[INTRO/DC-1] Chessica's workbook

[Chessica]

My workbook.

[Chessica]

Well, here is the sum-up of my dreams from tonight. I dreamt that I was out kayaking on a lake, I was practicing 'sculling' and different eskimo rolls. I was there with some of the guys from the kayaking club. They were giving me advice on how to do a new roll, and what type of kayaking tecniques should be practiced before others. In my dream I was very exited because I had just gotten my new drysuit, so it didn't matter that the water was cold. Then my dream shifted... I was in the house where I lived as a child (it just looked a little different), one of the guys from the kayaking club was there and my brother was there too. I remember it was dark outside and I went to let my cat and dog in from the balcony, but there was another cat there (it was hiding under a table out on the balcony), and I had to chase it away to get my pets to come inside. There was something going on with my kayaking-friend's wife, she was sick or something, so I had to go take the bus to the hospital. I was carrying a lot of stuff with me as I went to find the bus, apparently it was very important that I brought a flashlight to give to the sick woman (I think maybe she was dying, and I was wondering why my friend didn't go see her himself instead of sending me to see her). I also had keys in my hand, and I was rushing so the bus wouldn't leave without me. While I was rushing ahead to catch the bus I remembered that I had forgotten to lock the front door of the house. I had to run back to lock it, even though there were people at home (It apparently had to be locked from the outside). When I got to the bus stop I coulden't find the right bus, I was running from one bus to another asking the busdrivers what their destination was. One of the busses looked oldfashioned and had bars on the windows. Like a prison... When I couldn't find the right bus I sat down to wait with some other people, who turned out to be some other guys from the kayaking club. They were talking about how the bus was supposed to leave at a specific time, but I couldn't hear what time that was. Then I woke up... Day residue: Kayaking and people from my kayaking club + the drysuit and cold water. My cat and dog. Flashlight. False memories: I dreamt that I had just gotten my new drysuit, but in real life I am still waiting for it to arrive by mail. How my childhood home looked was a false memory. That the wife of my friend was sick. Faulty logic: My friend from the kayaking club wouldn’t be in my childhood home with my brother, but in the dream it seemed quite natural. My cat and dog wouldn’t be in my childhood home. Having to go to the hospital to see my friend’s wife (as I don’t know her in real life). Although, in the dream, I did wonder why my friend didn’t go see her himself, but it also seemed natural that I had to go. The oldfashioned bus with the window-bars. (The “prison” bus…) Bringing a flashlight to the hospital. Having to run back to lock the front door. I remembered that there was people in the house who could have locked the door themselves, but it seemed logical that the door must be locked from the outside. A group of guys from my kayaking club waiting for the bus with me.

[Chessica]

I’m not sure about the order in which I dreamt these things, but I think this is the right sequence. I was meeting someone in a parkinglot, it was pitch dark, and I was trying to find my way around. The ground was gravel, and the road leaving the parkinglot was a dirt road. After some walking around in the dark, feeling a bit confused, I found a car. I suddenly felt lucky that I was going to be a passenger, and not drive myself, because the place we were going to were like a mix of a laberynt and a rally racing track. The guy who was going to drive appeared, and it started to become a bit brighter and not so dark. We got in to the car and started driving. Suddenly I realized I were sitting on a toilet inside the car, I felt a bit ashamed to be sitting on a toilet when there was a man next to me in the car. It somehow struck me as a little odd to have a toilet as a car seat, but I didn’t think more about it. We drove a long way on the dirt road, and the road was constantly winding left and right. I think we were in the desert. New dream… I was walking around in a greenhouse looking at different plants. It was cactuses in big pots, they were not upright growing cactuses, they were hanging down the sides of the pots (like Selenicereus grandiflorus) and they were placed in neat, straight lined patterns on the tables. I was going to buy one and found a big, nice looking cactus. Then a lady came walking towards me asking me if I wouldn’t ‘want some of these instead’? She showed me a table with the same type of cactus, only these were much smaller. They looked like cuttings that had just started to grow, and I politely declined and said I would rather just buy the big one. New dream… I was dreaming about my best friend, she was going to move to a new place and was looking for houses in that area. I was helping her look for houses, and suddenly decided I would move with her to this new place. After searching for a house and planning the moving process I suddenly realized that if I were going to move in with her I would be leaving my boyfriend. I felt sad and ashamed that I forgot about already having a house with my boyfriend, and I wondered what I should do... Stay or move… The dream shifted and I was on my computer. I was writing something in my kayaking-blog, and uploading pictures for it. I felt happy because I had been able to take a photo of a big wave breaking over another kayak. It was very rough waters, white and foaming, and as I was looking at the picture I were longing to get out in to those waves again. Then I woke up… Day residue: The greenhouse (work). My best friend moving. My blog and the picture. False memories: I remember “knowing” this man who was driving the car, but I don’t know who he is… The waves were somewhat bigger and rougher in the dream-picture than it was in real life. Faulty logic: The toilet in the car. Moving in with my friend.

[Serenity]

I dreamt that I was out kayaking on a lake, I was practicing 'sculling' and different eskimo rolls. I was there with some of the guys from the kayaking club. They were giving me advice on how to do a new roll, and what type of kayaking tecniques should be practiced before others. In my dream I was very exited because I had just gotten my new drysuit, so it didn't matter that the water was cold. Rolling in a kayak scares me so much! I'm afraid of getting stuck under water and not being able to roll back up Suddenly I realized I were sitting on a toilet inside the car, I felt a bit ashamed to be sitting on a toilet when there was a man next to me in the car. It somehow struck me as a little odd to have a toilet as a car seat, but I didn’t think more about it. Noooooo! Close one

[Chessica]

Rolling in a kayak scares me so much! I'm afraid of getting stuck under water and not being able to roll back up Rolling a kayak is not scary when you know how! Besides, if you can't roll back up you just release the sprayskirt and pull yourself out. Noooooo! Close one I know!! When I woke up and remembered the dream those were my exact words.. I must start being more critical to things. Not just think; 'well, that's odd...' and move on. lol...

[Serenity]

I know!! When I woke up and remembered the dream those were my exact words.. I must start being more critical to things. Not just think; 'well, that's odd...' and move on. lol... This is sometimes still an issue for me! Takes a long time to over come it, methinks

[Chessica]

Dream fragment… I was sitting in a car, my cousin was the driver , she drove of the road and down a steep field. We stopped in front of a house. New dream (?)... I dreamt that I was a passenger in a car, one guy (J) from my kayaking club was the driver. I was wearing a black woolen jacket with green and orange spray paint on it. I also had my grey paddling jacket with me. I tried to explain why my jacket had spray paint on it, but I can’t remember what I said. We were going to change to paddling clothes, and I went up on something similar to a rooftop to change my clothes. I tried to find a shielded place, because I was a bit embarrassed to take my clothes of in front of J. When I was changing I saw J. peeking up at me. Then the dream shifted and I was in my kayak on the water. I was practicing a Eskimo roll, and I tried to make myself stay longer under water without panicking and getting water in my nose. I managed to stay under for longer than usual, and I didn’t get water in my nose. I felt happy that I succeeded. New dream… I dreamt about my aquariums. A woman was visiting me and she was praising me for having such beautiful planted tanks. I couldn’t understand why she was praising me, because my aquariums looked horrible. The plants looked puny and some of them had loosened from the sand and were just floating around in the tank. I felt a bit ashamed of how they looked because I usually take a lot of pride in my well kept aquariums. She mentioned something about a friend of hers that was participating in an aquascaping competition in England. She said I should e-mail her friend because he needed a gardener to assist him in the competition. All of a sudden I was standing chatting with the woman organizing the competition, she said that all the competitors that was travelling to England from another country would have to sleep in a separate location apart from the English competitors. This was due to safety regulations, as 'one can never know what you scandinavians are up to’. I remember feeling a bit offended by this remark… New dream… I was in my childhood home. My mother was there and so was my dog (my dog’s name is Maybe). Maybe had found a squeaky-toy and my mother wanted her to let go of it, but Maybe didn’t want to give it away. I called her and she came running towards me with the toy in her mouth. I suddenly “remembered” that she liked drinking a certain disinfectant fluid, so I got the disinfectant and sat down on the floor. I told her to let go of the toy and as soon as she dropped it I gave her some of the fluid. I poured it in my hand and as she was drinking it I picked up the squeaky-toy and put it in my pocket. Then I squirted some of the disinfectant on the floor and Maybe sniffed it, but didn’t show any interest in licking it up. Suddenly it dawned on me that giving my dog disinfectant fluid to drink probably wasn’t healthy for her, but then I “remembered” giving it to her many times before without her getting harmed by it. Then the dream shifted. I was still in my childhood home and I was looking at the plants in the window sill. There was a wooden bench in front of the windows and the plants was placed upon it. One plant was a Epipremnum pinnatum that I brought home from my grandmothers house after she passed away this summer. Another plant was a Dracaena warneckii that I got from my boyfriends mother a few years ago. The plants had grown so big and they had looong branches that my boyfriend had hung up on hooks on the walls. The long branches hung from one hook to another across the windows. At the tip of one of the branches on the Dracaena plant there was flowers. The kind of flowers that a Schlumbergera gaertneri gets in the spring. I placed the flowering Dracaena branch in the window sill so it would get some extra light, thinking to myself how odd it was to have a flowering Dracaena… I went to get a watering can so I could give the plants some water. They looked dry and thirsty. I decided to give them some fertilizer in the water, but thought to myself not to add too much since the soil was dry and too much fertilizer would burn the roots. I added some fertilizer to the water, but it was veeery little so I went to add a little bit more. Then I suddenly realized I was pouring the fertilized water back into the bottle with the consentrated fertilizer. When I realized what I had done I tried to take the water out again, using a teaspoon… (I hope my dog's name, 'Maybe', didn't confuse anyone reading the text.. lol..) Then I woke up… Dream signs: (Taken from the dreams in this journal and previous dreams.) Being a passenger in cars. People from my kayaking club. Bears/wolves in a forest. My dog and cat. Flying. Kayaking. Playing chess. Men (After all… I am a woman... lol…). Plants. Houses (childhood home and my current home). The most important dream sign is houses. I often dream about being in my current home, but it looks different. It always has a huge basement with a lot of different rooms that are aligned in a straight line, one room after another. There are also many bathrooms that sort of look like public restrooms. The bathrooms are always flawlessly cleaned (white and shiny) and they have several cubicles with toilet seats and sinks. (I find this bathroom thing very strange… lol…) People from my kayaking club are also an important dream sign, along with kayaking of course. My cat and dog often turn up in my dreams. As of late I’ve apparently started being a passenger in cars. This is a brand new dream sign. Flying and bears/wolves in a forest are also an important dream signs. (Even though they don't appear too often I feel that these signs are important, because my encounters with these two signs exclusively happens in dreams.)

[Serenity]

We were going to change to paddling clothes, and I went up on something similar to a rooftop to change my clothes. I tried to find a shielded place, because I was a bit embarrassed to take my clothes of in front of J. Lol, I do this in dreams a lot! Just randomly change in front of people And re: Dream #3 - damn those false memories!! Bathrooms are a dream sign for me, too... only they usually look deplorable, and it's hard to find one that's private. Start remembering these things, like changing in public places, or the way washrooms always are, and remind yourself during the day that when you see it next, chances are very good that you're dreaming right now

[Chessica]

Lol, I do this in dreams a lot! Just randomly change in front of people Well, sadly this does not only happen in my dreams. lol... When kayaking one often have to change out of dripping wet and cold clothes, just so you won't "freeze to death". haha.. And every now and again there is no private place to do it, so I have to undress right down to my underwear in front of the men in my kayaking club... (they have to do the same, so I can get a peek myself..) And re: Dream #3 - damn those false memories!! Yes, damn them!! It's apparently a good dose of faulty logic there too...... Bathrooms are a dream sign for me, too... only they usually look deplorable, and it's hard to find one that's private. Start remembering these things, like changing in public places, or the way washrooms always are, and remind yourself during the day that when you see it next, chances are very good that you're dreaming right now I will start doing RC's everytime I undress or walk in to a bathroom. Sooner or later the RC's will creep in to my dreams too! (btw: It's a good thing I'm not the only one dreaming about bathrooms... I was starting to wonder a little about what's going on inside my head... lol)

[Chessica]

Dream fragment: Something about kayaking. Dream fragment: I dreamt something about buying a boat. It was a wooden boat which had rotten wood on the sides. It was falling apart. The boat was painted brown and blue, and it had a metal sign hanging at the bow. The sign read: Get out of the way! (Or something like that.) Despite of the sign it was evident that the boat had crashed into something, because the bow and the sign was all crunched up. I found it ironic that the sign warned to get out of the way and yet something apparently had failed to do so… New dream… I’m standing in my kitchen, although my kitchen looks different than IRL. There’s a small window on one of the walls, and I can see that it is pitch dark outside. Suddenly I see a movement outside the window and I get really scared. I leap to safety behind a wall, hoping the “thing” don’t see me. I’m shivering from fright. I realize I have to go see what the “thing” is, and I go to the window again. Something flies past really fast, and I leap to safety again, still shivering… Once again I get up and walk to the window. The thing keep flying swiftly past the window, and every time it fly past I hit the window with my hands, trying to scare the thing away. It keep flying past the window and I start opening the window a little and shutting it again with a bang, still trying to scare it away. Every time it fly past it gets a little bit brighter outside, and eventually it’s so bright that I’m no longer scared. (IRL I’m afraid of the dark.. lol..) I turn away from the “thing” and face the other way in the kitchen. I see two potted plants sitting on the kitchen counter. They resemble some kind of Bromeliaceae, but they have roots like an Amaryllis (or an onion). Suddenly I have a couple of sickle like tools in my hands. I raise my arms over my head and violently run the sharp ends of the sickles into the roots of the plants. The roots snap in half and I can see that they are white and moist inside. I then go to toss the plants in the garbage, but then my dream shifts and I’m in my living room. Only it isn’t my living room, it’s a kind of museum. There’s a carved wooden sculpture of a Native American woman (the sculpture is of the woman’s head only). The sculpture is also a clock, but it doesn’t have digits, only hands to show the time. (I’m uncertain of what the handles on a clock is called in English…) The face of the clock is on the side of the face on the sculpture, and there’s a metal plaque with the number 164 on the forehead. A woman (a museum guide or something) is talking about the sculpture, and she’s explaining something about ‘the rule of four’. It has something to do with a ‘perfect weight’ (in kilograms). The guide says: ‘every one of you has met her’. She’s talking metaphorical; it has some kind of spiritual meaning. I was frowning of the spiritual nonsense she was talking about. She also mentioned a connection to homeopathy. I felt almost embarrassed to be in the same room as these ‘believers’. (IRL I’m a very down to earth Skeptic). Then I see a member of my chess club, a fellow Skeptic, and feel relieved that I’m not the only Skeptic present. He’s looking at the clock/woman sculpture with an almost humorous look on his face. The dream shifts a bit and I’m talking to a member of my kayaking club (BI), BI says he believes in this ‘rule of four’ and the sacred numbers (164). His wife is helping him put on a suit that is supposedly going to help him attain this ‘perfect weight’. BI says to another member of the k. club; ‘I want a suit like the one you have’. The suit he’s referring to is a big, lumpy, white suit with four legs. (The legs of this suit are all placed beside each other, not in pairs like on an animal. Maybe the ‘four’ reference is referring to the ‘rule of four’?) The ‘special suit’ is used for some sort of water dancing… New dream… I’m walking through the workshop that my boyfriend works in. I’m thinking of the fact that I have just found out I’m pregnant. (I’m not, btw… And I don’t want to be either…) The coworkers of my boyfriend are looking at me and I know that they know I’m pregnant, but they don’t say anything to me. I sit down at a computer, the software don’t work properly. I open a program that monitors wildlife. It has a function that enables you to see where the wildlife is and the different animal’s movements in the terrain. (For some reason it especially focuses on badgers…) All of a sudden I find myself standing by a table and I’m dressing the table with aluminum foil. A tiny rabbit appears on the table, and I’m very curious about the rabbit. I’m talking to a dream character, asking him questions about wild rabbits. I remember wanting to pet the cute little furry thing. Then I woke up (I had been sleeping for about 5 or 6 hours), and I wrote down my dreams in my journal while lying in bed. When I had finished I fell asleep again... Dream fragment… I’m playing with my cat. We are outside and I pick a long straw of grass to use as a toy. I drag the straw through the grass and my cat chases it. New dream… I’m in a mountain village, the place my mother grew up. My family is there and I’m eating cake. Me and my cousin go down to a cabin and enter it. We hear some noises from the basement, we are both startled and my cousin shouts out; ‘who’s there?’ We walk down the stairs to the basement and there’s a woman there. She looks frightened. Suddenly I realize it’s the mother of my sister in law, and I wonder what the … is she doing here? She doesn’t belong here in this village/situation. (Here I wish I had done a reality check in the dream, but alas… I didn’t…) All of us start laughing about how frightened we became when we heard noises of other people in the cabin. I go outside to smoke a cigarette and my cousin comes with me. She starts telling me about her husband, she tells me he was previously married to her mother. I’m deeply shocked by this, and my face shows it too, but I don’t say much about it since I feel it’s none of my business. New dream… I’m looking at one of my aquariums. I’m raising ‘Triops longicaudatus’ in it, but there is only one left. It looks dead, and I think ‘Oh, no! Not the last one too, now I won’t get any eggs to hatch later’. Then I “remember” that they play dead for a while after shedding their exoskeleton (which is a false memory). After I “remember” this the Triops suddenly comes back to life… I also have some plastic bags with fish in them sitting on a counter top (I’m suddenly in my mother’s kitchen). One of the bags contains a Betta splendens male with a rare type of coloring. Apparently it’s not my fish; I’m only keeping them for an acquaintance. I then realize I can’t remember how to get in touch with this acquaintance, so I don’t know how I will be able to return the fish to her. I stress about this for a while… Dream fragment… I’m in a grocery store; I want to buy a ‘taco wrap’ because I’m very hungry. When I get ready to pay the store clerk wants 71 kr. (that’s about 9 euro) for the tiny meal. I start laughing out loud, and say he can forget about it. I was expecting to pay maybe 2 euro for it, so when I hear the price I say I don’t want it after all. I go outside, and suddenly I’m in Ireland. I see policemen around me everywhere, and I wonder what’s going on… Then I woke up again… Day residue: Kayaking and members of my kayak club. The member from my chess club. Being skeptical of things. Playing with my cat. The mountain village. Triops and fish. The taco wrap. (not the price, though…) Plants. False memories: Being pregnant. “Remembering” that triops play dead for a while after shedding their exoskeleton. “Remembering” that the fish was not mine; that I was only keeping them for an acquaintance. Faulty logic: A mysterious thing repeatedly flying past outside the window. Cutting the roots of plants with sickles. My living room being a museum. ‘rule of four’ and the ‘sacred number’ 164. Suit with four legs. Dressing a table with aluminum foil. My sister in law’s mother being in my mother’s hometown. My cousin's husband previously being married to her mother. Suddenly being in Ireland. Hints that I was dreaming (when I think about it all of the things written above are actually hints.. lol..): People being in places/situations where they don’t belong. Being in my home, but my home looks different. Software on computer not working properly. Suddenly being in another country without remembering how I got there. My cousin telling me the shocking news about her husband.

[Serenity]

The sculpture is also a clock, but it doesn’t have digits, only hands to show the time. (I’m uncertain of what the handles on a clock is called in English…) I think it is hands, actually. A woman (a museum guide or something) is talking about the sculpture, and she’s explaining something about ‘the rule of four’. You should google that phrase and see what it turns out. (For some reason it especially focuses on badgers…) Mushroom, mushroom >.> (Here I wish I had done a reality check in the dream, but alas… I didn’t…) All in good time! Rome wasn't built in a day These habits you start to build now will take some time, but they will eventually carry over into dreaming. Consistency and perseverance is key!

[Chessica]

I think it is hands, actually. Thank you! It was a real headscratcher... You should google that phrase and see what it turns out. Can't believe I didn't think of that! Well, I followed your advice and googled it. Turns out it's actually both a bestselling book, and a custom of the United States Supreme Court which dictates that if four justices decide that a case is worthy of being heard, the Court will agree to hear it. I have never heard about any of these things before. Interresting! Mushroom, mushroom >.> Not sure I quite understand... Mushroom? Does that have anything to do with badgers? All in good time! Rome wasn't built in a day These habits you start to build now will take some time, but they will eventually carry over into dreaming. Consistency and perseverance is key! Yes, you are right! And this course will help me on my way! Thank you for your comments and advice in all of us students workbooks. It's very helpful and motivating.

[Chessica]

I’m outside the building where my chess club has meetings. Two of my friends which I haven’t seen in a long time are there. (Gr + Ki) There is something going on, we are making a documentary about how to maintain good water quality in an aquarium, or something like that. Ki asks me to come to her so she can film me talk about aquariums. I do that, but suddenly a former teacher of mine comes towards me. He’s telling me I shouldn’t disturb my friend’s project, I should let them try making this film by themselves. I try to explain that I didn’t mean to butt in, that I was asked to join them, but he doesn’t want to listen. I feel a bit angry at my teacher for giving me a hard time for something I didn’t deserve… All of a sudden I’m watching TV. Dr. Phil is on; he’s talking about a mistake he made when setting up his aquarium, and that he’s going to set it right. He’s got a small aquarium, about 150 litres, and there are 10 huge Balantiocheilos melanopterus swimming in the tank. Dr. Phil says he‘s going to give those fish away and buy some new fish that are more size appropriate for the tank. He does this, but buys about 15 huge Symphysodon aequifasciatus, which are equally unfit for the tank size he’s got. I think to myself; ‘what a moron’… I turn away from the TV, and see my friends from the chess club. I start talking with T.H. As we stand there talking a plane comes out of nowhere and crashes to the ground behind the building. We run to the back and see the plane lying in pieces on the ground. There were no people inside it, however… Me and T.H walk over to the plane and start to examine it. I’m thinking to myself; ‘this is really unbelievable!’ And then; ‘Maybe this is just a dream?’ I do a RC.. I pinch my nose… I can’t breathe… I try poking my finger through the palm of my hand… It doesn’t work… I’m thinking that this is real life after all, but decide to do one more RC. I climb into the crashed plane to look at the clock inside it. The time is 05.04, I look away and then back again and the time is 10.58… !!! What?? Really?? Oh, I’m dreaming this! I jump out of the crashed plane and grab hold of T.H’s shoulders. I tell him; ‘we’re only dreaming this, it’s only a dream.’ I’m very excited, I almost can’t believe that I’m actually having a lucid dream again, I have to remind myself to calm down so I won’t wake up. I start looking at things around me so that I won’t lose lucidity, I keep telling myself over and over; ‘this is a dream, this is a dream’… But as I’m walking back to the front of the building I lose lucidity, and it’s back to a normal dream… T.H. comes up to me and says he’s got to go home; I say ‘ok, but you’ll call me later?’ He says he will and asks when I will go to bed this evening, I say he can call as late as he wants because I will stay up late. He walks away, and I go inside the building to play in the chess tournament that’s being held. When I get inside the building I see my fellow chess playing friends sitting in the kitchen. The club leader O. is standing in front of them talking about how he’s going to have to go back home to get his keys. He explains that he cannot simply take the keys from the table at his home, because the table has a pressure sensitive alarm on it. I think to myself, rather sarcastically; ‘wow, what an “important” guy… He has to have a fancy alarm system in his house… hah! (frowning)…’ O. walks out, and I do too. I walk over to a school yard; it’s a kind of university or something. I’m trying to find someone who can light my cigarette. I see two of my former class mates and walk over to them, and one of them has got a lighter. I light my cigarette and walk to a bench in the middle of the schoolyard. I sit down and suddenly feel very awkward about myself. My clothes don’t seem to fit me; my pants are too short and I try to pull the legs of the pants down over my shoes. I can’t, because they are so short. I decide to leave, so that no one will see that my clothes don’t fit me. I walk back in the direction of my chess club building again, but as I am on my way I wake up… My boyfriend woke me up very briefly at some point this morning, I remember him talking to me, but cannot remember much more. I fell asleep again without making any notes in my journal. I think this is why I only remember one dream from tonight. Day residue: Aquarium stuff. Being at my chess club. Doing RC’s. The guy in my chess club having to go home to get his keys. (not the alarm thing, though..) False memories: None… Faulty logic: People I haven’t seen for a long time are present. Gr. and Ki. making a documentary film about aquarium maintenance. My old teacher appearing. Dr. Phil talking about setting up his aquarium. Plane crash. The pressure sensitive alarm connected to O’s table. My clothes not fitting me. Dream signs: People I haven’t seen for a long time are present. People from my chess club. Plane crashing. RC's used: Nose pinch - fail Finger through palm - fail Time, double check - success

[Serenity]

Not sure I quite understand... Mushroom? Does that have anything to do with badgers? You have to promise to listen to at least until you see the mushrooms... otherwise, it still won't make sense. Badger Badger Badger.com! The Original Dancing Badgers! He does this, but buys about 15 huge Symphysodon aequifasciatus, which are equally unfit for the tank size he’s got. I think to myself; ‘what a moron’… I turn away from the TV, and see my friends from the chess club. I don't really understand this, but it made me giggle, anyways The time is 05.04, I look away and then back again and the time is 10.58… !!! What?? Really?? Oh, I’m dreaming this! YAYYY!!! Good job!! And I'm jealous, I never remember to do more than one Sorry that you lost it straight away, though. With time, that will get better. You did the right thing to remind yourself that you were dreaming! Sometimes, it helps to stop the dream and do a stabilizing technique, like rubbing your hands together, or looking at your palms. Another thing to do is to take a moment and get a feel for what dreaming feels like. Once you get used to the feeling, it's harder to lose your lucidity!

[Chessica]

Sometimes, it helps to stop the dream and do a stabilizing technique, like rubbing your hands together, or looking at your palms. Another thing to do is to take a moment and get a feel for what dreaming feels like. Once you get used to the feeling, it's harder to lose your lucidity! Thank you for these tips, Serenity. Very helpful! I will try to do this the next time I have a LD. (btw... That badger-badger thing almost hypnotized me... lol)

[R00]

Wow Chessica great job - I'm jealous! You recall is fantastic and you are obviously becoming more conscious in your dreams - congratulations. I now have something to aim for hehe. I used to be able to recall alot more than I am these days (am only remember short scenes) and by reading your posts I've now remembered the potential that exists and how much better it feels to recall more of one's dream adventures. So are you doing RC's quite regularly throughout the day?

[Chessica]

Thank you, R00. You're very kind. I agree with you when it comes to the dream recall issue; it does feel very good when you can remember the adventures you've been experiencing at night. (who needs TV or movies when one has dreams? ) I have always had good recall, even without writing a journal, so I feel lucky not having to work very hard at it... Although, sometimes recall can be hard for everybody, especially if you wake up and have a lot to do that day (stress and all that...). About the RC's, I'm not doing them regularly throughout the day yet. I do them when I'm reminded of it (like right now... lol...), I'm trying to get into the habit of doing RC's every time I see a dream sign (when I enter a new room, when I'm out kayaking, when I see my dog etc...) and when I see something weird or extraordinary... I think it might be helpful to do RC's as often as possible though, not only when dream signs are present or I see weird things.

[Chessica]

I’m on a small boat in the Pacific Ocean. I’m not alone; there’s another girl on the boat and I feel as though I know her. I look around me and see other boats just like the one we are on, maybe 5 or 6 of them. I get the feeling that we’re lost at sea, and we’re all aiming to get to safety on a small island in the distance. When the shoreline of the island comes closer we all suddenly have kayak paddles in our hands and we’re paddling the boats towards the beach. The boat is really picking up speed, which I find a bit strange since the boat is too big to be paddled with these paddles. The boats reach the island and I jump out into the water. The water is waist deep, it feels nice and warm, and it’s of the brightest light blue color. There are waves coming in and I hold on to the boat’s railings as the waves break over me. I feel delighted and happy as the waves come rolling towards me, but when they brake and flood over me I feel a little scared. The waves are suddenly much bigger, and one of them tips the boat over. We manage to turn the boat upright again, but in the process of turning the boat upright I feel frightened that there might be sharks in this part of the ocean. I see shadows in the water around me, and I feel it’s urgent that we get back into the boat. Back up in the safety of the boat I realize the shadows in the water are large seals, not sharks. The waves push us up on the beach, and we all go out of our boats and start to haul and pull them further up the beach. The island is deserted, there’s no shelter and the sun is merciless. I notice I’ve gotten quite sunburned. The nighttime is setting in and we’ve apparently found a source of fresh water, my friend from the boat and I carry a bucket of water to a storage place near the beach. On our way there the dream shifts a bit, and we’re no longer on the island. We’re now on a large ship and we place the bucket of water in a cabin. I can see two small cages in the cabin, in one cage there is a cat and in the other cage my dog is sitting looking at me. They’re locked in because the captain on the ship is resting and don’t want the animals running around disturbing him. I open the cages and let the cat and my dog out; they follow me to my own cabin. Dream fragment: I’m watching the TV show ‘King of Queens’, Carrie is angry at her boss for something. I don’t remember anything else from this dream… New dream: I’m working at a postal office. It’s Christmas eve and my job is to see to that all the packages and gifts are sent out. I’m feeling a bit sad that I have to work and can’t spend Christmas with my family. One of the gifts I’m sending out is for a friend of mine, I don’t know this friend very well and I’m wondering if he’ll like the gift or not. I’m sending him a calendar with pictures of horses on it. Suddenly I feel embarrassed because after sending it I remember that this gift was originally bought as a gift for a 12 year old girl, and it’s not a suitable gift for a grown man. The phone rings and distracts me of this embarrassing mistake. I answer the phone; my mother is on the other end. She’s calling to comfort me since I can’t be with them and celebrate Christmas. She tells me about how she and the rest of the family soon will be eating dinner, and as she is telling me this I can feel the mouth-watering smell of food seep through the phone and fill the room I’m in. Then I woke up… Day residue: Kayak paddle Waves My dog King of Queens False memories: Feeling that I know the girl on the boat The reason why the animals are in cages Remembering that the gift was intended for a 12 year old girl Faulty logic: Rowing a boat with a kayak paddle Turning the boat upright after it capsized (the boat was small, but not small enough for this to be manageable.) Sudden change from being on an island to being on a ship. The smell of food seeping through the phone Dream signs: My dog Kayak related stuff Water and waves

[Matte87]

Very nice recall Chessica! You will definitely learn how to LD frequently within no time And congratz once again on your first LD!

[Chessica]

Thank you, Matte87. Actually I've had my second LD now... Yeyy! With your 23 LD's I consider you an experienced LD'er already, so I'm hoping you're right about me learning to have frequent LD's in no time. (Oh, and congratulations on the dreamfruit!)

[Chessica]

Dream fragment: I’m walking around in my home town talking to a dream character about the fact that the earth is flat. It isn’t a discussion; it’s something we both believe to be true. It’s a warm summer night, and there is some kind of celebration going on. New dream: I’ve just gotten a package by mail. It is a gift from a guy I know only by name. I open the package and find some pieces of clothing. It’s a black leather skirt, a pair of jeans and a pair of socks. The skirt is beautiful and looks very expensive. I try it on; it reaches down to my knees. It has a small belt to go around the waist, and the shape is slim over the hips, but widens as it reaches the knees. The leather is very thin and very soft, so the wide part of the skirt lays in beautiful folds/waves around my body. (My English is somewhat poor when it comes to describing how clothing looks, sorry…) I love the skirt, it’s perfect. I try on the jeans; they fit perfectly too. They are of a grayish blue color, slim and with flared legs. Then I look at the pair socks, they don’t seem to fit in with the other two items in the package. They’re thick and woolen, grey with very bright blue coloring around the toe of the sock. I’m thinking they look comfy, but I will never use them because they’re so ugly. I look at the skirt again, I want to wear it to a party I’m going to tonight. Then it dawns on me that I can’t keep the clothing; I have to send it back. I can’t accept an expensive gift from a man I don’t even know. This realization pains me a bit, because I find the skirt so perfect and beautiful. I’m considering the possibility of just giving the man the same amount of money that he spent on the clothing, that way it would no longer be a gift, more of a purchase. I really want to keep the skirt, but I know the right thing to do is to just give it back. Giving him back his money for it would just offend him, as he wants me to accept it as a gift. I sit down; I’m thinking that I’ll never be able to find another skirt like this. It’s a perfect fit. I’m torn between my greed to keep the skirt and the feeling that it would be inappropriate for me to accept the gift. I’m also wondering why he sent it to me, since he doesn’t really know me at all. New dream: I’m in my family’s cabin in the mountains. It’s summer. The weather is sunny and I’m enjoying the feeling of freedom that the magnificent nature brings. I can see the mountain tops around me, and I want to go climbing. I step inside the cabin to find a map so I can decide which route to take up in the mountains. I pick up a map and walk outside again. When I open the map to take a look I see that it’s not a map of the mountains, it’s a map of Denmark. Only it doesn’t look like Denmark, the country is divided into many small islands, and I think to myself that I should have paid more attention in geography class when I was at school, because I can’t remember Denmark looking like this at all… Suddenly I hear a voice calling my name; it’s my cousin A. She comes walking towards me, she’s laughing and smiling. Then she reaches in her pocket and takes out a small box. She gives it to me and I open it; there’s a bottle of perfume in the box. The bottle is pink, lilac and white and it has ‘mother of pearls’ written on it. She tells me that I must wear this perfume in her wedding. It smells sweet and lovely. (Btw… I have a feeling that this dream must be connected to the first dream, because I remember thinking that the smell of the perfume would go nicely with the look of the new skirt ). New dream/fragment: I’m sitting in a small room. I’m waiting for someone who’s in the next room. A woman comes over and tells me that ‘not everybody is allowed to enter this room’, because there is therapy in progress in the next room. I say ‘ok’, and tell her I’m waiting for a person to come out of therapy. There are pairs of shoes neatly put next to each other along one of the walls. I remember I left my shoes on, and I think to myself I probably should take them off. I do so, and put them with the other shoes by the wall. I sit down and continue to wait for the person to come out from therapy. (I think the therapy had something to do with trampolines…) Dream fragment: I’m in my mother’s house. We’re sitting in the living room talking with each other. There are three lighters lying on the table. They are almost identical, and I’m trying to figure out which one is mine. There are other people present in the room; I think it’s my mother’s aunt and her husband. There is a smell of coffee in the air, and there are cakes on the table. I hear children’s laughter. Day residue: The guy who gave me the gift in the dream. The socks… The cabin in the mountain. Map. My cousin and her wedding. Visiting my mother. Lighter False memories: That the earth is flat. That the guy wants me to accept the package as a gift. That the reason for sitting in the ‘shoe room’ is that I‘m waiting for someone. Faulty logic: The earth is flat. Getting a package from a guy I only know by name. The way Denmark looked on the map. The ‘trampoline therapy’. Dream signs: The cabin in the mountains My mother Funny looking map

[Serenity]

About the RC's, I'm not doing them regularly throughout the day yet. I do them when I'm reminded of it (like right now... lol...) Here's a secret... I very rarely ever remember to do RC's when it's things like walking under a door, or dream signs... But I do them when I think about them, which, when I really analyze it, means I am still doing them hourly, but UNPROVOKED. Thinking about dreaming and doing a RC unprovoked by anything is the end goal, here. The doorways and the dream signs are the catalyst to the habit. The end goal is awareness. (My English is somewhat poor when it comes to describing how clothing looks, sorry…) It's just fine!! This clothing dream feels like it was a message from the subconscious. I'm not good at interpreting dreams for other people, but in your shoes, I would sit down with this dream and think about what it means that you couldn't accept the clothes. As in, do the clothes represent something else?

[Chessica]

I’m very sorry I haven’t been able to write here for a while. I’ve been having trouble with my internet connection. Now I’m back and will try to make up for the lost time! 27/28 september: I’m taking a kayak class. We’re supposed to learn a new fancy roll. I’m standing on the beach, and I start walking towards the water. I jump in, the water is very deep and I’m sinking rapidly. I can taste the saltwater. I’m kicking wildly in the water, trying to get to the surface. After some struggling I get to the surface and swim to shore. When I’m back up from the water I explain to a dream character that I forgot to put on my life vest. I see it lying on the beach and I put it on. I then sit down in my kayak and paddle out on the water. The dream shifts… I’m back at the beach. I’m trying to tell a DC and my father in law something, but they just ignore me. Only when I stop talking they notice I’m there and urge me to go on with my story. I just wave my hand at them, somewhat annoyed, and walk away. This repeats itself a couple of times. Dream fragment: My best friend sends me a present. It’s a small brown package with a poem on the outside. It’s evidently a birthday gift, but it’s not my birthday and I’m thinking it’s odd that she sends me this gift. She ought to know I don’t have my birthday in several months. After all she’s my best friend and her birthday is 3 days after mine… Dream fragment: I’m sitting in someone’s living room with all my cousins from my mother’s side. Though I know they are all my cousins the only ones I can recognize is L + J., the rest of them are dc’s. We’re talking about TV series we used to watch when we were kids. As we’re talking I’m sitting in a chair picking small pieces of paper and tape from my black winter jacket… 28/29 september: I’m working at a grocery store. J from my chess club is working there too. We’re walking around whistling a tune while we’re working. As we whistle I notice that the ‘time’ (not the tone) in the tune is wrong. J doesn’t have the right rhythmic ‘time’ and it’s very annoying. I try to teach him how to be dead on the rhythm and time in the song, but he can’t do it or don’t care. We start working again (I’m still annoyed that he’s not right on the timing of the tune) J is washing some refrigerators; he’s using a bright blue bucket to carry soapy water and a sponge. I’m tidying up products and place them in shelves. J. starts talking to a customer; he’s joking around and having fun. He seems to know this person. After talking to this customer for a while he comes over to me and asks if we can play a board game. Since it’s very quiet in the store I say yes, but explain that we have to let the last customer pay for his groceries first. I walk over to the cash register and sit down. I have to start up the cash register and when I turn it on I see that it’s got a weird monitor. It’s a touch screen and I have to press it to choose different settings. I have to choose between it being a right hand controlled cash register or a left hand cash register. While I’m trying to figure out how to work this weird cash register J. is talking to me about something irrelevant and I’m telling him to be quiet in a somewhat harsh matter. I can’t concentrate when he’s talking. 29/30 september: I’m buying some equipment for my kayak and some kayak clothing. I’m trying to find out which size paddling shoes I should buy. I’m also asking the store clerk how to take care of the equipment; how should I wash the life west and spray skirt? Is it easier to wash a sprayskirt than a life west? How about the drysuit? The dream shifts and I’m out on the water. Jh. is paddling next to me. We’re at sea and I can taste the salt on my lips. Suddenly J’s phone rings, but he doesn’t answer it. It keeps ringing and I realize it’s not his phone; it’s mine… I answer it, and I wake up… (It turns out it was my alarm clock…) 30/01 september/october: Dream fragment: I’m walking over the bridge in my hometown. I’m humming a tune of the band ‘Dumdumboys’. A lot of people are there and they’re standing on the old bridge pillars in the water. Some of them are jumping in the water; it seems like some sort of organized activity. Like they’re playing a game or something. There’s a weight lifter lady there too; she’s having trouble lifting a heavy weight and people around her start saying ‘she’s really not that strong, you know…’ Dream fragment: I’m doing some maintenance in my aquariums. I notice the Nesaea plant is not doing well; it’s loosing its leaves and is clearly dying. I decide I have to sell one of my aquariums to get the money to buy more lighting for my planted tank. My cat is sitting next to the aquarium as I’m working in it. She spots a fish and wants to catch it; she jumps up and right in to the glass of the aquarium. I laugh and turn around to tell my boyfriend how silly our cat is acting. I say; ‘Ha-ha, look at what ‘My’ just did!’ I wake up realizing I’m talking in my sleep… 01/02 october: I’m out paddling my kayak. I’m all alone and have decided to go for a weekend trip. I paddle in to the bank of the river. Apparently this is where my mother’s aunt and uncle live (M and H), and I want to visit them. I realize the cargo rooms in the kayak have filled with water and I think to myself it’s lucky I didn’t sink. I lift up the front of the kayak, getting ready to turn it upside down to empty it out, when I realize I’m inside M and H’s house. I’m standing in their living room about to empty the water from my kayak on their living room floor. I put down my kayak, happy that I realized this before any harm was done. I’m pouring the water in to a bucket instead, using a cup. M starts talking about how the carpenter that built the house hasn’t done a good job, she says the walls have cracks in them, but I can’t see any cracks… There’s also a kitten in the room. It’s playing and having fun as kittens often do. I think it’s very cute. The dream shifts… I’m in my mother’s house and I’m telling her about the kitten. I also tell her about my kayak leaking in water in the cargo rooms; she says she thinks it sounds like it’s dangerous paddling that kayak if it’s leaking. The dream shifts again… My mother is driving me somewhere. I’m supposed to compete in a paddling contest. When we arrive I realize I’ve forgotten my drysuit and I start jogging back home to get it. It feels good jogging, and it’s going quite fast. I don’t feel tired at all. I get my drysuit at home and start jogging back. When I get back the race has already started, but I hurry to put on the suit and push the kayak on to the water. I’m ready to start just before everybody has disappeared around the first turn of the river. 02/03 october: I’m sitting on my boyfriends lap. We’re on a swing. We’re talking about a strange construction that has suddenly appeared behind our house. It’s very big; like an electric tower or something. I find it so strange that I tell my boyfriend ‘maybe we’re dreaming’… I do a RC just for fun, I laugh as I do it because I’m obviously awake. (!) My boyfriend laughs too; he thinks I’m a bit silly doing a RC when it’s so obvious this is real life. I pinch my nose shut, and can breathe through it!! I say to my boyfriend; ‘this IS a dream’, but I don’t really believe it myself so I do another RC (finger through palm) and it fails. I say; ‘this is real life after all’… (It really felt so much like real life... I'm so suprised of how real it all feels even though it's just a dream.) We keep talking about the weird tower, and then the dream shifts (I dreamt something in between, but I can’t remember what it was)… I’m driving a car. I’m having some trouble stopping and I drive past the house I’m supposed to go to. It’s some kind of kindergarten or school or something. When I finally get there I see that it is not a school; it’s the house that my grandmother used to live in. My aunts are there and they are acting as though I have some nerve showing up there as it is their house now after my grandmother died. I feel sad and a bit angry, but I leave the house without arguing as everything there seems strange and unfamiliar now that my grandmother is gone… Then I wake up… Assignment: I think DILD will be the best method for me as I have trouble waking up for a WBTB. I find it very difficult to wake up before I’ve had 9 hours of sleep (even with an alarm clock). The DILD and DEILD will suit me better than WILD, I think. I also think that, even though the RC failed somewhat in that last dream, I’m starting to become a bit more aware in my dreams. With that in mind the DILD method might be good enough for me to start having LDs more regular. I just have to work more on the RCs in real life. Dream goals: -Flying -Summon Jh. and spend time with him. -Win the chess world championship. (lol)