The term long distance relationship is rather vague. I hear some people complaining about walking ten blocks or suggesting an item on the floor is too far away to pick up. So, for them, to date another person on the other side of the world would be completely out of the question.

Long distance relationships take a lot more work than your average “see each other often and smell each other’s farts” partnership. You can’t just bump into each other accidentally or claim the fight you had over money counts as a date because you were at a fancy restaurant. Like all relationships, a little bit of sacrifice is needed. Specifically, you should prepare to lose some sleep.

When Jenny lived in the Philippines we were always 12 or 13 hours apart depending on the time of the year. The Philippines doesn’t acknowledge Daylight Savings Time because unlike the United States, they have sense to move on from dated methodologies that no longer have any purpose.

A 12 hour difference is easy because whenever it’s 7 o’clock in the US I know it’s also 7 o’clock in the Philippines. It’s also a little easier to manage even if it means one of us is going to bed shortly after the other wakes up.

I’m not sure if I ever give Jenny enough credit for all of the sleep she lost giving me attention over the three years we spent together while apart. On my Saturdays, she’d wake up between 3-4AM to Skype because it was the only time her Internet would cooperate. On weekdays, she’d wake up a little earlier to greet me when I came home from work. I never really had the chance to return the favor although I did make her green tea tonight which should at least give me a few points.

Sleep is one of those things I value a lot. Only a few years ago, my body required 9 hours of it a night in order to properly not kill someone. Now, I’m able to do so with less than 7 hours of shut eye.

I’m not sure how Jenny could do it. She’s a napper and would grab some sleep when I’d go to bed on my Friday nights (about her noon or 1PM). Then she’d go back to sleep again around midnight for a few hours before our Skype dates.

Sacrifices like these are what I think make a relationship work. Without Jenny’s willingness to skip out on sleep sometimes, we wouldn’t have had nearly as much time together.

Also, after not blogging much in May, Jenny and I plan to get back on a regular schedule this month. We’re also hoping to make more lovely videos like this one.