Sweet Encounters

I walk through the local mall, eyeing the stores on either side as I go. I enter a large open atrium and see a woman from work walking toward me. She is a beautiful Hispanic woman. She greets me excitedly, then rummages through her purse and pulls out what looks like a Danish but is actually made of gummy candy. She tells me that she bought it for her child but wants me to have it instead. I take the candy.

I wake up

Figurines

A Dream From The Past

My father and I pay a visit to Liberty Christian elementary school. While he goes inside, I find a secret, grassy footpath. I follow it. At the end of the path are many Native American figurines. I start gathering them. With the dolls in my arms, I search for my dad's truck but cannot call to mind where he parked. My dad exits the school and becomes furious with me for my bad memory.

Later that day, my dad and I are shopping at a galleria. I converse with strangers in an Australian accent. I wander through the mall, collecting stuffed animals as I go. I deliver them to a small store in the back, a corner where nobody shops. Dream ends

I wake up

American Life

Dream 2/23/2017

     I'm in an arcade in the mall. I step into a photo booth and snap a picture of myself. I reach into the drop box where the picture should appear and find several photos of previous picture takers along with napkins and an envelope. I take the envelope. Inside I find a load of money. I fold the envelope in half and slide it into my pocket with the full intention of taking it to the mall security office so it can be returned to its rightful owners.

I leave the mall.

     I'm exploring the barn at my Middletown, Indiana house. I walk over to a shelf and inside a box find stacks of home videos. I am ecstatic because I thought they had been destroyed.

     Walking down a street, I come across a dark, Gothic mansion. Locals call it Thorn Mansion. Somehow I find myself inside the large house. I find no one except for a wax statue of a man. The house hold lots of interesting artifacts but nothing to keep me here, so I leave.

     Someone plays a video game that I used to know. It looks so familiar. It is called "American Life." I used to play it at my cousin's house in Illinois. The game consists of the player creating towns and watching them grow and interacting with people and houses.

     My jeans lay on the floor. Inside one of the pockets I find the envelope full of money. I start looking through the bills and notice that much of the money is foreign. I don't recognize the currency at all.

     Some friends and I search for a restaurant to eat. The driver and I agree that we should eat at either Arbys or Jimmy Johns. My friend Adam says that he's craving Taco Bell. Also he is broke so I need to pay for his food. We decide to eat at Taco Bell. Dream ends.

I WAKE UP

Swell Timing

A Dream from My Past

I'm walking through a large, empty mall with my mom. We sit down at the food court and talk. We decide to leave the mall. We walk and walk and walk and walk. When we get to the entrance, she remembers that we parked at the other entrance. I decide to wait while she gets the car.

I'm walking up a snowy trail in Middletown, Indiana. There is a house on my left but I don't know who lives there. I keep walking. I think about the movie Schindler's List.

I browse the shelves at a local, used bookstore hoping to find an interesting read. I pull one from the shelf. It's King Kong. I loved the movies but never knew there was a book. I buy it.

I'm in the basement of a youth pastors house. I'd say about forty teenagers are here listening to the pastor speak. Another kid insults me. I decide to leave. As I'm walking up the stairs, the whole group of teenagers erupt into a brawl. Swell timing. Dream ends.

I WAKE UP

Much The Way

A Dream From My Past

The Apocalypse has come. Rumaging through the rubble, I come across my old hometown shopping mall. I walk through the various stores. Almost everything has been taken. I come across an old record store. A few pieces of vinyl lay on the floor. I pick up a record sleeve, wipe the dust from its face and read the records band, "Much the Way." Dream ends.

I wake up.