I am officially placing naps as the third best invention in the world. I realize this because I missed mine on Sunday. It also made me realize you are either a nap person or not.
Liking naps (or not) is much like saying you are a “day” person versus a “night” person. But unlike day versus night, nap people get no respect. If you are a “day” person, you can secretly have respect for the people who stay up late. If you are a “night” person you can secretly acknowledge (although you think they are nuts) the people who get up early.
Non-nap people give zero respect to those who take naps. Nap people deal with comments like “napping is for kindergartners” or “I’ll nap when I die.” In reality, non-nap people can’t handle napping.
It is an art to sleep in the middle of the day for thirty to ninety minutes and NOT have it mess up the rest of the day with you walking around like a zombie. Yes, nap people are in good company.
John F. Kennedy
Lyndon B. Johnson
Thomas Edison
Napoleon
Jim Lehrer
Winston Churchill
Eleanor Roosevelt
Gene Autry
Leonardo Da Vinci
Now I am sure there are plenty of “bad” people who also took naps. But I don’t want to talk about them and they certainly don’t help my argument.
I have to wonder who was the first person to not only take naps, but also admit it to others. To this day some people still won’t admit it and yet you have entire countries that practically made it a mandate.
I guess I will never know what family to send a thank you card to or at least nap in their honor once a year (I am getting sleeping just talking about it). Oh yea, as for why it is number three on the list of best inventions? Well, I am going to let you pick the other two for yourself.
Fine, I suppose this is where you look for some witty insights to my mind. A "bio" of sorts. Here is the deal... I ride motorcycles, smoke cigars, golf, kayak, fly, race my car through the mountains, write (a lot), and travel extensively. I am almost old enough not to care what other people think about me...almost. ~Godfadr
According to Mookiepedia: The inventer of the nap, was accidentally Edward G Nap. He had a tendency to fall asleep in the middle fo the day. Later doctors assume he suffered from a mild case of narcolepsy, but then were overruled by other later doctors who concluded circadian rhythms were to blame and Mr Nap was merely not strong enough to overcome their influence on his body. After awhile, when others chose to go rest, they just began to call it “Taking a Nap”. And hence, the Nap was born.
As for the two greater inventions: blankies and pillows!
I can not handle the nap. While I will occassionally succumb to the tryptophan after a meal, it usually royally screws up the remainder of my day. I end up walking around like the ended following a short nap.
My theory is that the rest of us want to be nappers, and have grown to resent those of you who are for some reason able to shake off the after effects of the nap. Hence, it is jealousy that causes such phrases as “napping is for kindergartners” or “I’ll nap when I die”.
when i was forced in to a mental hospital we had to take naps every day at two o’clock . there was no ifs ands or butts about it we had to be quiet and lay down. eventually sleep just came to you during that hour . once you practice that for over a months the nap become a wonderous thing for reliveing stress to the brain .
I love naps. I also admit that I am a night person and love to sleep in whenever possible. I am a much happier person when I am well rested. Now that I have a toddler and another baby on the way, I am sure the sleeping in phase of my life is over for the next 18+ years. This makes the nap even more appealing to me. Unfortunately my two year old has recently decided that she is over naps, which also means I am over naps. I envy those people out there who still get to nap. As for the next 18 years, I will have to rely on coffee
Rachel-
You and I are in the same boat. I work overnights, and then watch my now 5 year old while my wife goes off to her day job. Corwyn decided naps were overrated when he was about 2 yrs old as well….and since then…..wait, nodded off there for a second, what was I saying?
I was never a nap person until about 8 years ago. Then I started napping on weekends (work interfered with naps during the week…LOL).
I’d love to say that these naps give me a boost, but they don’t. I don’t wake easily, and seem to wake even slower after a nap, then spend hours yawning.
So………..while I love my naps, I also hate them……….it’s a can’t win for losing thing with me…………*big sigh*
Now that I’m not working since being downsized out of my job, I’m napping daily, and I will miss it when I go back to work.
Well, I’m off to get some lovely sun for a bit now, then a NAP!!!