Traditionally speakingby Pat Larsen - Sleep Shoppingits a Thing, Ya Know

No one will contest that this was a long, cold, miserable winter. Between the layers of ice covering every inch of our pathways to slipping and sliding down the roads when the snow fell just enough to hide the perils that were lurking beneath the unmelted roadways.

If you were lucky enough to have made it through in an upright position for the most part, I’m sure you quickly became as fed up as most of us were by the frigid temps and the perilous wind that found every crevice in our homes.

It seemed that the sky had been drained of all manner of color by succumbing to a depth of gray that just turned down the corners of the mouth…every day.

But alas, I happened to have found my way through to a solution that now has become my favorite means of shopping.

Sleep Shopping is definitely a thing, ya know. Or so I thought.

It started innocently enough with waking up just after midnight, wide eyed and completely not needing the confines of my bed any longer. 

Typically, my go to outlet is my phone/tablet to check out what had happened since I fell asleep maybe three hours earlier.

Don’t judge. Just go with it.

Then, quite surprisingly as my curiosity peaked, I found myself beginning to scroll through some of the shopping sites that I would typically view during the daylight hours.

There it was. My Amazon shopping cart practically begging for me to hit “send!” 

I started to look through my potential purchases. I corrected one or two items that I no longer had interest in and then

I even started to read the reviews for the items that I wanted to purchase. Time was on my side and I wasn’t the least bit tired, after all, so I carried on and shopped to my hearts content for quite awhile.  I appreciated the quiet of the night and knowing it was only me and the “cart” with no other daytime distractions. And…I liked shopping this way.

Finally after about an hour, I began to feel the effects of spending money and my warm bed calling me.

So I hit the send button. Ut Oh, did I mean to hit the shut down the tablet button? 

Morning came, probably more quickly than I had expected it to. My mind was refreshed and clear, ready to tackle the day's activities. 

I jumped in the shower, dressed, walked the dog..on and on before I knew it the hands on the kitchen clock had turned many times to reveal it to be near lunch time.

I loved my renewed spirit on this particular day.

I was hopeful, excited and just so much more cheerful than I had been in a while.

My husband even noticed the shift, commenting that before long, winter would be a memory and we’d be outside enjoying the gardens again.

THAT”s when it hit me…I kid you not.

Apparently, sleep shopping doesn't exactly require the participant to be fully engaged with all their senses.

Having a credit card and an account on file exacerbated the  situation. Amazon didn’t care who hit that merchandise cart button to “purchase”.

Boy, did I have some explaining to do. Thank goodness for their return policy. I have vowed to shut down my tablet from now on and to refrain from making midnight purchases until the morning.

It was fun while it lasted.

Pat Larsen lives, plays and works in Greene County.

Her passions include  teaching fitness  for her favorite people, Baby Boomers whom she brings classes to every week.

Want to share a story? Please feel free to contact Pat at 518-275-8686 to chat.