Wake Walker insomnambulism

I'm awake. Moving about, here and there. Everything is on automatic. When people speak, they sound far away. Days away really, four days to be precise. That was the last time I remembered sleeping for any length of time. An hour maybe? Forty-five minutes? It was the kind of sleep that comes with sheer exhaustion; you drift off with the TV on, finally. Then without explanation you wake and your back in the walk. You move first to the bed and you try to sleep but it's too late now. You thrash about trying to find that magic spot but its not there.

You make it to work; your the kind of cranky that can only be described as rabid. Just the wrong combinations of words for your jerk-ass boss and THIS will be the day you say fuck it and go home. Staring down at the line as motors move past you, check the pressure, pull the plug wire and send it down the line. An hour passes and you switch stations, then another and another. All the while your mind drones on with though after thought after meaningless thought. It never turns off. Question...everything.

Lunch comes, lunch makes you sleepy. If you were home then you might lay down and take a nap but unfortunately you are here and in ten minutes you'll be back on the line. Hooking motors.

So today is not the day. Boss taps you on the shoulder and says something, you can assume it was positive because he was smiling and pointing at numbers. "Wah wah, and the wah wah." Your brain doesn't make connection to speech anymore, you only hear sounds. Far, far away sounds. When in doubt, give a thumbs up. I do.

"Atta boy!"

Sitting on a side walk, afraid of sleep now. Is six days too long? Has it been six days? I heard you could die if you fell asleep after being awake too long. Take a drag from a cigarette. A clown walks over to me and sits down, "You oughta get some sleep man. You're starting to see things."

I raise may head. His words were so clear. "How do you know?"

I notice the clown doesn't have a face. Just make up where a face should be and a large red fluffy ball where a nose should have been. No eyes or mouth.

The clown laughed. "See my point?"

I shut my eyes tight and re-opened them, the clown was gone.

I hear music and I feel a vibration in my pocket. After experiencing this several times I remember I have a phone and I answer it. I say "Hello?" No answer, just more music and vibration. Well, I tried.

Bugs on everything, I try to read but they've made books so that the words move now and I don't know how to read words that move. My skin feels tight, my heart feels like a rock. I look at the pile of cigarettes-butts on the side-walk. I hear the ringing and vibrating again. Phone. I answer it, this time a voice.

"Where are you? You haven't been to work in a week!" His voice was so loud.

"I'm..." I look around. I realize I'm sitting in front of my house. "Hey, have you ever seen a clown without a face?"

There is silence. "You have to be kidding me. Fuck it. I'll mail you your check ass-hole!"

Who the hell was that? Why was he yelling at me. I wander back into my house and check the refrigerator. Nothing. I really should get some groceries instead of this dead dog. Oh hell. When did I put my dog in the freezer?

Shit. Not again.

Submitted February 10, 2015 at 11:00AM by lordpoee http://ift.tt/1ARGURo insomnambulism