In week seven, we’re collectively staring down a barrel of seemingly interminable assignments, deadlines and other miscellaneous obligations. We have midterms to cram for, innumerable distractions to tear us away from them and 24 hours a day to fully acquaint ourselves with the Knight Library.
Sometimes we drink espresso in the p.m. hours; sometimes we don’t go to sleep until the sun rises.
When you’re counting sheep and have already drunk a mug of chamomile tea, you might feel like all hope for slumber is lost. Fear not, we at the Emerald have handpicked failsafe ways to doze off, anytime, anywhere.
The sound of rain
The knowledge that it’s cold and drizzling outside while you’re warm and dry inside will instantly make you want to fall asleep. Just think of the rain falling into the grass and the trees and when you wake up they’ll be bright and green. The rain always makes it easy to drift off into dreamland while you listen to it pitter-patter on the roof or against your window. It doesn’t even matter what time of day it is, rain will always set a comfy mood. And if it’s not raining, just go to rainymood.com and fall asleep to fake rain. But, lucky, you’re in Oregon, and if it’s raining for real, then you have the perfect setting for a long, soothing nap.
– Alex Ruby
Anything by Hans Zimmer or Michael Giacchino
Zimmer (Interstellar, Inception) and Giacchino (Pixar’s Inside Out, Up) are masters of film scores. The music they make always starts quiet and delicate and then builds to a beautiful scene that you can perfectly imagine in your head. Plus, the songs typically range from 5-10 minutes long, so just pick a movie soundtrack and let the soothing instrumental music color your dreams.
– Jordyn Brown
Animated movies from your childhood
Fall asleep to the familiar sounds that shaped your childhood and transport yourself to a time when the concepts of paying rent and finishing essays had yet to enter your vocabulary. Beyond having sentimental value and the power to bring you to a bygone time, movies catered primarily to children carry a certain innocence. They aren’t frightening, shocking or vulgar, at least to an adult mind. Some of the best examples of this are old Disney movies, primarily for their righteous protagonists, invariably happy endings and saccharine scores. So use your desire for a restful sleep as an excuse to re-watch movies like Lady and the Tramp, Mary Poppins or the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
– Anna Lieberman
Grateful Dead live shows
The Dead are among those few bands that have played the record-setting live sets, and there’s something soothing about listening to the endless jams at a six-hour Dead show.
So spend your final waking moments with the Dead. Since Jerry Garcia’s passing, the Dead has employed other musicians as footholds, such as Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio (in this past summer’s Fare Thee Well tour) or John Mayer (the currently touring “Dead & Company”).
Save your money on the Madison Square Garden tickets and the shroom-infused chocolates. Rather than counting sheep, curl up under your sheets, watch a Dead & Company live stream on YouTube and try to tell apart the Mayer moms from the Dead moms (hint: Dead moms need a wide perimeter for dancing).
Absorb the groovy, unobjectionable ad-libbing in the lengthy intros and try to guess whether they’re playing “Jack Straw” or “Scarlet Begonias.” Once you’re in a daze, the jams seem to transcend space and time; you might as well be attending a Dead show in the clouds.
– Emerson Malone
The album Pop by Gas
Pop is almost overwhelming for the first four or five seconds. Track one comes rushing out of the darkness, a living, breathing tangle of sound. It’s so instantly evocative yet implaceable it’s almost a mental overload; these are not sounds common in ambient or any other form of music. Its loops pulsate and breathe. A pneumatic little drum rattle, reminiscent of a stove heating up, snakes around the sonic field. Hearing Pop for the first time is the same shock as feeling your plane take off or feeling the first effects of a new drug.
Luckily, it doesn’t take very long to get accustomed to Pop, and once the initial jolt of hearing these strange sounds in combination subsides, the rest of the album’s a plushy ride. If you’re tired, you’ll likely fall asleep during track two (all the tracks are untitled), which is essentially a longer and slightly darker remix of track one. If you’re not sleepy, Pop is luckily interesting enough for a focused listen — an endlessly positive universe you can travel to any time. And it’s always fun to visit, whether you’re falling asleep or just walking around in the rain.
– Daniel Bromfield
Stacy Yurishcheva/Daily Emerald