When under the influence of alcohol, sparks of genius can be found. At the time, they definitely feel like being struck by the muse.
This post is about my friend Russell. (Hi, I know you’re reading this!)
You see, he’s a Duracell bunny kind of person. He’s the kind of person who attends all his lectures, goes out and hits the town ’til stupid ‘o’ clock and still gets all his work done. Did I mention he’s a member of several societies too?
And on this particular night, we were in the pub and I asked him how on Earth he does it. He sounds superhuman when you’re sober – after a few drinks I felt like I was in the presence of something great.
So he tells me, “I like to call it ‘The Russell Principle’. Sleep one day, live the rest.”
And that is what he does. I believe his day of choice for hibernating is Saturday (although he sometimes stretches into Sunday). For the rest of the week, he’s ruthlessly energetic and up for anything. I believe he tends to use the word ‘awesome’ to describe his life and his general mode of being.
He is impossible. I definitely couldn’t follow his example, I’d die. But then, that’s hardly surprising. I’m a writer. A writer who is inspired by the work of Neil Gaiman. And he did say:
“As far as I’m concerned, the entire reason for becoming a writer is not having to get up in the morning.”
Oh… a final note of caution to the reader. Please don’t try this at home – the Russell Principle has so far only been proved to work for Russell. As for us mere mortals… well, studies have shown that lack of sleep can kill more quickly than lack of water. Just thought I’d warn you.
Quintconsequential. 