I smile at the 2:16am wake-up because it's so close to the Amityville Horror 2:15am wake-up of James Brolin in the movie based on the book based on the true story of the DeFeo murders. I thought all that business was finally put to rest but there are many websites devoted to it, devoted to helping the DeFeo family finally rest. All those prayers sent out over the internet, apparently the way to reach the Big Guy/Fat Boy.
Eight years ago I suffered through a bout of insomnia that lasted months and months. It followed this same pattern -- easily falling asleep at 9pm, 10pm or 11pm but waking always in the 2am hour. I might fall asleep at five or six for an hour or so, I might not. After a time I couldn't eat. I'd hold a trembling spoon of oatmeal in front of my face and my mouth wouldn't open. The spoon back down, back up again. Nothing. A piece of toast. Nothing. I attempted to act casual about it, almost coming to the point of making the spoon into a little choo-choo train and singing myself a song. I lost 15 pounds in two months. Finally, I got myself some little tablets and they helped but my previous luscious sleeping self became a faint memory.
Now, I keep flopping around to a minimum, maybe five minutes, before I reach for a book (conveniently stored under a pillow) or in some cases, I get up and walk around the house. I have mostly convinced myself this is extra time -- whee! -- all to myself. Occasionally, my mother's voice leaks through my conviction telling my seven year-old, afraid-of-the-dark self, "Get to sleep. You can never catch up on sleep." All my lost hours out there, bumping around.