My Brain Is Solar Powered

as is my entire energy system

I sometimes wake up feeling tired — in spite of having had a good night's sleep. I force myself as awake as possible then make and drink that first cup of coffee — it hits the spot — but I still feel tired.

Why? There is not enough coffee in the world to make up for a dark overcast sunless day. On sunny days, I barely need that coffee to feel awake. I am up and ready to go as soon as that first light appears.

I’ve known for a long time that I am a light/dark person so it should not have come as a surprise that I need a lot of sunshine to feel energized. And apparently, my pets have similar systems because on clouded over days, they rarely move. I have taken to calling them my in-house meteorologists. If they want to sleep in and not go out, I follow their forecast. [And they are Pacific Northwest natives!]

Alas, unlike rooftop solar panels, my brain does not store the power from a sunny day for use on a cloudy day. I go outside lots on a sunny day. I try to soak up as much energy as I can. And I feel so good — so energized. I take longer walks with the dog, I get more writing done, more course stuff created, more books read, even more housecleaning done — and I hate cleaning my house!

I have learned over time to adapt to this need for sun in many ways, but it is still…