the rix mix

Did an overnight fill-in at WFMU today. Musically, it was all over the place. & I kept the chat to a minimum. The four hour late night show is fun for stretching out (an entire Spanish piano concerto), but it wipes me out physically. It's not the program itself - I'm a late nighter anyway, take a nap earlier if I think I need one, & feel OK at 6 a.m. - but the journey home does it. On Saturday morning, the first connection I can make out of Newark Penn Station is 7:30. Sure, the River & Manhattan skyline are pretty when I walk to Exchange Place PATH & descend below ground. After Journal Square, above ground again, headed out across the swamps, the sun is completely up even at this dark time of year; I prefer overcast mornings. There's a lot of people on the trains. It's too bright to pretend I'm creeping home after an all-night party. Reaching Elizabeth, the street cleaners & garbage trucks are finished, the cafes are open, the world's up & about its business. Without delays, I'm home a little after 8. On weekdays, I'm back a bit earlier. The problem is that I'm tired & relaxed & ready for bed before I leave Jersey City, ending the old night rather beginning the new day. I try to hang on to the feeling as long as I can, but it totally fades away during the 15 minute walk from the station to my apartment. I then need to unwind. Although the blinds are shut, the room in shadow, the wide awake world leaks in. At that point, I could sleep 24 hours, if I could get to sleep.