This is a nice, elegant, old British expression used when you want to express your immense surprise. I like it quite a bit!
In this case I am using it in the very most direct way an American would use it when in need to express immense lack of power and energy. Lately, I think my body is failing to work in a 24 hours cycle. I wake up around 8 as I can't push it any longer to be in bed. I wake up but I am very tired, sleepy and almost sleep walking. Leave house around 9 and by then I have done enough activity to justify when I say "I'm tired". I spent 40 minutes on a very busy highway. I know all the speed-pockets of that road by now and like a robot I know which lane I should move to in a specific part of the road. Get to the parking lot and speak some Italian with an African guy that takes care of the parking lot when it's full. He has been in Italy for 4 years. Since I do leave him my car key when the parking is full, he has noticed that I listen Italian songs when I drive and he thinks I'm Italian. One day I broke the news to him and told him I was not. I could have knocked him down with a feather! Anyway, now he finds interesting things about my country to talk every morning! I think we have a connection!
So I arrive at work at 10, right on time for most of the meetings my boss attends as well, so he doesn't know I JUST arrived! All the day I keep yawning, drink tea and sometimes Coke (who knows me knows that I can't drink coffee). It s just brutal to be all day like that! And then I come home, prepare supper, put the kid to bed, it's almost 9 pm. At this time, I am fully awake, I have energy.. I just wish is morning. The problem is that I am not able to sleep at that time so I can cover for that sleep I didn't get in the morning. I find interesting things to watch on TV, I read boring documents from the project I am working on, and still can't feel asleep. Finally, around 2-3 in the morning, I fall asleep. And that means, I have only 5-6 hours to sleep until I wake up again! With this rhythm, I am very happy Canada's day is this weekend and I get 3 days to sleep longer in the morning. Happy Canada's day!
