Catch Jim’s 3-minute podcast on youtube: https://youtu.be/Kd5t_U_qjKA

or read his transcript below:

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Life, actually…

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O WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MORNING, EXCEPT FOR

THE SMOG AND THE FOG AND THE BARKING DOG

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When I’m worried and I can’t sleep I count my blessings…but only in between each annoyance.

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If you don’t have a care in the world you won’t be interested in today’s thoughts.

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My groans are only for the ears of you fellow travelers who toss and turn, turn and toss through much of the night.

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I twist to the left to settle into just the right position for sweet sleep. Thinking about sweet sleep pops me wide awake and reminds me of the things I forgot to do today. Must pick up bug spray. Must gather laundry. Must purchase milk.

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I pull the pillow over my forehead and recall playing hide-and-seek with my eldest granddaughter so many years ago. Can’t help but smile.

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Then, warily peeking at the alarm clock reminds me of how many hours are left between now and bill-paying time. Must remember to pay that one annoying bill…zzzzzz…

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Again I am startled awake by fireworks on the nearby mountain, just as a cozy dream about marshmallows begins to enmesh me.

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I roll to the cool spot on the bed and pretend to sleep, but the unholy and disorganized pile of detritus in my writing room reminds me I have to spend some time sorting and straightening. This could happen any year now.

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Now I am recalling a pleasurable time when reciting a favorite poem before a rapt audience was all the thrill I required at that moment. My smile returns.

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Just in time for the red devil on my shoulder to jump and remind me about a special book order I forgot to complete at the shop yesterday. Dang! I’m awake again.

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Multiply all these worrisome factoids several score and you have a graphic profile of my latest semi-sleepless night.

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The good the bad and the meaningless magnify and prod. The pleasant ideas whiz by.

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The good news is that just as sunlight peeks through the curtains, everything seems to arrange itself, my worries slide into some kind of appropriate order, and the next second teases me with the prospect of having a hopeful day.

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Within minutes all insomnia is forgotten. A hot shower shocks me into my comfortable routine. And before I know it I actually toss all neuroses and start pretending myself into having a jolly attitude.

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Tonight’s bedtime is the least of my worries. Until it occurs

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© 2025 A.D. by Jim Reed