KonchogTashi

I woke up a 4, struggled with recall, got nothing. I got up for about 5 minutes, did some state tests and set my intent to recognize my next dream. I went back to bed and practiced MILD. I tossed and turned for what seemed like a very long time. I checked my phone and the time was 4:58. I realized I still had an hour to sleep so I rolled over and tried to get to sleep. Almost immediately i felt the "sleep onset body buzz" and started to see some mild HI, mostly lights and simple patterns. The dream follows:

i am at a run down strip mall. most of the storefronts are abandoned and on my left. there is an ice cream shop at the far end of the stores. i am on my bike riding slowly. i see a woman who i think i know (middle school girlfriend all grown up?) drive by as a passenger in a silver sedan. i keep riding and ahead i notice the silver car drive off, the woman is not in it. the driver is an overweight man with round glasses, wearing a faded red tshirt. i ride past the ice cream shop and see the woman seated at a little round cement table at the end of the row of stores. i ride past her and make a little left turn , headed up a concrete switchback ramp. The ramp looks like it would lead up to a second level of the strip mall. I see the first turn in the switchback and know that i am dreaming. "im dreaming, im dreaming." i say i decide to ride into the wall, everything gets bright and clear, very defined, i wake up.

I rolled over and checked my phone, it was now 5:05. The interval between falling asleep and recognizing the dream was probably about 3 minutes! Unfortunately the dream was very short.