Friday 20 February 2009

OK own up, which one of you addicted bloggers did this...


The Daily Telegraph has reported the first ever case of someone using the Internet while asleep.
The 44-year-old woman had gone to bed at about 10pm, but got up two hours later, walked to the next room and sat down at her computer. She turned the machine on, connected to the Internet and successfully logged on with her user name and password, before composing three emails and sending them to friends. She only found out what she had done when one of them telephoned the next day to reply to the email and accept the invitation.

The emails themselves were perhaps not up to the woman’s waking standard; each was in a random mix of upper and lower case characters, badly formatted and containing odd expressions. One read: “Come tomorrow and sort this hell hole out. Dinner and drinks, 4.pm. Bring wine and caviar only.” Another said simply: “What the…”

Apparently its been dubbed ‘zzz-mailing’. So now we’ve all got an excuse if we hit the send button and then realise we just made a terrible mistake. We can pretend we were asleep. A legitimate defence.

I once shared a group house with a girl who sleep walked. She got out of bed one night, went to the fridge, ate some cheese, tomata sauce, gherkins and icecream (together, cringe) and then went back to bed. She had no recollection of anything. I’ve also heard of people cooking meals, driving cars, climbing bridges or murdering people while still asleep. I am also intrigued about the story of Welsh nurse Lee Hadwin, dubbed ‘Kipasso’, who does amazing paintings while asleep.

Do you know anyone who sleep walks? And what do they do?

Have a great weekend everyone! And if you happen to get a strange email in your inbox - it'll just be someone zzz-mailing you...

70 comments:

  1. Oh I am first for a change. My brother used to sleep walk but it got dangerous as he would open the door and walk down the street. He doesn't do it anymore though so I am not sure why it just stopped. I think its a fact that if people are taking drugs of some kind, (Ambien or something similar) that strange things can occur. That Welsh nurse is freaky - what fantastic art!

    Caviar and wine - what a cool party!

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  2. I used to sleep walk as a child. The woman doing the e-mails is weird. I do talk in my sleep. My girls say I will carry on a conversation with you if you start talking to me. They thought it was really funny when they were still teenagers at home. My sleepwalking just stopped, too, as I got older. Have a great weekend Lilly.

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  3. I dont know anyone who sleep walks. I would be petrified to do that...my biggest fear would be doing something wrong or funny and not knowing.

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  4. Have never sleepwalked,although I gather that I get a little talky sometimes.

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  5. hahahaha...LOVE it! Now...please don't tell anyone that it was ME! =D JUST kidding!!! :P

    Hope you have a good day.

    **hugs**

    PS..To answer your question about my artwork and getting copies...I posted my email in my blog. Just let me know! I'll be happy to do something special for you as a gift.

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  6. Morning Lilly, I had a cousin that would wake up and walk down the street when she was a little girl. Use to freak them out, they tried everything, eventually she did out grown it.
    I also had a friend you could talk to while they were sleeping. Good laugh cause a lot of time it just didn't make since.

    NOW, my sister will freak you out once she falls asleep. Her eyes open back up like she is looking at you..scary.

    The art work asleep is unreal. Marilyn's face in awesome. You can tell he always liked her to get that kind of detail.
    Thanks Lilly that was a cool post.

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  7. I don't know anyone who sleepwalks, but this is great news! I've got a list of folks who I can tell, "Sorry, I was sleep-e-mailing - please disregard the invitation, mean sentiment, typos, lack of humor, anything that doesn't make sense, or all of the above." Maybe I'll use that as the tag line after my name at the end of all my emails!

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  8. My sister, Jeanne used to sleepwalk. We had bunkbeds, and one night, very late I was climbing up into bed. The bed shook and it got Jeanne started. Jeanne got out of bed, opened the window, leaned out and in her loudest voice, yelled, "JOANIE!!!! DISHES!!!!" Of course, being the good sister that I am, sat in my bed,laughing and shaking the bed trying to get her to do more. Our older sister, Peggy, who had to get up at 5:30 for work was NOT amused.

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  9. Well, I guess my daughter is near as exciting. She'd only try to pee in her dresser drawers....

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  10. Too funny, Lilly! Loved the pic of the woman sleeping with zzz's on the computer. Very cute!

    I have just recently learned a bit about sleep walking because my neighbor, a firey, red-haired British woman who is one of my best friends, 70ish, and is well, a bit nuts, sleep walks!

    One night around the holidays, I happened to look out my living room window which faces our street and noticed someone walking in a trudgingly kind of manner - like almost dragging a leg or sumthin! Haphazardly, actually. It was pitch black and struck me as odd considering that is was very late in the evening. I returned to what we were doing, thinking "how strange" it seemed. Then SEVERAL minutes later, the doorbell rang. And there she was, in her robe and slippers, talking to me! I invited her in, realizing that the person in the street was her!!??? She sat with us and was talking. Sometimes appearing like she was nodding off and not totally there. Mart made her a stiff one, some crazy alcoholic concoction because our bar lacks variety and it was all we had! She kept tasting it, and although I'm sure it was awful, sipped it in a curious way, commenting that she liked it. I kept a close eye on her drink because she was loosely holding the glass and I was sure it was going to splatter everywhere! We leafed through a few photo albums and she politely & quietly nodded her head looking a bit dreamy, smiling the whole time. This was out of character, as she is VERY loud & VERY talkative! After our nice visit, I walked her home thinking, hmmm, maybe she had a few before she had arrived at our door! Well, the next day she called and said that she had absolutely no memory of our visit and asked me all kinds of questions about what we had discussed! "Oh Julie, I'm sooo sorry! I was sleep walking!" I told her that she was just fine and that we all had a blast with her!

    Fortunately, she had turned around and knocked at our door! That's my friend for ya ... :) She's done this since she was a little girl! I cannot imagine - I'm pretty certain that I'd get into huge trouble!!

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  11. What are you doing reading the Daily Telegraph Lilly!!

    I was just about to go to bed when I was alerted of this post....or maybe I am asleep and just found my way here, being the totally addicted blogger that I am.

    What will you think of next to post my friend, this was a real gem.

    Goodnight
    Peggy

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  12. Oh God, if that happens, somebody shoot me...

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  13. It is an interesting story. There was a similar story of a woman who sent her boss some inappropriate e-mails while she was sleeping a few weeks ago. Could happen. I have never been around anyone who sleep walks.

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  14. this was strange and funny... nope, i don't think i've been guilty of sleep walking but they said I do talk in my sleep sometimes=)

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  15. My baby use to sleep walk for a very short time. Now someone killing while they are asleep is totally scary.

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  16. I read this last night and thought it was kinda funny. It would take a lot to email in your sleep, I'd think. It would be interesting to be on the receiving end of an email like that.

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  17. Yes, my friend Sara who takes Ambien actually CUT HER HAIR and made an art doodle in her sleep and had no memory of it the next day. Here is her post about it...
    http://gitzengirl.blogspot.com/2008/09/just-say-no-to-drugs.html...

    Hmmm... first their was drunk dialing, and now zzz-mailing, what next?

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  18. LOL! This is too funny Lilly. I mean WOW!
    My son sleepwalks and goes in the fridge. And he is only 8.

    If I ever sleepwalk, I hope to be like the nurse who paints. I love painting.

    The zzzz-mailing sound intriguing. And a beautiful excuse to use. Hahaha

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  19. "What the" is right!!

    I'll bring the wine!

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  20. My nephew (24) was staying with us when this happened. He had warned us that he sleep walks, but does'nt do anything weird, so not to worry. A few days later my 2daughters were home from their dorm, and used to keep up late nights. Since they were on vacation, I had instructed my cook to bring fresh bread every evening so there was enough fresh bread every morning. But to my surprise, he forgot every day, and daily we were short of bread for breakfast. He would just say "i did buy bread'. One evening I bought bread myself and still there was not enough bread in the morning. When I asked my daughter if she had it during night, she said 'No but Sherry (my nephew) had'. Sherry denied very casually. Then my daughter narrated that she was reading a book well into the night, and my nephew woke up at about 2.00 am, walked up to her and said without blinking an eyelid..." I am going down to the kitchen for some bread, butter jam. do you want some..?" she said 'no thank you' and he went, had a couple or more, returned to his room and was fast asleep. Completely unaware of what he ate, talked or did.
    The mystery of the missing bread was thus solved. my nephew is now 35 and lives in London, hopefully cured of the sleep walk.

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  21. I have never done any sleep walking, Lilly.

    Wasn't me :)

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  22. I don't sleepwalk, but I do talk in my sleep. Its something I thought I did in childhood only.

    But when I was in Thailand living in a bamboo hut for five weeks last year (sharing with a friend) - she would regale me with stories of my nightly chattering... a grown woman and a night time blabber mouth! ;)

    Sometimes, its possible to have a conversation with me whilst I'm asleep and talking. What fun, eh?

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  23. I don't know about sleepwalking, but i wrote the book on sleeptalking, or should i say read the book? i can't hide anything, or keep a secret. if you ask, any i'm asleep, i'll answer. the only problem is that most of the time the answers are half reality half dream, but it can be rather entertaining, or so my mother said, and other friends that heard me.
    i have been a bit lazy with blogging the last weeks! glad to be back!

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  24. I used to sleep walk. I've even got up and been trying to record music. I've been walking around humming, playing the piano, talking to people, etc. Fully aware of what I'm doing or dreaming BUT forgetting that I'm asleep. Although I've not done any sleep walking in several years. It seems to have stopped. But I still lucid dream, create art projects, compose music and solve problems and talk with dead relatives, and other things all in my sleep. I have a whole night life. :) :)

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  25. Two words: George Bush

    Seriously though, when my father had been prescribed Ambien, at 80, he did sleepwalk. He was frail but yet he got out of bed and walked into the bathroom to shave. My mother had the prescription cut off immediately. Before he cut himself or fell.

    Regarding that gal, though, she seemed pretty efficient. Even in her sleep! :)

    Peace - Rene

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  26. my two youngest sleep walk from time to time. They look wide awake, come out of their rooms crying profusely, swatting at "nothing", but to them, it is definitely something.

    It's terrifying. It usually happened while we were remodeling the kitchen, and the power tools were going. Now it happens very infrequently.

    I hope it stops all together.

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  27. Thanks for the terrific post!

    I got a much needed laugh!!!
    :-)

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  28. Hi Lilly :) I've heard that this is becoming a common occurence now. How scary and embarrasing. I bet e-mailing in your sleep some pretty weird things come out.
    I know a girl who says she sleep walks and eats...not a good combo.
    Have a Happy Day!

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  29. That's funny! I wish my hubby would send emails in his sleep rather than dreaming he is in a battle for his life. I woke up a couple of weeks ago to him kneeing me over and over again in his sleep! He thought he was saving me from the bad guys. Thank goodness there was a mound of blankets between us... it made me nervous to sleep beside him for a week after!

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  30. My best friend from elementary school used to sleepwalk every night. Her parents eventually had to lock her in her room.

    A few times a month she would call my home phone in the middle of the night and carry on a conversation with my mom. Thankfully they thought it was hilarious and had witnessed Kristi's sleepwalking plenty of times when she spent the night at my house. I am amazing that she could recall and dial my phone number even sleeping. It kinda freaks me out.

    Thankfully nobody in this house sleepwalks.

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  31. this is absolutely interesting.

    yeah..guilty!

    smiles,

    Silver
    from One Day at a Time

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  32. It's amazing you can go downstairs and have a meal while sleepwalking! Juls story is funny. I did hear that people don't usually hurt themselves, if you don't interrupt.

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  33. I can't sey I'm ever done anythin lik tha zzzzzzzz...

    ;)

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  34. With the week I have had, I am surprised it wasn't me! Or maybe it was...

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  35. When my cousin Lori was small she would sleep walk...they would find her the next morning out in the sandbox. Sometimes she would walk down the street and end up in a neighbors yard. It was really scary for my Aunt and Uncle. They tried all sorts of things to keep her in her room...and finally resorted to blocking her door and window so she couldn't get out at night. As she got older the episodes seemed to mostly stop. I just remember how scared they always were at night. My little girl Lacey used to get up and stare out her bedroom window. We'd find her some nights asleep but standing at the window...and her little arms and legs were so cold you could tell she'd been up for a long time. It used to creep me out wondering what she was looking at. My brother didnt' sleepwalk..but he sure talked in his sleep...some of the stuff was so dang funny! His favorite was spelling his name over and over for hours. It used to crack us up on camping trips!

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  36. Oh everyone has great stories to tell and isnt it a fascinating topic. JULS story was particularly scary because what if that lady had not ended up at her house. people are very vulnerable arent they? My sister used to have long involved conversations while she was asleep. It used to highly amuse the rest of us but looking back I think it was kind of mean to engage her in it. She outgrew it or I think she has. As for the zzz-mailing well I might just try that now there is something official I can blame it on. First one is my boss...

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  37. I don't know. Sometimes I think I spend even my WAKING moments fast asleep. Is this possible? Because if it is, I'm going to blame my bad behavior on it.

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  38. LILLY
    I'm a bit hassled about this. Sleeping is my respite from cumputers and now?
    Sleepwalking - yes, I remember my son walking around the house one night (as a child) - second story bedroom with a balcony. I guided him back to bed and hope that was the end of that. Luckily, it was.
    June also in Oz

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  39. Must be quite frightening for people, or the ones trying to look after them. I only saw this Jay Leno quote the other day about an Australian woman actually -
    its a true story and is rather horrible despite Leno's joke.

    "In Australia a doctor has discovered a female patient whose sleepwalking causes her to go out and have sex with total strangers while she’s asleep. ... They could have diagnosed this years ago, but no guys ever complained."
    -- Jay Leno

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  40. Last time i did the 40 hour famine with a group of friends one of them broke it in her sleep. she got up late at night, walked in to the kitchen, grabbed a spoon and a tin of milo, went back to bed and began eating it. she woke up the next morning to find her bed full of milo.
    i also had a roommate who would sleep walk. she used to come into my room and say random things, such as "does anyone have any fish in their rooms?". then she'd go back to bed.

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  41. I sleep walk. I've also been known to talk in my sleep. :-(

    I have written the story around the last time I walked in my sleep but have not posted it yet. Let's just say that I was not in Minneapolis at the time but instead was at a hotel in Philadelphia... Weird stuff, and VERY confusing!
    Pearl

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  42. I don't think the world could handle the thoughts that I have in my sleep.

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  43. Crikey mate.

    And I totally identify with the one about your kids being GOD AWFUL and chucking tanties when out.

    Alessandro did one once in the Hyperdome outside Sussans. I didn't take him to the mall again for a whole year. Um, I couldn't go back to the mall for months.

    There's more to this story but I can't post it on the Internet.

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  44. LOL! what a story! what a post! I've never heard of anyone being able to type up emails or create such fantastic art all whilst sleeping. Sounds fishy to me. but, i know people do strange thins when "sleeping." i don't even see how they can see and acknowledge the world around them and yet not really know what they are doing. Weird. i have to say i am glad i don;t do it or know anyone who does. It would freak me out.

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  45. That is a weird story -- as much as I sit at this computer it's a wonder I'm not doing it myself! Have a great weekend!

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  46. That is too funny! Goodness, good thing she wasn't dreaming of her boss that she hates or something!

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  47. Oh, my, Lillyness, I've never heard of zzzzmailing! What next? lol I don't think I know of anyone who sleep walks. But this sort of thing could get scary!!
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia ;)

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  48. It was me, it was me. It's all true.

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  49. That is HILARIOUS. i'm actually surprised i don't do it.
    i love your blog...came through Katie's blog.
    stop by my blog for an awesome giveaway.
    happy weekend!

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  50. Amazing!

    I can understand how it happens nowadays. What else is there to do when you're up in the middle of the night but check e-mail and get online? Not sure about doing it while still asleep though!

    Take care and cheers from Sydney.

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  51. Oh my, what fantastic comments everyone! There are some amazing stories of sleepwalking sagas. Its really scary actually because people who sleep walk are very vulnerable to things going wrong too. Its made me think that I need to find out more about the condition and its causes etc. Thanks again for your comments. I have decided to go to each of your blogs and reply to each of you. That might be a better way to do it. Oh and that comment about the Aussie woman having sex with strangers whilst sleepwalking made me feel ill - oh dear.

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  52. My son sleep walks and talks with his eyes wide open. He has rearranged his furniture in his sleep (moving fully loaded bookshelves..how?), taken artwork off the walls, unscrewed light bulbs, told preposterous stories which seemed perfectly logical (to him) at the time. He has leapt over his wife, out of the bed and stood yelling at invisible intruders, ready to protect her and nearly scared her to death in doing so!
    Once when a friend was over he woke him at 3 am and insisted the friend get out of bed (it took a lot of insisting!) and go to the computer room and log in the computer because "it was REALLY important!!", after which my son went back to bed and left his ticked off friend wondering what the heck happened.
    Once he woke up yelling some weird German sounding words which his wife recorded and they looked up the next day and found they really were German! (He is a strict anglophile). He blames that on watching too many episodes of "Band of Brothers".
    He does always stay in the house, so that's good. The subconscious is a strange thing!

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  53. I sleep walk! I've run around the house in circles, climbed in the bathtub, fell asleep on the kitchen floor, stood over my college roomate staring down at her...

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  54. Wow - if only I could produce works of art like Kipasso!

    My kids have been known to sleepwalk - well, run all over the second floor. And even try and pee in the corner of different rooms...

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  55. My mother used to have her eyes open and have full conversations with me when I would come home from a date.

    The next morning, she would confront me on coming home late. When I would tell her, no, we had conversation, she would accuse me of lying.

    It was quite irritating, to say the least, until we figured out what she was doing.

    Then it became a useful tool ;)

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  56. When my middle sister was a child she did sleep walk .. one evening after dusk she got up, walked out of the house and down the street in the small town we lived in. Luckily my parents realized and walked her back .. but very unnerving to say the least. From the comments you are receiving it doesn't sound all that unusual. I am going to use the 'sleep' excuse the next time I send something really stupid to someone!

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  57. my kids swear up and down that over the years I would sit up in bed and say"is Elvis still dead?"...someone would assure me that yes he was, and I'd lay back down..

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  58. Don't know about zzz-mailing, but I do all my blogging post-midnight, when the rest of the family are blissfully zzz-ing.

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  59. I did know somebody who sleep walked. He said that when he was a child at home, his parents would just speak calmly to him and point him back to bed. Thank goodness he didn't drive or anything. It sounds scary.

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  60. my daughter had been known to sleep walk a few times. The most memorable was once while traveling and she stumbled out from the hotel room and was locked out in the hallway. We think she was trying to get to the bathroom and grabbed the wrong door.

    I learned years afterwards that my mother had asked me questions while I was asleep to which I answered. Good thing I didn't do anything too bad that I told her about.

    A question about your page - what's with the tattooed lady in the thought for the day?

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  61. Hey thanks for the info. I definitely have those days when I need to use this excuse!

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  62. Kel used to sleepwalk all the time. Not sure if she still does. One time she at Grandmothers, she went out in the back yard, heading for the garage. We don't know why, but eventually she turned around and came back to the house. The problem was the door was one that you could open from the inside when it was locked. So she ended up being locked out in the back yard asleep. The funny part, is she slept in her birthday suit all the time. It was also the day the garbage man made his rounds.

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  63. Hi Lilly...hope you are having a good weekend!! :) *hugs*

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  64. I don't know anybody who sleepwalks nor do I sleepwalk...although I'm often too tired to make sense when I blog/email so I've sent off some nonsensical stuff before. Funny story...

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  65. Hi Lilly.....I used to sleep walk when i was younger. One night, my mom, from what she tells me, I got up at about 4am walked past her bedroom in my jams,went downstairs put on my coat,no boots..oh by the way it was winter and left the house...she said she tried to turn me around but no go...so then came my dad who threw me over his shoulder and put me back to bed.

    Well the next day, she told me this and my first reaction was what are you off your meds mom..well she wasn't to impressed with that. For the next few weeks they would lock my bedroom door so I wouldn't get out hahahaha funny I'm out now. It's strange to sleep walk and not know what the hell your up to...maybe I'll rob a bank and blame it on sleep walking what do you think?

    Huggs
    JB

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  66. Oh there are some horrible stories here. People could really hurt themselves. As for Eric's story I hope his sister decided to wear PJs after that, ha ha. I didn't think it was so common but it is really common. I am so glad my brother stopped. I wonder how many accidents there are because of sleepwalking. Interesting comments, really interesting.

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  67. My husband used to sleep walk. He said as a teen he told his friend to beware that he slept walked and sometimes would try to knife someone (he made that part up).Then that night for a joke he pretended he was sleepwalking and scared his friend.

    He has only done it once that I know of, since we have been together. He kept walking around the house banging stuff and I woke up and asked him what he was doing and he said "Don't worry about it" The next day he had no idea what I was talking about.

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  68. Hi Lilly,
    I used to have a room mate who sleep walks. One time I was watching a movie late at night and my room mate came out of her room, got the ironing board from the closet, set it up, and then started ironing. I knew she was sleep walking because when I spoke to her, she didn't reply. She's a very bubbly person who says hello and smiles first thing she sees you for the day. That night, she was very robotic in her movements. When she finished, she put everything away and then went back to sleep. When I mentioned it in the morning, she didn't remember waking up and ironing. I was creeped out.

    Tasha

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  69. Oh my more creepy stories. Its incredible what people can do while asleep. Thanks for your comments.

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Thanks for your comments.