Scared of My Shadow

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My wife was always the paranoid one. My absolute favorite was when she put the baby gate at the top of the stairs well after the kids were grown - I never noticed it because I was usually in bed before her, but one night I saw it and questioned her.

"It's to slow up a burglar if he breaks into the house," she said.
"You're insane," I replied.

Also, every night we have the same discussion about all of the doors being locked - it borders on the ridiculous. I stopped her by telling her I unlocked the doors before I came up.

"Really? Did you lock them?" she'd ask.
"You're insane," I'd reply.

She once phoned the school to see if the kids arrived safe because the bus driver wasn't the usual guy.

"You're insane," I said.

She once went to the school to ask if the children arrived safely.

"You're insane," I told her.

Yet now, I'm scared stiff. I've bolted awake each of the past two weeks - usually around 2:15 AM. I have to work hard to control my breathing and get back to sleep and of course, it is because the worse possible news is slow to be digested, if ever.

I drove to work today looking at all of the cars around me. Aware that any thing could happen at any moment to end all that I've worked for.

I'm suddenly insane, and now I know what my wife has battled for years and years.

I want to build a moat around the property to protect all that are dear to me. I want to grab all of my relatives and friends and wrap them in plastic. I want everyone I know and care about to have a full body scan to ensure that they are healthy.

I'm even ready to re-install the baby gate.

Comments

deafjeff said…
Dude, you've always been nuts too. The bolting awake thing seems to be going around, I haven't slept right in about, well since the first night. I could always sleep thru a hurricane, now I'm up like 15 times a night and it ain't the prostrate.
16 March, 2009
deafjeff said…
tell the wife I said Happy Birthday, I don't know the exact date, but it always was right around hat day.
16 March, 2009
Andrea Renee said…
Funny you should post this - I just had a security system installed in the house today!
16 March, 2009
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