My Nocturnal Mates

When I first got married, I lived in one bedroom at my parents’ home. This room, which constituted my whole “humble abode” was very small and could hardly accommodate the two of us, and the cramped conditions weren’t comfortable at all. We were soon joined by a third occupant, our first born son.

When we finally got the chance to build our own home, my first demand was for a fairly large bedroom. I wanted it to be large enough for everything I needed. That was a condition I didn’t negotiate on.

And when I say everything, I mean everything: the king sized bed, the large screen TV with coffee table and seats, two comfy sofas, two desktop computers (for him and her!), the PC paraphernalia (modems, printers and fax machine), and my thousand plus book library.

So my room now doubles as a sleeping room, relaxation area, entertainment center, and office. It’s perfect – if you’re like me and my husband.

Only one thing mars this picture of perfection. Late at night, when it is time to sleep, and we switch off all the lights… the nocturnal creatures of our room come alive! Their green, yellow and red eyes watch us all night while we slumber. God only knows what else they do when we’re not watching back!

I am of course referring to the standby lights of the TV, 2 PCs, printer, fax etc.. I cannot shut them all off; so I have to shut my eyes and try to clear their constant glare from my mind. Kind of like avoiding the gaze of medusa; but without fear of being petrified. The ones that are the most irritating are the ones which blink on and off all the time.. like the video or the back of one of the PCs which seems to blink to prove that it is alive. I’ve taken care of the TV’s light which was emitting this eerie bluish light which was at eye level with me as I lay in bad trying to sleep. I swear it felt like a laser directed to my cornea! My husband has put sticky black tape on that one. I don’t know what to do about the rest though; they’re so many.. I am not exaggerating when I say that there are approximately 10 lights! Ideas, anyone?