I can't sleep if the closet door is open.

When I was a kid, I was afraid of the dark.

I was afraid of what was under my bed at night.

I was afraid to go into the attic, the cellar or basically any dark room that didn't have the option of light. I'm not talking about a flashlight, either. I'm talking about a bonafide 100 Watt bulb that lit up every crevice of the room.

When I was a kid, I used to convince my mom to leave the hall light on because "sometimes I get up and go to the bathroom." I think she knew the real reason. At least one of them.

The hall light served two purposes. The first is the obvious - it kept away the creatures that inhabited the dark. The second was I had positioned my bed so I could read by the hall light. And I usually read Stephen King, Dean Koontz or some other scary author. I'm sure this didn't do anything to assuage my fear.

Nowadays, I can't sleep if there's light. I have dark blinds (that need to be darker) and I shut my bedroom door for maximum darkness. I don't remember when I grew out of my fear (I guess these things just happen as you get older), but I can't even sleep if the TV is on. The dark is no longer an enemy.

But, for whatever reason, I do not sleep well if the closet door is left open. It's not that I'm scared, I just toss and turn. And nine times out of ten, if I wake in the middle of the night because I can't sleep soundly, I always notice that the closet door is open. However, once I shut it, I'm sleeping like a baby.

Now, you would think I would know well enough to shut the closet door before I go to sleep, so I won't be awakened.

That's the problem.

I do.