14 Comments
User's avatar
Vian's avatar

Birmingham, eh? Every 15 minutes? Is that like contractions?

Expand full comment
Leah McLaren's avatar

Hahaha, that's good! Like all British rail infrastructure plans it's constant labour, no baby.

Expand full comment
Vian's avatar

A miss carriage?

Expand full comment
frank baldock's avatar

Leah, you need a big hug :)))

Expand full comment
Leah McLaren's avatar

thanks. i get huge hugs every day from two boys, one of whom is a Frank! Frank's are the best huggers ever. fact.

Expand full comment
MR ROBERT THOMPSON's avatar

You spoke of two minds Leah. Your ramble today suggested a reaching out more than a rant. This introvert heart of mine seeks connection & sometimes I find it in unexpected places. Every writer is also a reader and I just put down a wonderfully quirky first novel by Emily Habeck called Shark Heart: A Love Story. As a result I now find a stronger connection with nature's other species. We are never alone.

Expand full comment
Leah McLaren's avatar

thanks for the recco. and yes more of a ramble than a rant. I think maybe the rambles are the long tail of the rants and my natural state

Expand full comment
Dr Lily Dunn's avatar

Really loving your video thoughts, Leah. I also woke at 3am last night and had a lot of panicked thoughts - mostly things I need to do, and it often hits me after a few days where I've prioritised the writing. And you know how when you prioritise the writing all else goes out the window. I see those 3am wakings as the fallout of that. Almost like the tetchy anxious brain is reawakening... I get up and write all my worries down and then I get back into bed and fall straight to sleep as if a huge weight has been lifted. It works a treat. Now, today I am slowly getting through all those things that I believed in the midnight hour to be impossible hurdles. Silly really.

Expand full comment
Leah McLaren's avatar

I love this! writing is the cure for everything. you should consider getting a bullet journal -- it's been life changing for me (if not beneficial for sleep). now I just ruminate about the State of the World instead of my To Do list (!)

Expand full comment
Dr Lily Dunn's avatar

OMG i need this and theres a LEUCHTTURM one. I think this might change my life!

Expand full comment
Leah McLaren's avatar

Yes that's the one I got, it's brilliant. A bit confusing at first but you'll get the hang of it! (I wrote a post about it)

Expand full comment
The Feral Astrologer's avatar

My dad was a lifelong insomniac, and I asked him once why our thoughts were darkest in the middle of the night. His philosophy was that in the middle of the night, our bodies processes are lowest because we’re supposed to be at rest, so it makes sense that the mind follows.

I developed menstrual insomnia in my mid 40s. I just get up and do some thing like cooking in the middle of the night. After day four, I start sleeping normally again.

Expand full comment
The Feral Astrologer's avatar

I sound so smug. Lol. I came to this course of action after total desperation. I got really sick of middle of the night panic attacks. Might as well make something for dinner!

Expand full comment
MR ROBERT THOMPSON's avatar

You spoke of two minds Leah. Your ramble today suggested a reaching out more than a rant. This introvert heart of mine seeks connection & sometimes I find it in unexpected places. Every writer is also a reader and I just put down a wonderfully quirky first novel by Emily Habeck called Shark Heart: A Love Story. As a result I now find a stronger connection with nature's other species. We are never alone.

Expand full comment