you use, you'll be pretty confused the next few days - and nights.
After returning home, it is naturally nice to retreat in your own bed and have a good night sleep there. After an airplane, it is a heaven. But, what if the Sandman doesn't come, and you only toss and turn in your bed? You may be in jet lag, or the bed is too comfortable. However, if your nose is running, eyes are itching and your breathing wheezes, you may have caught flu on the plane. Or then, you should have aired your bed sheets, tidied up your home (all clutter harbour dust), and put your Teddy-bear into a freezer (for a minimum of 24 hours) before leaving for the trip. During your absence, dust mites may have taken over your apartment, and their poo is now causing your trouble. If you had frozed the Teddy, it would be healthy too. I don't know if detached dust mite poo is an issue in a freezer. If you haven't travelled, and the symptoms (non-specific flu like things, no fever) kick in, look at yourself in a mirror, and get a cleaning lady. Don't put the kids into freezer; they may still be able to sleep as especially really small kids produce more Melatonin.
If you simply can't sleep, perhaps it is time to pay a visit to a restaurant, and try to relive some moments of your "business trip". But why does the concept "nightlife" exist alone; where is "daylife"? Why is it more exciting to go out at night and not in bright daylight? Is it because the "sleeping time" is closer, and anticipating company is one of the first priorities in "nightlife"? Or is it that the wrinkles don't show when the lights are down? Alone, the chances for tripping and soiling the clothing is much bigger in dark. Night clubs should be opened already at 8.00am for having proper "daylife". Musicians wouldn't have to stay awake as long as they do now; I know they hate it. It is true that many of us go to work, and there is not much time for "night-clubbing" in daytime. Daytime traffic could also interfere with going to a restaurant in a limousine, and a drowsy dance girl would be a killjoy. Anyway, there should be an alternative...!
In the nature, for numerous predators, night is the actual hunting time. The reasons mentioned in the beginning apply to them very well. At night, human predators are prowling their pray too. In another story, I already mentioned a slang expression "swooper", who according to the Urban Dictionary is a person trying to seduce his friend’s or another man’s girl, with utter disregard to respecting anyone. Also, he may be an observant barfly, almost always male, waiting for a female to get very drunk, and when the time is right, swoop in and take her home to f..k her brains out. Pharmaceutical aids may become handy for a swooper-guy. Again, for me it is unclear, why do the swoopers hunt only at night. Of course, there is more prey to choose from, but the discos and night clubs are not that dark. Dim they may be, but occasional bright flashing lights interrupt Melatonin secretion for sure. So, wouldn't an alike windowless environment, daytime, be just as favourable for a predator person. And except males, this can be applied to female "cougars" as well. Whether the "cougars" would use pharmaceutical aids for hunting is still an open question; my best guess is: no, it wouldn't work (here I'm not referring to pharmaceutical aids).
Of course, traditional burglars have a window of opportunity at night (no pun intended). At least, they set their alarm clocks ringing at the time when other, seemingly more respectable, people go to sleep. Well, it is something they themselves have not selected; their actual "working time" is only circumstantially practical. The days are for scouting. According to some reports, a great number of active burglars suffer from sleep deprivation. A "burglar-swooper" professional combination would be a sophisticated development, although really nasty. Signs of break-in wouldn't exist, but carrying out both tasks could be exhausting over time and would be considered aggravating circumstances in court. If a burglar-swooper suffered from severe sleep deprivation, the danger of burning fingers would be obvious. Having the lights on all the time could help; Melatonin production should be kept as low as possible.
Swooping is a military related term too. A swift, stylish manoeuvre, meant for surprising the enemy, is sometimes called a "swoop". But, why do these attacks so often take place at night, or early in the morning when it is still dark? Do they think that the enemy doesn't know? They drink coffee too. In Hollywood films the enemy never knows, but in the real life they haven't read the manuscript. When swooping the enemy at night in movies, the good guys always have their own face smudged with camouflage make-up. Why doesn't the enemy use it? Are they supposed to be better targets, or is their skin too sensitive? Also, why are the sentries of the enemy always turning their back on the swooping god guys? Haven't they seen older movies? I just wonder.
Why are adult entertainment programs broadcasted at night? Let's imagine that all XXX rated films would come e.g. 10.00am - 14.00pm. If you had children and preferred them not to get some "education", you could always adjust the parental control settings on your TV set. On the other hand, if the kids were able to study various items on TV, quiet and awkward moments at a dinner table and on car trips would be history. Absolutely too often the kids only sulk and talk quietly on the backbench. There always would be something to talk about on long car rides. For example, you yourself could start a discussion by asking:"Kids, have you tried to do the same gymnastic exercises as the lady on TV?" Then of course, the kids could use their artistic talents and make drawings of the programs to be taken to school and grandparents.
And finally, some of the readers may have got abstinence symptoms about that no references to Kurt Vonnegut have come up in the text. Here is an aphorism from his book Mother Night: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be".
Good Night!
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