if consciousness was a ocean and the person a boat,
thoughts and impulses must be something like waves.
In this case, the act of sleeping would be merely to cast the bow parallel to the waves, presenting the side to the waves, letting them roil the hull lightly, gently, subsuming one under the waves.
Before docking with the International Space Station, the Space Shuttle conducts a "backflip" maneuver in front of the space station. This maneuver is, uhm, a backflip, something like a somersault, so that another guy at a window in the space station can check the underside of the Shuttle for any damage.
I'm feeling awfully consumerist lately.
