womp

I find myself semi-conscious and decide to attempt a FILD. Almost immediately I hear the crackling noise from my last SP experience. The crackling intensifies as I move my fingers faster, and I decide to attempt an OBE. This fails and I decide to try to visualize a new dream instead. However, this too fails and I find myself awake. In my childhood bedroom. My friend T is trapped in a glass box on the floor and is screaming and beating on the side.

I realize the FILD worked after all, but I'm still scared. I leap out of the bed, screaming "I'm having a lucid dream!" I trip over something and find myself in the void.

I decide to try a trick I picked up from CanisLucidus's dream journals and imagine swinging a sword around in one arm. I begin to hear shouts and clashing steel and wonder if I'm going to end up in the Coliseum. I'm not sure if I'm ready for something like that, and soon I end up right back in the hallway outside my childhood bedroom.

I realize I'd better stabilize and start looking at my hands. I feel stability slipping away, and since my last three stabilization attempts lead to early awakenings, I decide to just skip it and go for my lucid goal: eating a Krispy Kreme burger and drinking an IPA.

I fly (perhaps literally) down the stairs, briefly marveling at their similarity to the real ones. I decide the burger won't be in the fridge, since I don't want to microwave it. Rather, I think to myself, "that's right, my parents said they'd leave it for me on the piano bench." I go into the living room, and sure enough, there's a greasy white bag with "Krispy Kreme" written on it. I pick it up and it feels pleasantly warm.

I consider taking a bite right there, but I want that beer to wash it down. I go into the kitchen, expecting it to be in the fridge. But there's no beer there. I try to make my expectation more specific: "OK, there's a Flying Dog IPA right in the ice tray in the freezer..." I open the freezer door, and the beer is right where I thought it would be. I take it out and wake up.

Not trying to stabilize seemed to help prolong the dream here, although I got the impression that the dream wasn't particularly vivid. I wonder if I'm doing my stabilizations wrong: perhaps focusing too intently? Anybody have any ideas about what to do differently?

Color legend: Non-dream Dream Lucid

I have a long, meandering dream which ends with me being shot. As everything fades to black, I think with some frustration, "I hope my next dream is better." I become lucid.

I'm in a supermarket. I shout out "I'm lucid!" and start running down the aisle. I slap a 12-year-old kid in the back of the head for no reason, then slow down. I know if I get too excited, I'll lose lucidity. I look behind me and maybe apologize, but the kid doesn't bother me.

I try the "hand examination" method of dream stabilization and look at my hands. They're a mess. Three fingers on one hand, the other has fingers blinking in and out of existence. I keep focusing, trying to will them to become normal, but it doesn't happen. Soon, the dream fades to black. (Unsure if this was part of the same dream or an exit, or if it matters).

I find myself in the void and attempt to spin out of it. I spin slowly at first but nothing happens, so I decide to spin faster. I find myself in the kitchen of my childhood home, where the original long dream started. In the dream, I label this as a false awakening and think, "this makes sense because I tried to WILD from here."

I look at my hands again to stabilize. They're still a wreck but may look a little better. However, they're not returning to normal and I fear the dream will end soon.

Out of the corner of my eye I see a fish statue I recognize from my house, except here it's painted bright red. I decide to throw it through the family room window. I first do a nose-pinch RC to ensure I'm dreaming, and I am. I head towards the fish and wake up.

Color legend: Non-dream Dream Lucid