My subconscious is working against me

I had an LD last night and I wanted to try to play the piano. I was able to get myself into a room with an old upright piano in it, but it had the keys covered. For any piano I've seen, normally you just lift up the key cover or push it back or something like that, but this cover was elaborate and had many different covers and latches keeping me from the keys.

I was able to get one section of it open down to where the keys should be, but then there weren't even any piano keys there!

What am I doing wrong, or what can I to do to get my subconscious from interfering so much?

your 'subconscious' isn't another sentient entity that is ruining your lucid dreams for you. You just have to implement creativity and confidence during your lucids to get around things like this. Doubting yourself, considering possibilities where things won't work out, can easily lead to those possibilities actually occurring instead of your desired outcome. In a case like this, remind yourself that there isn't even really a piano, and push your fingers through the cover and just play even though you can't see the keys. Tell yourself that that is how it is going to be, that you ARE going to play the piano, and it will happen.

Confidence is key in lucid dream. Express the most infinitesimal degree of doubt, you'll create problems for yourself. You could try imagining every single aspect of the piano you want to play, and then get to it using the door/spinning/tv channel changing technique.

The interesting thing is that I doubted I would be able to find a piano to play, but that didn't end up being the problem. Once I had the piano in front of me I didn't have any doubts and I went up to it with the full intention of just sitting down and playing. However, to my surprise, I couldn't get to the keys.

From what I've read, expecting things is the best way to have have "control" over your LDs, and finding a piano with no keys is definitely not what I expected when I walked up to it. (then again, I guess wasn't really even thinking about the keys until I realized I couldn't get to them)

Thanks for the suggestions. Now that I seem to be having LD's more often I think I'll be able to work on the confidence and creativity more. Creativity definately would have helped in this case. I wanted to come up with a better plan than just opening these latches, but I just could think of one.

Yea, sometimes I have so much trouble being logical and working around things or, even in such an insane thing as a dream, coming up with illogical things that should work (which is, I guess, the truly logical thing to do?). Just keep practicing, harp on these things during the day so that while you are lucid, you are truly lucid and sort of have a plan of action and the confidence to get past it. You could also try asking, "Hey, can someone come unlock the piano for me?" or something like that. Just find a way to work around it :)

Everyone is right that confidance has a HUGE effect on our dreams. I suspect that your earlier fear that you wouldn't find a piano is what caused the problem with opening and then playing the piano -- just a delayed reaction from your lack of confidance.

However, even if you run into a problem because of fear, you can still make it work. In a LD last night I was hiding from some people. I climbed into a closet and tried to crawl through a hole into the wall to hide. I was afraid for just a moment that I wouldn't be able to fit. However I did. But when I got into the wall, it dissapeared and I found myself crouched in the corner in plain view!! However, I decided and BELIEVED that since I had crawled through the hole I WAS in the wall, despite all appearances. When the DCs that were hunting me came in one of them pointed me out, but the other said, "Sh...we're not supposed to be able to see her. She is in the wall." And then they turned around and walked away, because I was confidant that I was hidden and safe.