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Finally some decent recall, although still somewhat disturbed by loud construction, and likely poor sleeping habits too. These notes took up an entire A4 page, which is the largest dream recall effort since restarting

Awake|Dreaming|Lucid

As far back as I could recall, I was starting off in my living room at home, standing on the stairs and watching an embarrassing clip of a speech or performance from my old school days. I got off the stairs and decided to play with my dog on the sofa and carpet for a little while. Eventually, I found myself at the beach on another organized trip with Nat, from a previous dream. I saw the entire area from a birds eye view, and instead of the usual stony beaches of Brighton, it was a cartoonishly bright yellow beach, with a lush cyan ocean. There were large, old, stone-grey buildings inland. I hung out with Nat for a while, but I can't remember exactly what we did together.

Before I knew it, I ended up in an apartment I apparently owned, which was located on my Grandmother's road, but somehow within reach of Brighton Beach. The apartment was a little messy, as if it had just been sold with all the furniture untouched, and it was quite dark and gloomy inside. Instead of being with Nat at this point, I was with an old school friend named Tom. I found a wild boar in the kitchen, with its head stuck in a wooden board that was painted as a gnome, with its a hole cut-out where its face would go, like something you'd find at an amusement park. I informed Tom that the boar needed help being freed, and he came to assist me. He tried yanking the boar's head out, but I suggested we try pulling it from its body instead, as it would fit through the hole much more easily. We slipped the boar out, and it bit me as it frantically escaped and began charging around the kitchen in panic. I came up with the idea to open all doors leading from the kitchen to the front door, so that it had a path to escape, but it didn't seem to work. I headed outside, where I found myself at the entrance to the large, stone-grey buildings I had seen from a bird's eye view, and forgot about the boar, waiting with Tom for Nat to text me back about meeting up. She didn't reply, so I headed out to find somewhere to eat, which was conveniently next to the building complex. I headed between a red and white circus tent on the beach, and the building I had just left, up a wide avenue that eventually connected to an equally wide building. Inside was a long stretch of red and gold carpet, with a counter at the end run by one male and one female staff members. Instead of ordering food, which seemed to be a buffet of some sorts, I headed back out to the main square by the building complex, and called Nat, who didn't pick up.

I headed to a supermarket called Asda, to pick up an insulin shot for my dog (or perhaps the boar?), which began a stressful journey to safely deliver the exposed and delicate syringe, I saw the exact same bird's eye view from earlier, and then found myself in a classroom when it faded. I noticed Tony, a famous advertiser from a Chinese company named LC Sign, getting bullied by a nerd named Matt, who was a classmate of mine alongside Tom many years ago. Matt had said something that really upset Tony, who was now flailing and on the verge of tears. After seeing this, I approached Matt from behind and pushed him down to his chair, and then furiously threatened to rip his head off. He didn't seem to acknowledge my presence, so I left the classroom and landed back at the main square by the beach. I got on to a bike and continued my stressful quest to deliver the exposed syringe, which seemed to be located at the buffet from earlier. I cycled down the long avenue, across the red carpet and dismounted at the counter where the same two staff members began to get agitated that I wasn't buying anything. The female worker, who was fairly young and wearing glasses, demanded that I pay £100 for wasting time. The male worker, who was a little older, stepped in to defend me and dismiss the accusations.

I left the buffet for a second time, and found myself in the square yet again. This time, Nat actually responded to me and I met up with her outside the science block of my old school, where I showed her a video that broke down the design of the building my apartment was located in. It showed a long, narrow strip of rooms connected, and mine was at the end. The male narrator informed us that my room was called "Warren House", and a 3D render of the narrow strip of rooms was animated as it broke it down to explain. The dream then ended with a third and final bird's eye view of the area, exactly the same as the prior two

Considering how terrible my recall situation has been, this was a very solid entry for once. I'm very happy with how many details I remember, even 7 hours after scribbling the notes. I'm excited to see what my dreams are like tomorrow morning

Recurring elements:
-Nat, second time she has been featured
-School, marking the fourth dream out of five this week
-Family, home. This would be the third(?) dream out of five
-Travel, the second dream travelling with Nat in particular

Notes:
-Slept at 2am, woke up at 10am
-Recall was initially a challenge, but managed to piece together a lot in 30 minutes
-I wouldn't say the dreams were vivid, despite good recall

First of all, what an insane title for this dream. Neighbours continue to do construction exactly at the time I start trying to recall and connect dream fragments...

Awake|Dreaming|Lucid

I find myself as school, yet again, but it's much bigger and almost maze-like due to the sheer amount of small buildings around the pathways connecting them. I was in a science class with old friends, messing around and being terrible students. We decided we would go on a trip, but my company shifted into one girl, nicknamed Nat. Her and I's plan was to travel to a random city for fun, something we've been planning to do IRL. I can't recall what we did, but on the way back we panicked about time and money. We stopped off at a small Cafe for some food, but it was now me and my aunt, as well as others I couldn't identify. I left and re-entered this Cafe as well as repeating a food order for some reason. After leaving, I found myself in a jungle with the school friends mentioned before. One friend asked me to find him a porn video, which I found, but somehow couldn't share the link with him. I felt very uninterested in doing so anyway. As the jungle trek continued, over a large log connecting two cliff faces, I found myself with yet again new company, this time Katie Price (a British celebrity) and her disabled son Harvey. We found an outdoor cinema built into a jungle opening, which extended down many layers. Harvey was fascinated by this cinema, but we really had to leave. It was a challenge convincing him to go, but succeeded anyway. We now arrived at my dad's house, where Harvey had discovered my collection of ecchi anime that, for whatever reason, came with a boxset of 13 extremely thick dictionaries. I pleaded with my mother to confiscate the tray full of ecchi anime and dictionaries from the poor disabled man that was definitely not ready to try and comprehend what he might discover. I remember seeing a projection of an anime girl wearing a blue Japanese swim team costume twerking in a gif format. She had tanned skin and shoulder-length green hair. I then asked my mother why there were so many dictionaries, before drifting off into a black void.

Not the most interesting dream, but it is certainly hilarious to think back on. Again, recall was very difficult on this one, but given my similar experience yesterday, I kept relaxed through the loud construction work and managed to piece together enough of the dream to fill up 2/3 of a page in my notebook. Good enough

Recurring dream elements:
-School, for the third night in row. No surprise given how common this has been for 15 years. Unfortunately, cannot take advantage of it much
-Travelling and worrying about missing trains or not having money. Seems stress leaks into my dreams often

Notes:
-Considering adding sleep/wake up times for future entries to recalculate REM
-Also considering paying attention to waking up during the night, and if dreams happened. Rarely happens though
-Would like to focus more on mantras, had no luck last night. Almost accidentally committed to a WILD attempt, but was not prepared for it so I moved and ended the spinning+visualization I suddenly experienced

The basic scenario of the dream seems to be that because one of the classes that JT and I are responsible for is on a trip to a nearby city for a week - one about an hour's drive away - we have to go there as well. There are some scenes of travel, with last part of the journey seemingly being via helicopter. There are some interactions with the guy piloting it that I can no longer recall.

While there, we meet up with a number of other people who belong to our organization - not based on real people, but in the context of the dream, they are supposed to be people I usually only see a couple times a year, for training and such, since they’re based in a different region. One of these is a young man with blond, spiky hair and tattoos all over his arms, including some that depict Baby Mario’s origin story (making this the third inexplicable Mario reference in not very long, especially inexplicable in this case since I don’t actually know the story, and it was probably just something my dreaming mind invented). We've apparently gotten along well on the occasions we’ve met previously, and at some point, he says that if I’d like, I can stay over at his place for evolution sometime.

I am initially confused by this and run through a couple possibilities of what he could mean until I “remember” that Evolution is the name of a party with a somewhat notorious reputation that happens around here. “Let’s talk about it later,” I say. (In the dream, there are clearly no romantic implications to this exchange.)

The classroom where JT’s and my students are is in a large building, on an upper floor. It seems to have been made to be difficult to find, with a number of entrances camouflaged into an ornate wall. Inside, it looks almost like some kind of laboratory. The students are already there - mine, anyway. JT and his are in an adjoining room. There are a number of scenes here where nothing very definite or memorable happens, although at some point, JT comes by in a wheelchair. I’m concerned and ask him what happened, but he seems brusque and doesn’t acknowledge that anything is wrong. OK, so he doesn’t want to talk about it. I won’t push it.

21.12.24

From a station somewhat close to my house (about 20 mins on foot) I take a train to see my friend. The platform extends out from under a tunnel of square white arches, and it's bright with daylight, but everything seems to get darker and narrower once I step onto the train and the doors close.

I get off at 'Westminster' after a half-hour ride*. Her house isn't far - next thing I'm there. It's much larger than her real house. She opens a huge black front door to let me in and we walk through a long, high hallway to the kitchen and dining room at the end. After a bit of chatter I open the fridge as if it's my house and rummage through to see what we could have for dinner. Chicken and chips, I suggest - and ice cream. 'Ice cream?' she repeats sceptically. 'Well,' I reply, a little embarrassed, 'I guess we don't need that.'

We make dinner and proceed with plates down another long, white corridor, into a vast and bare living room. The ceiling is double height and the walls are panelled and painted white. There is a white sofa in the middle of the room and a TV against the opposite wall. (Seriously this is all - IRL her house is a MESS) We settle down to watch together, chatting meanwhile.

I can't remember our conversation, though I recall it was interesting. Later, I leave, heading through yet another winding corridor through this maze of a house back to the front door (now, it's white). She unlatches the door and pulls it open for me as I step out into the dark chill night. I take the train home again - it's dark and eerily quiet - and finally shut my own front door behind me with a sigh.

I remember, later on, my mum appearing to rant at me about how I can't just keep coming and going from my friend's house every week. I ignore her.

*This is not where she lives, nor can you get there from the station where I was - besides, I always walk to her house.

I'm at home, curled in my desk chair, planning a trip to Monaco for myself on my laptop. The light is low and warm, it must be evening - and the trip is tomorrow. I look over my plans. I've already booked the Eurostar (£54.30 - I know it shouldn't cost that much!) and I'm familiar with the Côte d'Azur TER trains that pass through Monaco Monte-Carlo. Though I notice now that I didn't plan any way to get from Paris to Provence.

While reading through my plans, I'm a bit doubtful as to how well it will go - it's meant to be a day trip but it doesn't look like I'll make it in a day. With security and waiting the Eurostar takes about 3 hours, the train from Paris takes longer and the last one into Monaco is at least half an hour. I'm worried and I feel a headache coming on - I wonder if I should cancel the trip. Maybe I can get my money back?

Then it's the next day, my suitcase is packed and I'm leaving, still filled with worry. My mum wishes me luck. I don't remember what happens after I step out the door.

But then I am in Monaco, standing in a shop, the walls, floor and ceiling are completely wooden. I look over some goods displayed on wooden counters. Seemingly I've been here before: I remember a sale that was on last time I was here. This time the sale is some aromatic bars of soap. I pick over up and turn it over in my hand, smelling its lemony scent.

Sorry for slacking with the Dream Journal. I think this is the first time I've properly smelled something in a dream! Yay!

Touched by a Yeti

I have traveled somewhere with a large group of people, possibly by ship. I’m a different person (male, early 20s, with a Spanish-sounding name). We’ve just arrived here. It’s unclear exactly what kind of setting this is, but it’s clearly not contemporary, and maybe entirely fantastical. Everything is currently covered in snow.

I am happy because I have a new sword, and it is awesome. It’s a long, slightly curved blade, and there are etchings of animals on it – wild boars, maybe others. I have it out, showing people, when a strange creature appears – I know it to be a yeti. It’s white and shaggy, but actually a little smaller than an average human – overall, a very vague visual impression. (Although maybe not vaguer than my visual impressions of dream characters in general. Or, really, people in general, as I am pretty much face-blind and have had to work out other ways of recognizing people.)

Anyway. The creature is lightning-fast and moves in unpredictable ways, including short jumps between locations. In the brief time they have to react, people are trying to get away from it, but it just moves straight past them and appears right next to me. It touches my arm, which it does something to me that makes me lose consciousness.

I’m woken up by someone what seems like only a short time later – same setting, only more people are around now, and the yeti is clearly not. I go with some people to have a conversation with someone who can explain what’s going on. The person (who seems a lot like NR) explains that the creature is the guardian of this place, and it didn’t like the sword – or, rather, its symbolic charge, so to speak – what it represented, which was being an outsider here and coming in intending to fix problems as an outsider, without being a part of it, which is arrogance.

This makes sense to me. I now feel as if I understand the creature – not just from the explanation of its behavior but because I can tell that I now have some kind of connection with it. I know that it’s here all the time, even when it’s not manifesting physically. At some point later, as I’m talking with some other people who haven’t yet heard about the incident, I mention the yeti to them, and I turn around, expecting to see it there behind me, and it is – and from their reaction, I can tell that they can see it there too. I also know that eventually, when the time is right, I’ll take the sword out again, and use it this time, but in cooperation with it.

28.5.23

Cycles

I’m in a room in a house at night, sitting at a keyboard. (It does seem to be me this time. Probably.) I’m playing with settings, designing sounds that I’ll be able to use for projects later on. While I’m doing this, I have a strong sense of my aunt’s presence, which seems connected with the keyboard in some way even though she isn’t there in the dream.

Later, I’m somewhere like the dining room table of my current house, also at night. My parents are there, and I’m showing them something on a laptop: a vst instrument that I’m thinking about getting. It is called The Curse. The sound has an evolving quality to it, and it is accompanied by simple images that change alongside it as it cycles through its various stages. It had six different settings, all represented by images of people shown in bright neon outline against a black background going through different transformations. The first was fairy tale-like – that’s all I can remember about it. Another image was of a woman holding a baby: it showed the woman growing old rapidly and then becoming young again as the baby continued to look the same. Some of the images I didn’t see the cycles for were of a young man and woman holding wineglasses in a celebratory pose, and of a woman in a short dress wearing a helmet like the one Athena is portrayed in – one of the only lone figures – and a man and woman I surmised were in some sort of muse/artist relationship, since the woman was holding a quill pen.

1.6.23

Smell Epiphany

I am a different person (female, Asian, maybe around eight years old) living in a house with my family. The house is somewhat similar to childhood home #5, at least in the size/location of the kitchen area. Something is bothering me – I’ve forgotten some of the points related to this – so I go outside to sit by the garden. There’s a steep, rocky slope lined with trees that leads down to a small garden where vegetables are growing. I sit on the slope, shaded by trees, and stay there for a while.

Later, I’m in a building with my father and older brother, walking down a hallway. It’s a busy area, and many of the walls are lined with shelves full of bottles and boxes. He seems to be some kind of medical professional, and he is giving us a lesson, something both my brother and I find boring. He tells us to take a certain amount of a certain kind of powder on a shelf, so we do, putting it containers we have with us. He asks us how we can tell whether it’s good quality or not. I know the right answer, and so I give it: by its smell. He tells us to go back to where we got the powder and smell it. We do. My brother goes first, and when he’s done, I lean down to smell it. The stuff looks, and also kind of smells, like curry powder. As I smell it, I realize for the first time just how many dimensions a smell can have. It’s like a whole world. The idea that people can extract meaningful information doing this was just abstract to me before, but now it’s real.

5.6.23

Also a Couple Lucid Dreams

I won’t describe them in detail, though, since I don’t think walking/flying around and looking at things would make for very interesting reading. The first (10.6.23) had an interesting setting – I get lucid after the dream’s ‘plot’ seems to come to an end, fly through a wall, and start exploring. I gain height and fly around an industrial park at night – brightly lit in different colors, with the reflected light from the overcast sky giving it a vivid atmosphere, while lightning flashes in the distance. I go in and out a number of times and make my wings appear at least twice – notably, just based on my shadow, they seem to be smaller than normal, which maybe makes sense as I can fly perfectly well without them, and so there’s no real need to make them look like they’re actually serving some purpose.

In the second lucid dream (13.6.23), after some dream events I can’t recall very clearly, I’m leaving a school and happen to see by NR looking at children’s artwork hanging in the hallway. He’s wearing a wide-brimmed hat, and so I can’t see his face. I walk past, but then it occurs to me that I should really take the opportunity to talk with him. I turn around and see that he’s begun to vanish, and I realize that I’m dreaming. I decide that I’ll go somewhere else, just leaving the location up to the dream.

I keep walking towards the entrance, close my eyes, and let the dream fade around me. My sense of having a body, and therefore of having my eyes closed, vanishes completely, and once it’s gone, imagery begins to arise again. In a flash, I see bare tree branches in a thick, white mist. Accompanying the visuals is a strong impression of early spring. Then everything comes into full focus again, and I’m standing in a bare garden underneath a bare-branched tree by a pond. I (wrongly) identify this as the backyard of childhood home #5 and am a little disappointed – just think of all the more interesting places I could have ended up. But maybe there will be some value in revisiting the place here in a dream – it’s not exactly one I have good memories of.

And so I walk up to the house, jumping through the garage doors but then opening the one to the inside normally for some reason – maybe I just expected it to be unlocked. The layout of the house does not resemble the one I’ve mistaken it for in any meaningful way other than having hardwood floors. I walk through the various rooms, ground floor first, then upper floor. Nobody is around – I only see a couple cats in one of the rooms. My alarm awakens me before I can explore the whole house.

Filipino Journey

I have just arrived in the Philippines with a few friends
As we get checked in there is a guy who gives us all of our paperwork/visas
They are printed on transparent acetate cards that are oversized which fit into my loose pants pocket only barely without falling out
We are in an area similar to a large cafeteria almost, partly looks like an abandoned k-mart with bare walls and busted fluorescent lights
There seems to be food waste all over the floor with some kind of brownish orange sticky sauce smeared all over the place like someone was mopping with oriental sauce
The floor is very sticky and I'm trying not to walk on it as I explore where we are
I'm just kind of amazed that I'm in a new place
My friends are moving very fast and not really taking things in, they are also boisterous and I worry we may be drawing too much attention to ourselves
We adventure around the inside here, I notice children scattered playing in the corners, and people generally waiting around like a train station of sorts, though I am surprised at how dingy and worn down everything is
We go through a doorway to another room and I notice a giant block of butter maybe 3 feet high on the other side, I take up a chunk and eat it
My friends all laugh, I notice there are businessmen and other random people coming in and out of this concourse
One guy in a suit coming through the doorway sees me eat it and laughs too but it's all jovial and lighthearted

When we finally leave the area we are in a very busy marketplace-type bazaar roadway that seems like a back alley connected to other streets
It is very busy with people coming in both directions, vendors shouting and even the odd motorbike whizzing past, it seems very populated
I tell my friends we should probably find someplace safe because I know not everywhere around here is safe to be as a tourist
We are dodging in and out of alleyways eventually meeting a friendly looking american

He leads us to his permaculture farm which seems very interesting
I notice there are other americans living there in a commune-type setting
G is with me now, it seems my friends have gone in a different direction
As we're walking through this permaculture farm I notice that it's nestled around/built into a wooden framed house, going through the different rooms I realize that we accidentally just walked into their home
I see the main guy who owns the place in his bedroom
He is a farmer and also a chef, he is very friendly and incredibly kind, a relaxed soul
We apologize that we're in the bedroom and he walks us back out giving us a little tour of the permaculture farm along the way and the little community center where everyone is hanging out
I notice there are a lot of very earthian healthy looking people but they all seem like-minded and hospitable
It is picturesque and comfortable here

He's describing a dish they're putting together, it's very similar to falafel
He asks if we know how to form them with a wood dowel concave mold he is holding and if we would mind helping them prepare a large batch for the community
We agree, I'm very happy to learn about a new dish in a new place, I am amazed to be in a new country and that there are so many like-minded souls here
I notice that I’m wearing these very shiny brown leather shoes and the floors are very smooth terracotta tile
I slide over the tiles very easily as if there is a layer of oil on the floor
To the point where I don't even have to walk or lift my feet to move around
It sort of feels like I'm ice skating and I tell them how weird it feels to be able to move around They watch me and chuckle as I kind of slide around the room without really moving my feet much
We walk outside together and I ask him if there are many permaculture farms around here
He says no, I respond that I'm really surprised I thought that there will be more permaculture farms like this in the Philippines
He says there's a couple but it's not very popular with the locals

As we're walking I notice practically across the street from the farm there are many other similar types of people wearing tan leather-bound medieval armor and some of them are riding horses
There's some kind of grand activity going on that seems like a medieval game of sorts
I'm just amazed at everyone’s coordination and the varying outfits
They're very excited to be involved in the activity, and everyone besides me seems to know what's going on
I talked to a random girl with black hair as I am walking into the group
I now have leather armor on my shoulders
I'm watching the horses ride and do stunts as they're also manipulating different weapons and staffs in a LARP fashion, it reminds me of a renaissance festival
G is with me now so we walk in the other direction away from the permaculture farm and notice that we're very close to the beach now

The ocean is to my left
I am in a video call on my phone with the main chef guy from the farm
Describing what I'm seeing, the beach is very close to the road so I walk over
Excited because I've never been in this ocean before, I stand with just half of my feet in the water
I see the waves gently crashing, the sand is incredibly white, almost pearlescent
Though the shore is only two or three feet deep along the side of the road which is very close to the water
The water is turbulent, not really wavy but I can see peaks
The water is also darker than I expected, it looks different than other seas or oceans I've been in
I'm very excitedly explaining on the phone what I'm seeing and I'm so happy to be in a new place with G

As I'm looking around more I see almost what look like high-end villa sort of enclosures
They all seem like streamlined verandas of organic shapes terraced multiple levels high and built into the hillside all facing the ocean
There are random pieces of furniture scattered about and little curtains hanging around doorways
I'm wondering if maybe these are timeshares or if people live here
I don't see any place for beds or anything so I'm really confused as to the layout
We're just kind of adventuring around different passageways
I seem to go inward too deep and through a curtain there's an older woman wearing flowing clothes who is obviously staying here, she comes out to meet us but doesn't say anything
Apologize turning around we walk back out towards the sea

I am walking down the road by myself now
I seem to be wearing some traditional garb that fits loosely, like multiple layers with the outer layer covered in decorations and a vibrant blue color
As I'm walking I notice a group of people almost like a religious gathering in the street
They are walking towards me slowly like a meditative walk
As I get closer I see it's mostly younger children with maybe a half dozen adults in the center
They are all wearing matching garb of blues and reds, which also match my outfit
They're playing chimes and flutes while walking in a very specific way almost like a dance
So I step to the side to let them pass but one of the men in the group sees the way I'm acting and shouts “Continue walking!”
Saying over and over again “Just walk straight ahead with your hands at your side, just walk straight ahead with your hands down, just walk straight ahead don't stop!”
I gather I have done something culturally improper and he is correcting me
So I continue to walk forward just looking straight ahead and walking through them as they pass through around me
I see now they all have ornate decorations all over their shoulders and down the front
They all have hats on which almost look oriental, flared up on the sides with a round top with colors that match the rest of their outfits
The feeling as they pass me is almost mystical as I purposely attempt to not look directly at any of them

I am in my parents' house now and I understand this is before we left for the Philippines
Getting ready to go pack up and I’m told someone is at the front door for me
It's not the person I'm expecting as I glance down the stairwell from the second floor looking out the front door I only see a pair of very tan very long legs
Coming down the stairs closer I notice it's a woman in a red dress with blonde shoulder-length hair and bright blue eyes
I recognize her immediately as Tricia Helfer from battlestar
Stepping out to meet her I remember when winning the trip to the Philippines I randomly messaged her inviting her to come on the trip with us, even though I knew it would be a long shot, there was no way they would respond but here they were on my front door to go on this trip with us, she seemed excited too
Complimented her on how good she was in battlestar and told her that I loved everything she brought to the character and how impressive it was that was her first acting gig
Also that I understood why she hasn't wanted to try to revisit the role or just try much more in Hollywood since then because it was so popular, she tells me about how she wrote a film called Invertigo but it never got made
The dream fades as we’re laughing and just generally chit-chatting on the front porch

Fragment

I am in a music store that seems to be having some special release party
It’s locked to the general public and we’re all vibing inside
There are maybe a dozen people and I only recognize a couple
Christina Ricci is sitting in the corner with some friends
The dream fades with the general murmur of layered small talk and chill music playing

Night before Monday 2nd January

The second of these two dreams I had great progress, as even though I woke up in that one just before becoming lucid, this marked the most times I've managed to do reality checks in dreams in 12 months. The scene, which involved a recurring theme about school, was unusually vivid this time.

* I was about to kiss a woman I knew from long ago, at my Mum's dining table, and weirdly we both put on these very small imitation glasses cut out of white paper. Mine had spirals cut into them over the eyes. I paused just before the kiss and realised that I wasn't attracted to that person. The dream scene [and perhaps the dream] ended there.

* I was on holiday with my Dad and he had been driving us down south but we suddenly arrived in a northern, beautiful mountainous part of the world. It was a green natural space with mountains in the distance. I think they were green too, the bits I remember noticing. The sun seemd to be out [mainly going by level of daylight I remember] but it seemed like very late afternoon, early evening (though not a noticeable sunset). I had in my mind that it was Canada.

I asked Dad as we had been heading south why had he diverted [or turned around?] and come so far north? He told me he had cows up here and needed to give them water. I think I asked how we got here so quickly and he said he made great time and did it in two hours. He mentioned how economical it was pointing out that it was costing him less than a flight up there. At this point I remembered it was in his old car and given how worn out the car was, I wondered if the wear and tear on the car would end up costing him more [Interesting I was asking QUESTIONS a lot / good CRITICAL THINKING].

We started walking through a grassy area with a worn public dirt path. It was obviously a natural space popular with lots of tourists. Dad's cows seemed to be roaming free here. At this point I wondered why he would need to drive all this way to give them water and wouldn't all the people around give them drinks [Not the best dream logic, but neither is looking after cows hundreds of miles away and driving there unplanned to provide water].

After that I thought about how long we were staying in that part of the country before we had to move on and decided I had enough time to drive somewhere [for the evening? Also where did I suddenly get my own car from up here? I thought I came in Dad's?].

The dream seemed to cut to me having arrived in the road by my old school. [SCHOOL: Huge DREAM SIGN]. I seemed to know that I wasn't a pupil at this school anymore [I didn't really reflect on this, I just knew like I would when I'm awake, like I knew that I'm older now and don't go to school anymore, without actually thinking those thoughts specifically. This is a big step from my usual dreams about school where I almost invariably don't know that].

I saw the pupils walking around. For some reason I had to attend lessons at the school today, even though I was now a guest. I started to think about which lesson I needed to go to first (as I had no timetable) [SCHOOL: Not knowing where to be next / missing / incomplete timetable, one of my biggest DREAM SIGNS]. I immediately thought to myself that this is what normally happens in my dreams - I think I thought it a couple of times - but I didn't immediately become lucid because this dream was one of the most vivid I can remember and I can still remember how strikingly it felt 100% real. The visuals were very vivid and clear. [I don't remember noticing temperature, any breeze, really noticing any noise but that's because I wasn't paying attention to any of them, just where I was and where I needed to be next].

I remembered what I needed to do to find out what lesson I needed to go to next, as I dream about the problem so often, that I needed to go to the classroom where my tutor was who was responsible for dictating my timetable at the start of the year. The very next thing I knew was I was pinching my nose to do a REALITY CHECK - but I have no memory of deciding to do so. I couldn't breathe when I held my nose and I remember instantly trying to make sense of this [I guess thinking it's not a dream or it's not a lucid dream or similar] whilst at the same time noticing that the dream had just disappeared and I saw the blackness of my closed eyes and realised I was awake.


Night before Tuesday 3rd January

* I was sitting on the right hand side (maybe 3/4 of the way towards the back) of what could have been a coach but later turned out to be an aircraft. I had a number of belongings that I was trying to gather up on my lap - I think articles of clothing, a rucksack and maybe some other bags. I think it was almost time to leave. I seemed to be worried that a guy to my left would try to mess with or steal some of my stuff, so I was trying to pack it all away in a way he wouldn't be able to get at it. I think I decided I was going to have to clip or tie something - maybe another bag - onto the back of the rucksack and I was worried he might try to steal from it when I wore it on my back.

* I was in some big canteen or cafe with some young guys. We had to wash the food off the dirty plates but we weren't doing all of the washing up work, we just seemed to be doing one step to make other people's jobs easier. I think we were supposed to take them and put them somewhere or do some other extra step and I think I was trying to skip that step (to save time and effort) and the other guys were telling me not to.

* In some very incoherent scene someone was wearing an LCD display. I think it was on their lower chest. It showed something to do with a salt level I think - but in this dream I'm pretty sure it wasn't anything as meaningful as the salt level in their blood (electrolyte balance). I had a task I had to keep repeating [which I can only remember very faintly and was probably very vaguely defined in the dream. It could have changed from moment to moment] which might have been getting table salt, presumably to influence this reading on his screen.

I seem to be staying with a large group of people in a sort of vacation rental house. It’s late night, early morning, and having woken up, I’ve checked on the cats to make sure they’re still here, where they’re supposed to be. (I notice at some point that I’m not wearing pajamas, but an olive green cargo vest over a multicolor shirt, which strikes me as a little odd.) The cats are fine, but it looks like other people are up and about as well – the other young people there seem to be gathering together in an unused room, and there’s an atmosphere of anticipation, as if some spur-of-the-moment plan is being put together. I don’t really feel like going in to see what’s going on, though – I walk past to the bathroom down the hall.

After that, somebody actually comes along to invite me to join them, and there’s a jump to another location, this one outside, along a street of what seems vaguely like a small city. We’re near an ice cream vendor and his cart, and somebody has apparently managed to get a really good deal on a large quantity of ice cream. The man scoops different kinds out and hands it over to the people who are also out here now. An older man explains to me what’s going on: everybody is planning to travel together to Prague to see the Pablo Neruda museum. (This places the location firmly in Dream-Prague, as no such thing exists there, as far as I know.)

He has a picture of it, like a newspaper clipping in black and white showing the front of the building, which strikes me as familiar. There are four odd statues out front, roughly human-shaped. One seems to have a head the shape of a crescent moon. The man states that the museum is located in the Place of Right. This confuses me for just a second. Then I tell him that the name would probably be something more like “Law Square” or “Legal Plaza” translated into English. My memories of the place suggest that the association with the law comes from a former era and is not representative of the present-day location, that it’s located near the Mala Strana area (possibly by association with Nerudova Street) or a bit south of that, and that there’s a Gothic tower in the square as well as the museum.

All of us are in Croatia, and I’m not sure if I feel like traveling all the way to Prague, especially since I visited the museum relatively recently. But it would be an interesting experience in its own right, traveling there with all these people. And maybe they could use someone who knows their way around there. Somebody brings me a cup of ice cream, white with flecks of chocolate or cookies in it. I take it. I don’t really like ice cream that much, especially not first thing in the morning, but it would probably just sit there and melt if I refused.

-12.5.22

I am in what looks to be some kind of large home improvement store, having travelled here to meet up with some people. It is a very large store: towards the back, the aisles actually turn into streets, which is where I need to go. I’ve been this way enough times to where I’ve got the route memorized, and when I reach the signpost with a number of street signs, I take a left onto Montaigne Street.

Montaigne street has a rather sleazy vibe, with a sort of over-the-top neon-over-historic-district aesthetic. But it seems completely confined to this particular street, and then it’s back into plain downtown area. However, something is strange: the street I’m looking for doesn’t seem to be here. This is an area full of little winding streets, so I look around for a bit to make sure I haven’t missed it, then head back out to where the store begins and go along Montaigne Street all over again. But the street really seems to have gone now.

I go back to the store area and browse the stationary near the front as I consider what to do next. Maybe I forgot to check something, and the meet-ups aren’t happening right now. It’s going to be a few hours before I head back, and I need to figure out what I’m going to do for dinner at some point. I also decide, in a moment of latent lucidity, that I’m going to change the name of Montaigne Street to Montero Street, as that seems to fit it better. In the end, I just decide to look around the store for a while longer.

Towards one corner, I find a series of furnished rooms. They’re a bit like display rooms you might actually find in a home improvement store showing off appliances or furnishings, only these ones seem to be set up as miniature haunted houses. I enter the room on the far end first, one that’s almost completely dark. This one seems to have a “pet ghost” theme. As I explore the various furniture and parts of the room, certain things happen, triggered by my presence, such as noises or motion, and even the visible ghosts of cats. But I don’t find the place scary at all. It’s actually rather relaxing. I lie on the bed in the corner for a while listening to things rustle and thinking about dead pets from times gone by.

After a while, I move on, going into a couple more rooms I can no longer remember before heading into what’s clearly set up as a haunted nursery. This room has a lot more light coming in, so it’s easy to see the furnishings, most prominently, a young child’s bed – not actually a crib, but something that seems made for children about that age, maybe from an earlier era. The bed is dishevelled, and there are several piles of feces either on it or on the floor nearby, hinting towards neglect. It doesn’t really look real and definitely doesn’t smell real.

As I examine a chest on the side of the room facing the store, I suddenly see a large group of ghosts standing together, looking in my direction. One of them, an older gentleman in a suit, gestures that I should come over to them. I do, and they lead me to a long table set up for a meal. It seems that the store has staffed their haunted rooms with real ghosts, and now that they’re off-duty, they’re closing up the rooms and inviting me to eat with them.

It’s only once were seated and the meal begins – tea and pastries – that they begin talking, or possibly that’s just when I become able to understand them. The older gentleman is seated on my left, and we have a conversation in which I distinctly remember telling him about my cat, Thomas, who died 12 years ago.

At some point, the scene changes – the implication seems to be that time has passed, and I’m travelling somewhere with three or four of them. One opens the back door of a black car, and another climbs in. I realize I’m supposed to get in as well. I notice I’m wearing a smooth black coat coming down somewhere between my knees and waist and a pair of black leather gloves.

The scene changes further after that to a completely new setting – and while the store, at least, was almost certainly located in the U.S., this place has more the vibe of a developing country, possibly in the Caribbean. The man showing me around takes me past an area where many small boats are docked. He seems to feel this is a touristy area, not really representative of the place itself.

At a clothing market, somebody comes up to him. It seems he’s needed somewhere immediately, so it looks like I’m going to be on my own for the next couple hours. We agree to meet back up here in that general timeframe – this doesn’t seem to be a place where people make appointments more precise than that.

15.7.21

non-dream dream semi-lucid lucid FA / AP

At some place sitting at a big table with different people. My cousin Duarte is there at some distance and Bad Wolf is nearer. Someone is at the door and some girl opens it. Someone ordered sandwiches, but Bad Wolf gets disturbed with that, says no one should have opened the door, because he is being chased by some debt collectors from the IRS or something and they can't see him inside. We want to protect him, so we are more careful and try to spot anyone suspicious outside. All is fine, so we turn to the table to eat. I am also turning the pages of an old agenda with notes that attracts Bad Wolf's attention. He asks me about it, I mention some stuff there that was written by my mom and that I used it later as a notebook. We become very friendly and shoulder to shoulder and it feels right. My cousin spots it and doesn't know our background so he finds it odd and then asks me about levels of appropriate touching between strangers and I clarify him that I am no stranger to Bad Wolf.

At a college in a palace, just as a visitor or a prospective student. I attend a class and I am supposed to join another class at the -1 floor, so I take the main staircase down to ground level, where I see that outside is under a blizzard like we've never seen around. Also, it's July and I am sleeveless and wearing sandals. I make a loud comment on how am I supposed to walk on that snow like this. Some female teacher in sandals agrees emphatically: "exactly, how are we gonna do it?" and points to her own feet. As I keep going down the stairs I make a snarky remark like "So you don"t believe global warming? Here is your global warming!" and some idiot girl replies loudly "Yeah, exactly! It's snowing in the summer." And I shake my damn head realizing she didn't pick the sarcasm. So I get to -1 and find a class I think is the one I am looking for, but after sitting I realize they are debating Star Wars. Fascinating stuff and they are putting on a video of an episode to clarify something, which seems great, but this is not my intended class. I go down a corridor and enter an area of teachers and assistants offices. One door is open and some students there who look at me. I signal that I am just lost and will leave but one of the guys fancies me and comes to the door smiling and offering to help me on whatever I need. I fancy him too, but I am focused and keep going after smiling back to him. I stumble across another corridor which seems more like a private residence area and then I reach a big open ballroom, 2 story high. It's full of older folks, all very posh and dandy, dancing classical ballroom dances, while some dandy younger people are watching them, I suppose learning. I want to go across and keep going, but everyone spots me and won't let me go. They force me to attend the lesson as some kind of punishment or for their entertainment. They gather a group of younger all female dancer, put a more jazzy music and I have to join them. At first I fail miserably, but then I pick it up reasonably well and decide to add my own style as if I know what I am doing. In the end, most men applaud and cheer me, but the ladies dancing are pissed as their intent was to shame me. Some of the older guys are madly falling for me and one is holding on to a shawl that I used in my dance, as if his life depended on it.

I am working and studying abroad, looks like in Belgium. I am with a friend in similar situation. Today we leave for good and we go back home, so we do our last shift in the bar we work at. A pretty industrial looking bar at the city center, right in front of the university we've been attending. My friend is heartbroken because she had been dating a guy and they had a fight and she doesn't see him for weeks but doesn't want to leave for good without seeing him again. But she lost contact with him and doesn't know how to find him. As we leave the bar and go around the block, we spot him entering a shop nearby and buying some gift. I feel like he is going to the bar next, looking for her, so I push her to go back and wait for him and she is over the top happy. Meanwhile I go back home to pack the bags. First I pass by the bus terminal to get tickets to the airport and there is a huge line, because they are having a promotion in which everyone gets free tickets and pays at the destination point on arrival. I really don't see the advantage, but it makes me wait in a line for too long. As I wait near the desk where they issue the tickets, I start taking things from under a chair next to me, curious about all the boxes of different sizes, jammed under it. It is boxes with sewing material and then I have trouble putting them all back in the same order.
Back home I start packing, surrounded by our other roommates, all excited and not allowing me to focus on my task. I recall the stress of being always late packing my stuff and missing my flights (in dreams), so I try to really throw everything on the bags without losing myself on details. But I still am a bit too tight on the schedule and nervous. Actually don't even know for sure at what time is the plane. Also my friend isn't coming and I have to depart alone. The bus trip is super stressful as the bus has to go down a mountain in a very narrow road and every one is nervously making jokes at how we risk going over the cliff.

At my farm, my dogs are very agitated. I hear machines working not too far, but what catches my attention is a strong meow nearby and my dogs rushing to the gate as if they are seeing some animal outside. I go running and spot a yellow baby kitten alone in the ground and pick him up. He looks thankful to be rescued and I go around looking for more or possibly his mother. Find another yellow kitty a few steps away, but this one is motionless and lying on the ground. I pick him up too and he is still breathing, just very cold. As soon as I warm them up they both look much better, but I want to give them water and some food asap. I still go around looking for where they come from and on a slope I spot some cave and thing maybe their mom is there with other kittens. Instead I spot two dogs with two litters of puppies. They seem all ok and safe and even growl at me, so I leave them. No sight of cats or kittens. Then my mom arrives when I am near my gate again and she tells me to look in another direction first. We go the other way and immediately we're right in the middle of Vila Franca, close to the train station. There I see lots of stray cats, most adults and they seem well fed and healthy. Finally spot a female white and yellow cat who can be their mom, she has a bed in a sheltered corner at the station, but no signs of other kittens or that she is nursing. There is another yellow one, bigger, a few months old, and he starts playing with some of the other cats that followed me around and ends up on the train tracks. I freak out and go scare them away from there. Then decide to just leave because I am adding more chaos and putting them in danger and I should be taking care of the kitties. I have been keeping them in my bosom, stuck between my skin and my shirt and the warmth seems to have done some good as they are both responsive and active now.

non-dream dream semi-lucid lucid FA / AP

Driving a friend to the airport. At the beginning of the road entering the airport, I spot my former odious boss with a bag on his hand, like waiting for a ride or something. He turns his head away and I do to. Some airport employees arrive on a car and get in front of my way, so I have to stop as they block my passage. They come ask him if he requires transportation to the airport and he says yes. Then some other person comes by and says they also need it. Then they ask me if I need something and where we are going. I say we're flying to Seychelles and we don't need anything, just keep driving to the airport. I am not really going to travel, but just wanted to piss off my ex-boss, who looks tired.
They leave and I can go on. A bit ahead on the road, I need to exit to my right, but suddenly there is lots of traffic blocking my exit and on top of that, my right side mirror is not adjusted correctly and I can't see the cars to my right. I complain to my friend who is on the co-pilot seat but she doesn't correct it. I take a chance and accelerate, to try to cut in front of a car I suppose is there. But I am blocked by a car in front of me who doesn't let me accelerate enough to do it. So at the last second I see I am going to hit the car on the right and I get back to my lane hitting the car in front. That makes spin in the middle of the road with traffic everywhere. For a few seconds I don't even remember pushing the breaks. I am just panicking at the thought that we are going to die for a stupid bad decision. But finally I do push the breaks and the car halts and there are no more damages. I feel so lucky. Another car stops, some nice guy who immediately checks if we are ok and even starts checking the car and fixing what he can. I go check on the driver whose car I hit and I apologize. She only has a little scratch on the back of the car, really nothing, but she is upset and doesn't say a word. Then my friend says "oh well, no more travel for me" and I say "no way, we can call a cab to take you the rest of the way", but she doesn't seem all that interested.

27th April 2021

Fragment:

Something about flying through space. There's something like DSP to this dream. I am checking out a planet, but as I approach it, I realise with some surprise that it's one of the Deuteria systems I'd already built on (in the dream). I then set course for a greatly distant star system? In the galaxy map, I can see this system has three stars.

I arrive there pretty quickly despite the distance. The dream is not fully like DSP and the three stars are in odd placements around the system, sort of hiding within tight clusters of planets. There's an interesting play of light and ambience as a result.

Fragment:

I'm in the context of old home but the dream location details are vague now. I remember being in something like my room(?) but the house layout feels different and on a bed or a table there's a number of my drawings. Some are explicit but I don't try to tidy it up. Something about being called through to another room, by dad?

In the dream, there's an implied sense that my parents know about the type of things I draw sometimes. I feel some discomfort about it but in the dream it's more like the general discomfort or embarrassment from parents trying to be a part of things you don't necessarily want them to be a part of.

Something about going to meet up with L?

(I left recall too long and allowed myself to be distracted)

Fragment:

In the van/car and it's overcast; hail is falling.

---

Notes:

- Some days later, there was hail, but I don't remember looking at the forecasts.

- L is the only person in the family who knows that I draw explicit artwork now and then.
-- Part of that dream certainly relates to my feeling of isolation from being unable to discuss the subject very openly with most people.

27th February 2021

Fragment:

(was a long dream but only recalled bits and pieces)

Me, H, J and S; we're all meeting up at some rocky place. They parked their car in a small rocky alcove, I think we go and see the car?

As they found out, it was wet and the bottom part of their car is getting too wet. In this semi-flat rocky area there are some waves of pure and clear water, not more than an inch high. The area is slightly sloped down away from the rocky alcove bit but the small waves of water still climb with ease.

I talked to J about it and we discuss the underground water tables. I don't remember getting wet or feeling wet from standing in the shallow water.

Then something about us driving elsewhere. J was in their own car and we were in ours. H gives me his phone so I can text her if needed. But I suggest it may not be a good idea since she'll be driving too. (S was seemingly gone from the dream at this point?)

During the drive, I think we discuss food and how we should maybe stop for lunch somewhere along the way. I think we were going to but then we don't? I know that we do go past a place and I mention this and H remarks with "well, too late now" as we drive past.

We arrive at a lab of some sort. They do advanced soil analysis here? We get into a conflict with the personnel because they are apparently doing something evil.

There's a mini turret that tries to shoot at us but me and H approach it covertly and work to disable it. I end up simply disconnecting the neutral cable, not fully expecting it to work, but it does.

I think we then confront some of the personnel/research team.

11/27/20

I am with mark weins
He is a swinger with some norwegians
He wears pink lace underwear

2069
I am on a layover in texas, Ben asks if we can hang out before my next flight, I agree.
He picks me up and we drive back to his parents house without notice.
When we get to his house he gives me a small black electronic device I do not recognize. It kind of looks like a small digital camera with a display on the back and buttons on top but I don't know how to turn it on.

The house is incredibly large with hundreds of rooms and a grand foyer which has been extensively decorated for Christmas. Multiple floors overlook the entrance room with many hallways coming from various directions. It is reminiscent of the house from Home Alone only it is cartoonishly large.

I gather that this is mostly Ben's family and extended family. Only there are almost a hundred people scattered about running their own unique intentions saying goodbyes and everyone seems to be in a hurry. I gather that the adults are dropping off their kids of various ages and they are all going on some adult outing together.

I do not recognize anyone, everyone is quite comfortable and I get the impression this is a yearly occurrence for everyone involved. The kids all form their own little friendship groups as if they were being dropped at summer camp. No one recognizes me and I don't even see his parents anywhere.

I was traveling and forgot what time I needed to be back at the airport. I do not have my ticket but remember I had a picture of it on my phone. Looking at the time I realized my layover was only 45 minutes and I have been in this house much longer than that. I was somewhat anxious but am now resigned to the realization I have missed my flight and now am only looking for Ben.

Walking up stairs and checking hallways I decide to start walking into rooms, they are all different shapes with different groups of people in them having their own little social gatherings. I lean against a large papasan chair that has a smooth leather jacket hanging on the side. As soon as I do a smug looking short haired blonde teenager appears and immediately starts chastising me for wrinkling his perfectly smooth leather jacket. He points to me as I am wearing my members only jacket and insults me saying I wouldn't care because I'm already wearing a wrinkled leather jacket. I'm inclined to agree. I move along.

I understand that there are going to be 50+ people all staying in this house in various rooms scattered all about. Only the adults were leaving one by one couple by couple out the grand entrance, assuming they are all congregating in front of the house for their adventure. I do not know where they are going but they are all excited to leave their kids and the kids are apathetic/happy to be with their friends.

I cannot find Ben anywhere, like no where no where. Always new rooms new couches new arrangements of kids of all ages 18-5 having their own little gatherings scattered about. I wander around for almost an hour looking for him to no avail.

Things are starting to not make sense as I don't recognize technology or even the styles of most people. It occurs to me I may be out of my time. I ask some kids what year it is and they are just laughing at me thinking I am kidding. That there is no way someone doesn't know what year it is at Christmas time. Finally someone says it's the year 2069. I am somewhat flabbergasted. I have no idea how I have slipped out of my time again. But I am welcome to the adventure.

There are still some adults here and there saying goodbye to their kids. I notice a somewhat concerned couple saying goodbye to their children and assuring each other that everything will be fine and they will be back in no time. They are dressed somewhat bohemian and I feel a comradery with their style. Most of the parents are ritzy and done up like they are at a formal Christmas party, like upper class glitzy styles and too many conflicting expensive perfumes.

I see an older gentleman come out of a door to the grande entrance and I think at first it is Ben's father. Only his face looks like Caesar. I extend my hand and tell him it's good to see him again and it's been too long. He doesn't know who I am but shakes my hand anyway. I wonder if my hand is dry or sweaty from the hurried walking around this expansive house.

I finally see Ben up some stairs walking a girl with mocha skin up more stairs and to his loft getaway. I gather he has been avoiding everyone and I am somewhat frustrated I have missed my flight and have been wandering around for the better part of an hour in another time, confused as hell. His loft has a large balcony overlooking the city below. It is a cartoonishly large futuristic and detailed city, with purples and greens and blues and yellow hues to the buildings. I now definitely know I am out of my time.

I am standing on the rail looking out to the view just taking it all in when he approaches me to my side and stands by the rail next to me. He asks if I've ever seen anything like it before. I say yes, it's exactly like the city I saw in my dreams a couple nights ago. He is taken aback but not entirely surprised. There is a girl sitting on cushions behind us who is the girl he was leading up here. She is confused at our conversation. I remember that he left me in the beginning so I start into some great tirade exclaiming my frustration with him. I take off my jacket and I have no clothes on underneath. I have no shame but I am yelling at him that I have been lost, and out of place, and I have no clothes, and I missed my flight, and I have no idea how I got to 2069. The girl with him is bashful at my appearance and several people walk by gawking while I am going on my monologue. I am unphased in noticing them as I am always comfortable nude. He assures me he can get me to Denver quickly. I look off the balcony, there are multi hot air balloons in various shapes and colours, I joking say Oh you're gonna fly us there in a balloon!? He smiles knowingly and responds that if I had left with his dad we could fly the blimp.
'Noah?' I hear, and I am awake.