Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober - 1 Thessalonians 5:6 King James Version

Robbie wanted to go out on Friday evening, I wasn't keen because he'd had a very challenging week and I knew that he was very tired and struggling to cope with pain from his back and legs. However it was the anniversary of his friend's death and he needed to meet with other friends to remember better times. I begged him not to be too late home because I was tired too and I didn't want to be too late to bed.

We had spoken on the phone before he went out and I kept my mobile close to me hoping that he would remember his promise not to be too late. It remained silent all evening so I sent him a text to say that I was going to bed and he should ring me when he needed a lift. I sat in bed listening to the radio and doing some writing on my netbook, trying to stay awake. He finally rang to say that he needed picking up at midnight and I asked him to ring me again when he got to Rugby just to make sure that I hadn't dozed off. Time marched on and no call came, so I set off for the station, I thought Robbie had just forgotten ring. 

When I got to the station I began to worry that Robbie may have fallen asleep, so I rang him several times and sent texts for him to contact me, but there was no reply. A stream of people wandered wearily around to the car park indicating that Robbie's train was in, I looked and looked but there was no Robbie. After a brief flurry of activity the car park was still and silent again and I was still there waiting. Time passed very slowly but eventually a few more weary travellers came into view, another train had arrived, but after a brief moment of hope my heart sank, there was no sign of Robbie. By this time I was seriously worried, my mind raced, perhaps he'd had a bad fall, perhaps he had even fallen under a train ........... Finally the truth became clear, a rather confused text from Robbie revealed that he had fallen asleep on the train and ended up in Buckinghamshire. A phone call followed and a rather unhappy Robbie admitted that it would be a long wait for him to make his way back. I wasn't best pleased, but at least he was safe, so I couldn't be too angry. We finally got home at about 2am - not the best start to a weekend! 

A Wake Up Call

I am getting really concerned about Robbie, he is so tired. He exhausted himself yesterday evening by having a full scale tantrum about a missing pair of socks (I am not convinced they are missing at all), then afterwards he sat down and fell asleep. I couldn't wake him up and he was leaning off his chair at such a precarious angle this morning that I was afraid he would end up in a heap on the floor. I couldn't get him to wake up this morning, this problem has now reached ridiculous proportions, he has to get it sorted out. I have told him that from now on getting up in the morning and going to bed at night is his problem, I don't see why I should have to put up with his nastiness when I try to wake him up! If his work want him body and soul, they better park him in the office over night, because he is neither use nor ornament at home. He is like the dormouse at the mad hatters tea party, occasionally he pops his head up and says something totally irrelevant then he is asleep again before he finishes his sentence.

Oh Mr Porter What Shall I Do ...............

Robbie had been out playing trains, but I was expecting him back at around 5pm. The possibility of him getting lost didn't cross my mind because it was the inaugural outing of his high visibility coat, so he would have been impossible to lose. I phoned him at about 4pm and there was no reply, and he maintained telephone silence from then on. By 8pm I was seriously worried, but I still couldn't contact him, then at about 8.30pm he phoned sounding more than a little embarrassed. He had fallen asleep on the train on the way back from the south west, he missed his stop at Birmingham and ended up in the deep north! It could only happen to Robbie!

Night Terrors 25.10.07

Robbie did not get home until just after 9pm and he talked non stop about technical railway stuff so even if the bogeyman was still troubling him, Robbie would have bored him into submission! He ignored the TV in favour of the computer until I went to bed, he said he was going to watch a bit of MTV before coming to bed. I knew that would involve him falling asleep and crawling up to bed in agony in the early hours. He claims that he woke shortly after 2am to find his face feeling wet, strange noises around his face and something was nudging his head! After a moment of panic when he didn't know where he was and couldn't work out how to move his limbs, he realised that the dog was trying to wake him up! He must have been snoring and it bothered Meg so much that she decided to wake him up and send him to bed. Unable to do anything quietly, he woke me as he got ready for bed. He was asleep again within minutes, but I was left wide awake thinking 'dark' thoughts about being woken up. He had no need to worry about the bogeyman, there was a much more imminent threat to his safety - me!!