Manufacturing intent: an "appointment with lucidity"
So I tried a different approach last night: working on "unbending intent." Creating in my mind an unshakable, absolutely overwhelming intent, utter confidence, that I would have a lucid dream. In particular, that I would have a lucid dream at 5am.
I went to bed later than I wanted, but at some point during the night, I woke with no recall and was bummed at first, but I quickly checked the level of darkness in the room and decided there was a lot more night left and drifted off back to sleep.
I then woke from a long, vivid, present, "bright", half-nightmare, semi-epic great dream. So packed with dream-signs that it's about as close to lucidity one can get without being lucid. I spent several minutes reviewing it for recording, then reached for my phone to record the main details, and noticed the time: 5:08am (cue the sound track to the Twilight Zone)!!!!!
Took me about an hour to calm down enough to fall asleep again, which I did, and continued to dream, but not like the previous dream.
I think there is something significant in this notion that "I have an appointment with lucidity" during the night, a very important appointment, one that I should be looking out for. Utter, complete confidence that I will remember to recognize the dream state.
I think this is just another way of wording Memm's notion that "the night is for (lucid) dreaming."
It bears more serious experimentation.