Sleepers on the rails

I'm sure it's a well-worn allusion. "The Rail" is the railway network, & travelling by rail is being transported on a train. The physical rails are suspended above the ground by means of sleepers. The train carriage is filled with people, most of whom tune out sufficiently to fall asleep. I've now done that so to death that I have to bring you back to an interesting bit.

There are two opportunities to sleep on the train - all the way in to work, & all the way home. Some people can take advantage of both of these, but you generally only see those catching up on missed sleep, or else those dozing after a hard day's work. It is my conjecture that these two types of sleep are distinct.

Morning sleepers sleep deeper. They settle in, lean against a window & just drop off. Simple. They do it every day.
Afternoon sleepers are fitful sleepers. They don't want to miss their stop (home). They tend to drop off unexpectedly, drifting off, waking, repeatedly, trying to stay awake, but not succeeding. These people are funnier. I believe that they are also more likely to snore.

The reason I believe that the snorers are the afternoon snoozers is that they don't make themselves comfortable. They tend to exhaustion, unpreparedness, & are more often cramped in their seat - because people who work hard at work tend to rush home all at the same time. If you don't have control over your working hours, then the tendency is that someone is setting your work procedures & priorities as well.

Most morning sleepers are relaxed. I will lump them together as deep sleepers.

Afternoon sleepers are of different types.

• Nodder - slowly moving head up & down
• Snap-Nodder - slowly moving head down, then snapping it back in wakefulness
• Side-slider - someone headed for your shoulder
• Curler - someone who unconsciously tries to get into a foetal position
• Stretcher - someone who tries to take up as much space as possible when asleep

Try & spot the differences on your next afternoon train ride.