The darkness outside is making it more and more difficult to wake up early. My body clock desperately craves hibernation and my pesky mind wants to force my ass out of bed. To appease both body and brain, I have allowed myself to sleep a wee longer and now rip myself from cozy sheets at 5:50 or 6:00. In NE Portland, at this hour, the moon looms above, stars spatter the sky, my breath churns out milky fog, kitty cats wrestle, and potentially dangerous men lurk in giant bushes. It's a relief that I am now officially a certified mongoose warrior.