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what should you do when

 
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there is not much work to do at the moment. It is just after lunchtime and I am staring hard at my screen trying to be 'productive' in my spare time and learn something new.
Guru Eckels' words from 'Thinking in C++' blur into nothingness. Try various remedies including using my thumb and forefinger to keep my eyes open, but no luck. coffee doesnt help either.
then I log onto javaranch and view the posts. i am wide awake in 5 mins! thanks everyone.
any other tried and tested remedies out there ?
Sajida
 
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Now that sounds VERY familiar.
My problem is that I seem to be in the wrong timezone for Meaningless Drivel. Whenever I try to fight the boredom of the afternoon, Asia has gone home and the US is still asleep.
 
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Hey guys,
This seems to be a common affliction....have more than once spotted one of my seniors dozing off in front of his PC post lunch....that was amusing but we could empathize.... .
To beat the drowsiness....splash some cold water on your face....then rub dry....settle down with a cup of strong coffee and you are ready to take on the world....
 
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I know someone who can fall asleep at the drop of a hat - he has a snooze most lunchtimes - certainly feel like a doze after lunch.
 
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Rosie, we seem to be in the same region. After Clicking your profile, i see u r in Netherlands. Looks like we have crossed paths many a time. Nice Coincidence.
Whats The Hague , BTW ?? I had always thought that its something like the International Court of Justice. Am i on a different path altogether ??
tintin
 
Rosie Vogel
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The Hague is a town. And a very beautiful one at that (of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder...). In Dutch we call it "Den Haag" but internationally it is known as The Hague. It is the seat of the Dutch governement. Also, our queen lives here, when she is not in one of her other ridiculously large mansions.
Your confusion is understandable because there is a large International Court of Justice here. I guess newspapers often say things like: "The Hague has reached a conclusion", making it sound as it were an organization, rather than a town.
 
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ersin> oh but she is over here and I do
 
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while i was in the Navy my job consisted of sitting in front of a computer screen for 7 or more hours at a time... watching for missile attack! of course, this was during the middle of the night, in an extremely dark room (blue lights), after 3 hours of sleep.
so, to stay awake i carried tooth-picks in my pocket (small pieces of wood used to remove food from your teeth, in case anyone does not know). when you start to drift off to sleep, take a tooth-pick, break it into 2 pieces. make each piece about half and inch to 3/4 of an inch long. stick one half just inside the lower and upper eyelid of your right eye, and then repeat for the left eye. this will guarantee you keep your eyes open... however, you still risk falling asleep. so, you must also drink extremely strong coffee (preferably 5 hours old).
if this method does not help you stay awake, feel free to post again and i will email what to do if nothing else works.
(i accept absolutely NO responsibility for injury, pain, loss of productivity, embarrassment, or ridicule that comes from attempting my anti-sleep method. do this at your own risk)
[This message has been edited by Greg Harris (edited June 26, 2001).]
 
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Greg, didn't you know Cindy's kids are reading this? How could you suggest such a dangerous gimmick. What if they try it during exam time? Don't be surprised if your post got deleted.
 
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Now that's friendly.
 
Anonymous
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Originally posted by ersin eser:
( i used to selectively date with Dutch girls )
thanks god my wife doesn't hang around @ JRanch


Just come home dear. I am waiting for you
 
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Originally posted by Greg Harris:

so, you must also drink extremely strong coffee (preferably 5 hours old).


Greg, don't forget the JP5 in the coffee too.

 
Eager Beaver
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stick one half just inside the lower and upper eyelid of your right eye, and then repeat for the left eye. this will guarantee you keep your eyes open


Greg, wouldn't that give you a feeling of being behind bars!
 
sajida kal
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glad to know that this is a common problem incidentally a few minutes after my post I found myself loaded with work. took some 'valuable' time off to review the helpful suggestions.
toothpicks are little too attention drawing otherwise it sounds good. I also try pinching myself discreetly but it doesnt help.
a pretty horrifying time i had was when some clients had arranged a requirement analysis session for their new system in the afternoon at 3 pm. I had just switched jobs and was getting up earlier as the commute to work had increased significantly. was also in between shifting houses. all of this coupled with the late nites at office found me in a horrendous situation. I literally nodded off in a closed door meeting comprising of 5 folks sitting around a round table. i couldnt even hide like people do when a seminar is going on in a big huge hall!
It wasnt even a case of disinterest; I really liked the work in the new job and felt upset about falling asleep. I remember desperately pinching myself under the table and shifting around. it was baaaaad.
nowadays if there is any important meeting in the afternoon,
i did strong coffee an hour before and keep my fingers crossed.

 
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Coffee is not the best solution- it helps for the moment but the more you use it the worse it works. Try drinking a large glass of water in between each cup of coffee- dehydration can make you sleepy, and going to the bathroom will at least get you moving.
Another trick is to use the stairs. Before a big meeting, go up enough stairs to make your breath huffy. That will get your circulation going and keep you alert for awhile.
In the late jurassic, when I was in school, I used to do pushups between chapters to keep awake. It works pretty well, and I won a few bets in bars by doing a quick fifty or so. There are a lot of benefits to this appoach, but it's best after lunch - you don't want to get sweaty too early in the day.
But if you are supposed to be contributing in a meeting and get to the point where your eyes won't focus, excuse yourself and go wash your face with cold water (after running up a flight of stairs!). It's more rude to waste everyone's time in a meeting than it is to leave for a minute. Don't think that people won't notice - show them that you know how to take care of a problem.
 
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I'm with Annie--if you're not being productive anyway, you're not really losing time if you take an hour and work out. Do some situps, jog around the block for a few miles, whatever. Plus, being in shape helps a lot if you come across any Dutch girls! (Or anyone of any appealing nature.)
And yes, I practice what I preach. Even better, my gym's on the second floor, right above the sex toy shop in Boulder (Fascinations).
 
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hey u all are great so many ideas on how to counter drowsiness at workplace.
lemme tell u this one incident. i had just returned from my cousin's wedding and for the last one week was almost without sleep, the family togather so much excitement and so much fun. anyways, next day i had meeting with a client, i was to escort my boss. we were to give a proposal for a project. The meeting was a drag and i was trying desperately to stay attentive, but finally gave up and to my horror i found my boss trying to wake me up fifteen minutes later. it was most embarrassing experience. even till today he jokes with about that incident. thank god we got the project later.
 
Badriprasad Bumbabol
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B Glad I was not the Client Or u wud have lost the project and your JOb

Originally posted by Aakanksha:
hey u all are great so many ideas on how to counter drowsiness at workplace.
lemme tell u this one incident. i had just returned from my cousin's wedding and for the last one week was almost without sleep, the family togather so much excitement and so much fun. anyways, next day i had meeting with a client, i was to escort my boss. we were to give a proposal for a project. The meeting was a drag and i was trying desperately to stay attentive, but finally gave up and to my horror i found my boss trying to wake me up fifteen minutes later. it was most embarrassing experience. even till today he jokes with about that incident. thank god we got the project later.


 
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