Out Cold like a Coma

I joyfully slip into hibernation as someone else takes the wheel, for a change, and drives to New York City today. Most weeks I navigate solo running up over 1000 miles on my car between Vermont, Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey. When production assignments are offered I take them and rarely let a little thing like distance stand in the way. For heaven's sake, with the amount of traveling I do, my driving to Boston, Midtown or Burlington in a day, is like a quick trip to the local grocer.

The thing is, because I've learned to nap when in motion, like in a airplane, bus or train, I can't control not doing the same in a vehicle. The repetitive motion and the soothing sound of an engine just cradles me right to sleep. This is really becoming a life-threatening problem when I'm alone and there are few songs on the radio to keep me interested. I've even dozed off for a couple seconds but miraculously came through the last minute before hitting a guardrail.

I know where it comes from. It stems from a habit developed while shooting a documentary around the world on a ship a couple years ago. The only free time I had to catch up on zzzz's was during flights, bus trips and train rides. I honed my body to literally fall asleep standing up, to catch quick catnaps on the spur of the moment and snooze through loud deafening noises. It was purely a survival technique that kept me from loosing my mind working 12 hour days with 700 students for 3 months.

16 hour flights overseas even encourage my repose. I always miss out on the peanuts, drink cart, the movie, all of the take-off and even some of the landing. Some would think this a good thing. But driving is an anaesthesia for me and there is just so much I can do when I don't drink caffeine. And I'm done self-inflicting bruises on myself. I literally pinch my skin until it bleeds to stay awake. I have an idea - who wants to be my chauffeur?