Monday 29 February 2016

Dreams: Dream Interpretation, Dream Incubation & Lucid Dreaming

PLEASE SUPPORT THIS EXCITING LUCID DREAMING PROJECT!

Hi Dreamers!

Today I am inviting you to contribute towards an exciting lucid dreaming project! One of my lucid dreaming friends, who is part of the our very active and rapidly growing lucid dreaming community is launching a children's book, written and illustrated by himself, which will teach children how to overcome their nightmares by learning how to lucid dream, utilising a range of fun lucid dreaming tools. In order to bring this brilliant, creative and worthy project into fruition, the author Stewart Bell, has set up a Kickstarter page to help with funding. If anyone is able to assist, please click on the link I have provided below - it is certainly something I would strongly encourage you to check out!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/362528014/the-cupboard-of-fear-storybook-lucid-dream-tools


Please also check out Stewart's excellent Youtube Channel ('Stewart Bell - Learn to Lucid Dream') by clicking here, which will take you directly to his Youtube homepage where you can access his informative and entertaining lucid dream tutorials!

Dream Incubation Experiment - Serial Killer Dream

I am going to conduct a new Dream Incubation Experiment! This dream incubation experiment was decided upon by accident! I was making a very general Youtube video for my channel, covering topics ranging from my most recent bizarre dreams (lesbian sisters of my friends; my new career as an expensive prostitute; golden showers  from half-human/half-monkey women); lucid dreaming; dream interpretation; and knife/stabbing dreams (see my post 'Interpreting Popular Dream Themes - Knives & Stabbing' by clicking on the title, as this article is very relevant to my new dream incubation experiment) when I came up with the idea of incubating a dream where I am a serial killer! 

I have an interest in true crime, criminal law and criminology as this is my area of professional and academic expertise, as well as being a subject I have always been fascinated by on a personal level. There is not much more to it than that - I know some people may find this distasteful or controversial, but dreams are an area in which fantasy is possible and does not necessarily reflect waking life behaviours or predisposition/desire to act out our subconscious thoughts. 

I do not want to be too prescriptive with this Dream Incubation Experiment - I would rather let my subconscious do all the work - from choosing 'victims' (or 'targets'); mode/method of killing and how I evade detection from law enforcement. 

I am not going to set a particular time frame for carrying out this experiment - I will aim for approximately 14 days (as usual), but will continue to try and incubate a successful dream on my chosen theme until I get some results.

Here is the Youtube video which inspired my latest Dream Incubation Experiment:

I will do the following to incubate my chosen dream theme:
  • Perform the MILD Technique for lucid dreaming on a daily basis. If this dream is a lucid dream, it will therefore be a DILD (Dream-Initiated/Induced Lucid Dream).
  • Incorporate elements of Tholey's Combined Technique for lucid dreaming, which has been reviewed as the most successful (cognitive) method for lucid dream induction. I will adapt the key steps of critical reflection, intention and auto-suggestion so that I not only encourage myself to become lucid, but use these as a way of incubating my desired dream theme.
  • Use visual aids - such as photographs relating to my dream incubation theme - as well as immersing myself in material relevant to my dream incubation during my waking hours. I will also keep the written prompt for my dream incubation under my pillow and make sure I read it before going to sleep each night.
  • Where possible, I will perform the Wake-Back-to-Bed method.
  • Incorporate my chosen dream theme in both my daily reality checks (15 - 20 per day) by thinking clearly and positively about my incubated dream theme after each reality check.
  • Train myself to spot dreamsigns when reflecting on my Dream Journal entries each day following a dream - then hopefully, if my dream incubation is successful, recognising the dreamsigns within the dream (i.e. meeting a dead celebrity would be a dreamsign in the context of this experiment) and reality checking will trigger me to become lucid.
  • Meditate on my incubated dream theme for at least 10 minutes before sleep and perform specific affirmations alongside the normal MILD Technique/Tholey's Combined Technique ones ('I will lucid dream about [incubated dream theme] tonight, and I will remember it') - this should also encourage successful dream recall.
  • Use Dream Visualisation before sleep - using my previous dreams based on the incubated dream theme as inspiration.
  • 100 - 150 mg of 'lucid dream supplement' Vitamin B6 (2/3 x 50 mg pills)


I have had some successful and unsuccessful previous dream incubation experiments, which you may like to read:

Dream 571

'Making a Lava Lamp'
Dream date: 27 February 2016

Scene 1: Interior, Location Unknown - Day
I was in a house - it felt like my house in the dream and various members of my family - my Mum in particular - were present throughout the dream. I cannot recall the context, but I was making a lava lamp for someone (a female dream character, who I cannot recall). I was putting a blue substance in some oil, hoping it would work when I 'switched it on'. After some time, I was finished, and I turned the lamp on. I was pleased to see that it worked just as a lava lamp should. I wondered if I could add some purple 'lava' to the lamp and also was confused as to what substance I had actually used to create it. I had been anxious I had made it wrong and it would be dangerous to turn it on, but then relieved to find that everything was in fact working fine and completely safe. I then was looking at the top part of the lamp's casing and saw there were some small animals carved out of wood, which I wanted to replicate/clone. I decided that I wanted to clone the rabbit and a bird in particular, so I used my finger like a computer cursor to point at the small carved animal figures, and this allowed me to clone more. I decided that I wanted to keep the lava lamp for myself, but my Mum said I was obliged to give it to the person I had designed it for.

There was a scene where I was going something in the garden of this house. I felt happy and peaceful and enjoyed being in the garden. I think I was collecting/gathering something from near/under the hedgerows, although I cannot quite remember. I may have had a basket with me. or a box/container of some kind.

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

TIME: 00:30 - 09:30 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:
  • None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • I was performing in an auditorium

Recurrent Dream Themes:

  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:

  • I had been watching a home interior design show recently and this inspired me to play Sims 3  so that I could design a house for my sims. In game, you can use a clone tool to copy an item or a pattern. I had put a carved wooden rabbit sculpture and some decorative lamps in my sims' home
  • The day of this dream I had been discussing AD's family's electrical business with him and DL
  • The day of this dream AD and I had been discussing how the storm troopers/Clone Army in the Star Wars movies had been cloned from a bounty hunter, 'Jango Fett'

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:

I quite enjoyed this dream even though nothing exciting happened in the parts I have been able to remember. The strongest feeling linked to this dream was how desperate I was to keep the lava lamp I had made rather than giving it away.

* I have forgotten some parts of this dream, but if I remember anything else I will record it below.

Dream 570

'Weird Party'
Dream date: 25 February 2016

Scene 1: My Nan's Bathroom, Sheringham - Day
I was in my Nan's bathroom and was looking at the bath. I was shocked to discover that the bath was filled with blue bath towels (they looked like waves on the ocean, but I knew they were towels). There was a lot of shit (human excrement) in the bath also. My Nan reassured me that she would be washing them and I was content that they would soon be clean. 

Scene 2: A Party/Holiday Resort, Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was then in a holiday resort where a party was taking place. The whole area, which was an interior scene was filled with dream characters, some known and some unknown to me in real-life. There were a number of tables and chairs in the area (which appeared to be a bar or nightclub) and also big mattresses on the floor. I was with a male dream character, based on someone I know in real-life, although I cannot identify who it was. There was some action, which I cannot recall. I was then sitting on one of the mattresses, surrounded by other people, with a older female dream character standing in front of me/us, on a raise platform. It was quite dark in this corner of the room. The female handed me  a piece of rotten banana skin which I was being dared to eat on camera to entertain an audience, as well as those watching me in person. I took the piece of banana and ate it - it tasted disgusting and I was thinking that it might not actually be banana skin, but something 'worse'. The dream characters watching me eat it started to cheer and were impressed!

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

TIME: 21:00 - 06:00 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:

  • None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • The weird towels which looked like waves of the ocean and the shit in the bath

Recurrent Dream Themes:

  • Laundry

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • The day of this dream I had been watching a video from the Saccone-Jolys, an Irish family, living in London, who upload daily vlogs on their popular Youtube channel. In the video I watched, Anna Saccone-Joly (the mother) was telling Jonathan Saccone-Joly (the father) that she had accidentally put one of Emilia's dirty nappies (diapers) in with the washing and the shit had covered their clothing and bath towels, meaning they needed to be washed again
  • The day of this dream I had been hand-washing some towels in my bath because I did not have enough washing to justify going to the laundrette. One of my towels was covered in navy-blue hair dye, which is why I needed to scrub it with soap to get the stain out
  • The day of this dream, my friend LD2 told me that he was going away to a holiday camp for a short break

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
I woke up from this dream feeling quite positive and happy, even though nothing particularly interesting or nice happened in it. I think I enjoyed the holiday resort and there were elements of the dream I have forgotten which made it more exciting and pleasurable than the parts I have recalled and recorded here.

* I have forgotten large parts of Scene 2 - if I recall anything else, I will record it below.


Wednesday 24 February 2016

Dream 569

'Whoring Myself Out for a New Home'
Dream date: 23 February 2016

Scene 1: Cromer, Day (The entire dream took place here, in various locations, as noted)
I was in Cromer with members of my family, NN and members of her family also. Our families were helping us move to a new home, which was a small flat in a building on a corner, above a business premises (it may have been a laundrette, as there was one on the ground level as we stood outside the flat) The flat was in an actual area of Cromer which exists, but was slightly different (more metropolitan). I have managed to work out approximately where the flat would be (see images from Google Maps/Streetview, below). It is an area very close to where NN's older brother and sister-in-law (friends of my Mum) used to live when NN and I were children.

NN and I were very excited. There was a scene where we were simultaneously in a wooded area and at the beach, standing outside a cafe or pub (there were tables outside and canopies, which made me realise it was summer. I could then see there were a lot of tourists around, which is true of this seaside area in summer). I was standing beside the seafront tables and some trees in the forest (it is hard to explain, but it was a composite scene). I asked NN how much the rent would be and she said: 'Typical price', which I took to mean £500 or £600 per month, which would be £250 or £300 a month each. I thought this was reasonable, but wondered where I would earn the money from. 

We went down the street towards our new flat. First, we looked into a pub, which was next to the flat, aware that this was a party hotspot and very popular as a hangout. The pub looked like a traditional pub, with wooden fixtures and fittings, reminding me of the downstairs of Delaney's Irish Bar, a pub which used to be in St Andrews Street in Norwich, but has now closed down. There were a number of young males in the pub, some of them smoking cannabis while sitting around a table. The pub also had the feel of a cafe as well, and NN and I were pleased to live beside such a lively place. We went up to our flat.

The flat, which looked down directly onto the street below was small, and already decorated. I was pleased to note that there were a number of posters of Marilyn Monroe on the walls, some featuring her with a man, who was a professor. The rest of the walls were covered with obscure and niche cult movie pictures and images of musicians, artistic prints etc. I thought we should leave all of the pictures up. I assumed that after we had arranged our possessions in our new home we would be going out to party in the street. NN said that we had to arrange the beds first. In the main room (the one we entered as we walked through the front door), there was a single bed - a mattress on a metal bed frame (like my actual bed). In the other room, which was separated by a partition wall, with an open doorway (this being the kitchen/living area), there were two single mattresses, without a bed frame. NN said we should move the single bed with the frame through to the living-area and use it as a sofa, and bring the two mattresses through to the bedroom and put them together to make a double bed for us to share. I agreed, although I did not really want to share a bed. The bedding and mattresses were bright blue and powdery baby pink colours. After the beds were moved around, NN laid down on the double mattresses on the floor, up against the wall. She said: 'You can be on the edge'. I was surprised that she seemed to be going to sleep, as I thought we would now be going out to party, and it was still quite early. NN said: 'You can just watch TV while I sleep'. I was not happy about this, so decide to go out on my own. 

It was now dark as night had fallen. As I walked down the street (see images from Google Maps/Streetview, below), I became aware of what part of Cromer we were living in, approximately (although, of course, everything was altered by the dream, so it was more of a sense of what street I was walking down). I saw various people walking around and wondered if I could find a random group of people to socialise with. I saw a number of cars drive past. On the other side of the road was a man walking a St Bernard dog, which was bounding after him. The dog was the size of a cow and gave the impression of being animated, like a cartoon

I then came to a building where there were some people inside (I did not go in or see them, but I was aware and also knew they were tourists). I stood outside, looking at the buildings on the other side of the road. I wondered if it would be a good idea to become a prostitute, as this would allow me to earn money to pay my rent. I was quite happy and content with the idea and I thought I would charge: £50 for sex; £35 for oral sex/blowjob and £20 for a handjob. I wondered if these prices were too expensive; too cheap or just right and how I would find out. A short distance away I saw a father and a young adult son, and decided they would be good to socialise with, but had concerns whether it was safe to approach them. I kept thinking that there were various groups of people out that night and it must be OK to join one of them as I was desperate to have some fun.

TIME: 22:30 - 06:50 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:

  • None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • I was moving into a flat with NN - she was not a mother in the dream
  • The dog which was the size of a cow
  • I was happy to become a prostitute

Recurrent Dream Themes:

  • Blue
  • Beds/bed sheets

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • I had been talking about the cost of the laundrette the day before this dream
  • I had been for a walk in the woods/forest on the day of this dream
  • I had been watching an documentary about my favourite artist, Andy Warhol (1928 - 1987)  and in it there were some posters advertising an exhibition which had his famous Marilyn Monroe screen-prints. I also watched Factory Girl (2006), the story of his 'superstar', tragic socialite, Edie Sedgwick (1943 - 1971), and a similar poster, with the Monroe prints were included in that. There was also a scene where Sedgwick, played by Sienna Miller is unable to pay the rent on her apartment
  • I had been thinking about sleeping arrangements, prior to my friend AD coming to stay this coming weekend - see Dream 568
  • The day before this dream I watched a home interior design challenge show, where amateurs redesign and decorate a home to a brief - in the episode I was watching, the contestant used a bright blue colour and also a powder pink (which she wrongly described as a 'dusky coral'. There was another contestant who DL said was like a version of me - Middle-Eastern-looking with long black hair, a big butt and an arrogant, confident attitude and strong will - who was designing a room for a young girl. DL and I thought it was odd that the client - who already had a double-bed before the re-design, despite being a child, was content to swap this for a single bed 
  • I responded to a message from someone with 'you must think I am a right whore' the day before this dream
  • The day of this dream I had been watching one of my favourite documentaries, Black Tar Heroin, which was made by an imprint company of HBO and features the stories of a number of young heroin addicts living in San Francisco in the 1990s - some of which were forced into sex work to pay for their addictions

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
I really loved this dream, as I was so happy in my new flat and felt really excited, even when contemplating the idea that I might become a prostitute.

* I think I have remembered the majority of this dream, but if I recall anything else, I will record it below.

Dream 568

'Georgia'
Dream date: 22 February 2016

Scene 1: Exterior, Location Unknown - Day
I was aware - DL might have told me himself - that DL was in love with a female (I think it may have been a work colleague) called 'Georgia'. DL told me that Georgia looked like Brittany Murphy (1977 - 2009). I was annoyed, because I have been compared to this actress - especially when I had short blonde hair, or at times when she had long dark hair, as we have similar face shapes and features (minus the nose). I felt jealous.

Scene 2: A Blue Auditorium, Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was then in a blue auditorium, which had staggered seating set in the round, with a stage in the middle, The room was very bright in colour, and large. I was on the stage, with a couple of other (unknown) dream characters and some pieces of paper (also blue). Someone (one of the dream characters) was holding up a Cadbury Creme Egg. I looked around the crowd in the audience and was aware that Georgia would be present. I could not see her at first. Then I noticed that all the audience members were wearing name tags. I suddenly saw Georgia just to the left of the centre of the section of audience I was looking at. She was in the lower seats, about 2 -3 rows up, so close to the stage. She was a petite blonde woman, with blonde, shoulder-length hair and was wearing an orange shirt. I thought she didn't look that much like Brittany Murphy (upon reflection, and given the image of Brittany Murphy I am using to illustrate this dream, she actually did resemble her a little). I felt jealous and annoyed that she was there. I started reading lines from the pieces of paper I had on stage with me. These were not theatrical lines from a play, but were just sentences, which had some other meaning, although this was not clear in the dream - I think they may have been instructions for something or a list of telephone numbers? I was making the audience laugh and I was now aware that I was being really entertaining, which pleased me. I continued, and found I was a comedy success. I noticed that the notes I was reading from were handwritten in large letters (black ink) and was surprised how easy it was  to read aloud from the paper (in my mind I was thinking that it would be difficult to read the writing). 

Scene 3: Exterior, Location Unknown - Day
I was then in the exterior location again - I think it was in a countryside area as I remember seeing a lot of green plants and trees and a dirt path. The sun was shining. I was telling DL as we walked along that I looked more like Brittany Murphy than Georgia did and accused him of fancying her because she was thinner than me (Brittany Murphy died of complications arising from an eating disorder). DL was denying this and trying to pacify me, but I felt agitated and combative. 

Scene 4: My Bathroom, Norwich - Day
I was then in my bathroom in Norwich, brushing my teeth. I coughed and blood poured out of my mouth in big splashes. I felt panicked and concerned. There was an older woman in the bathroom with me (I cannot recall who she was, but she was unknown to me in real-life). She told me I needed to go and get help. Then, my former cleaner, Rachel entered the bathroom, saying: 'I hear Tony [my current cleaner] doesn't change your bedsheets anymore'. I said to Rachel: 'He's not supposed to, the cleaners don't come in our rooms...'.

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

TIME: 22:30 - 06:50 hours (I am not sure when this dream took place)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:

  • None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • I was performing in an auditorium

Recurrent Dream Themes:

  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:

  • DL told me a short while ago that he hates the name 'Georgia'. I was considering this as a name for a character in The Sims 3 around the time of this dream and the day of this dream saw a picture of Georgia May Jagger in the newspaper, where she had dyed blue eyebrows
  • There are lots of Cadbury Creme Egg promotions on at the moment, as we are approaching Easter
  • The day of this dream I was discussing the possibility of making a comedy makeup tutorial channel on Youtube - because I own a lot of makeup, but have limited makeup application skills, I thought it would be funny to try to copy celebrity looks - DL said he thought it would be a good idea, and that I should try and speak in my natural accent, rather than put on a more posh accent as I do in my Lucid Dreaming videos
  • The day of this dream I had been watching a documentary about Elizabeth Taylor (1932 - 2011), which showed her acting onstage in the theatre. My Nan always says I remind her of Elizabeth Taylor
  • The day of this dream I had said to DL (as we were walking towards a park) that I might have a lung disease (I don't actually think this, but it was in relation to a discussion about the effects of smoking cannabis long-term
  • I saw my former cleaner Rachel the day of this dream
  • My friend, AD, is coming to visit at the weekend and I had been thinking about sleeping arrangements and bedding

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:

This dream was really memorable, but it wasn't very pleasant, as I felt jealous and agitated throughout (apart from when I was performing in the auditorium, which was quite fun and exciting); and then I coughed up blood, which was scary.

* I may have forgotten some aspects of this dream, although my memories seem pretty clear. However, if anything else springs to mind, I will record it below.

Dream 567

'RBA's Lesbian Sister'
Dream date: 21 February 2016

Scene 1: Hotel Room, Location Unknown - Day
I was in a hotel room with RBA and we were smoking cannabis. Suddenly, an old man with a grey moustache and an old woman with her grey hair in a bun (both wearing glasses and cleaning uniforms) came into the room. They were the cleaners. They sat on the bed and then started accusing RBA and I of smoking cannabis in the hotel room. I said that it was: 'OK because we have a balcony'. At this point I looked behind me and saw we had a patio door, which was open, leading out to a very small ledge, which was not quite a balcony, but I thought it was sufficient that I was holding my hand (with a spliff in it) outside the patio doors, and therefore not actually in the room. It was grey outside - it looked like it was starting to rain and I could see other buildings and some greenery/trees from doorway. I could now see that the hotel room was decorated in red and white Christmas decorations, and the mood seemed more positive. 

Scene 2: A Lounge, Location Unknown - Night

I was in a lounge - a typical one, with sofas and a coffee table, TV, etc. It was night and the room was shrouded in a hazy blue light. I was with a female dream character. She was in her 30s and about my height with very short black hair. She had pale skin and no makeup. Her look was very 'masculine' if I had to stereotype it. I became aware she was RBA's sister and that she was a lesbian. I do not know her name in the dream. We had a conversation, whilst we walked around the small lounge in the dim blue light. We came to stand at one side of the room and RBA's sister took a keyring from me, which had a number of keys and different novelty tags, including a Micky Mouse one, which was blue and white and made from a thin rubber material. RBA's sister then preceded to remove all of the keys and the tags from the keyring, so they were separate. She placed them on the side unit which was next to me. I looked at them and said/thought: 'I'll have to buy a new keyring now'. There was more conversation, which I cannot recall. 

TIME: 23:00 - 07:00 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:

  • RBA does have a sister, which I know, because he told me. His sister is not (to my knowledge!) a lesbian

Dreamsigns:
  • The behaviour of the hotel cleaning staff and my response
  • RBA's lesbian sister

Recurrent Dream Themes:

  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:

  • I have smoked cannabis in a hotel room with RBA
  • A couple of days before this dream, I mentioned Rhona Cameron, who is a Scottish comedian and - and known as being lesbian. RBA is Scottish, which might have made the connection in the dream. The female dream character (RBA's sister) did look a bit like a younger Rhona Cameron, but nothing like RBA

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:

This dream was nothing special - it was neither good nor bad and nothing exciting or significant happened.

* I have forgotten one element of this dream. I think it is a part which happened early on, before I met RBA's sister. I remember 'remembering' it, but I didn't make a note of this dream when I first woke up, because it seemed to be a strong memory at the time. I then remember thinking about the dream at another point during my waking day, but forgetting the second scene with the hotel room, and 'knowing' that there should be 3 parts to the dream (which indicates I remembered the lost scene and third scene, with RBA's sister at that stage) - I then remembered the hotel scene and was happy I had 3 scenes recalled in full. I am therefore sure the memory will come back to me, possibly after I have recorded the next 2 dreams from subsequent nights (it may be that I need to clear my mind of other dream memories in order to think clearly about this dream). If I recall anything further, I will record it below.


Friday 19 February 2016

Dream 566

'Stealing RR's Boyfriend'
Dream date: 19 February 2016

Scene 1: An Interior Scene, Location Unknown - Time Unknown
I was in an interior scene. I saw RR - a girl from my high school, who I am not friends with in real-life. She was walking around the interior and I was aware that she had a boyfriend, who was a very attractive young male with olive skin and black, wavy hair. I wanted to be with this guy and I thought to myself that I would try and seduce him. I ended up in a bedroom with him, talking, while sitting on the bed. It transpired that the male also liked me too, and was more than happy for me to be his new girlfriend. He was making a pile of his clothing - they were all white items. I saw some 'fashionable' (my perception in the dream, not real-life) jeans, which had distressed denim effects - fraying and rips. He was going to wear these clothes for a date with me later on.

I felt no guilt whatsoever for RR. I then saw RR with AWB - I was confused as to how they knew each other, as they have nothing in common and live in completely different places, but it was as if they were best friends. I followed them. They both entered a different room, which appeared to be a bedroom, although the entire room was decorated with images of cannabis leaves and other cannabis-related designs. The overall effect was that the room was completely green and looked both tropical and inviting. RR and AWB sat on the floor - in a kneeling position, leaning forwards. They were facing away from me as I stood in the doorway, looking in. I saw they were cutting cannabis leaves out of fabric and paper - part of a craft project - and were talking and laughing together. This made me even more certain that I wanted to steal RR's boyfriend and I knew that he would be happier with me.

Scene 2: A Classroom, Location Unknown - Day
I entered a classroom - there was one long table running around the edge of the room and I took my place next to DL. There was teacher in the room - a mature female who was tall and thin with grey hair. I was aware that she was a 'witch' although this was not scary or nightmarish and she was not a threatening character. I was taking over as teacher - teaching a combination of Law (which I do in real-life) and History. I wondered if it was appropriate that DL was being taught by me given our relationship outside of the classroom and wondered if there was any possibility of bias or nepotism. Just as I was about to take over the class, I reached for my pile of papers and knocked over a potted plant with was on the table in front of me. I started trying to put the spilled dirt and plant back into the plant pot, while having a discussion with DL (which I have forgotten the details of).

I was keen to get back to RR's boyfriend - who was now my boyfriend too. He was at my Nan's house, waiting for me and I was aware that he was going to be travelling somewhere by plane the next day and I would not see him for a while. I thought I would miss him a lot. 

There was other, significant interaction with my new boyfriend in the dream, but I cannot recall what happened. I remember that I was very happy and content and I enjoyed this dream a lot.

TIME: 21:00 - 07:00 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information: None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • RR and AWB were friends

Recurrent Dream Themes:
  • AWB has a very similar first name to the name of my baby in Dream 565
  • Classroom - with plants on the desk

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • The male dream character - RR's boyfriend - was very similar to one of my friends from London, AF - a friend of PS, who is still on my Facebook friends list and was one of the nicest people I ever met. He is quite a fashion-conscious person who often dresses quite flamboyantly and could be described as 'metrosexual' (an old term from the 1990s which means a heterosexual man who has some of the qualities ans grooming habits traditionally associated with gay men - it is not a word in current useage so much as a result of the breaking down of gender stereotypes, but it is the only way I can describe him, although I also must note he is of Latino origin and his flamboyant style might also be influenced by that culture as much as anything else). I had mentioned AF a couple of days before this dream
  • The day of this dream I saw a comment which had tagged AWB in - AWB is not a Facebook friend of mine, despite having many mutual friends and being part of a common community of UK hip hop fans. We don't get along, as I had reacted badly when my ex-boyfriend PS, had casually dated her and still been in contact with me. I have seen her at a festival and been socialising in the same circle, but we remained at a distance and never spoke to one another. We have both moved on from the situation, but I feel our mutual animosity is now silly and hindering, given we have the same friends and interests - I had mentioned this to DL shortly before this dream
  • I had been watching an episode of a home interior design challenge series on TV and was surprised to see a mature couple had a big cannabis leaf wall hanging shown in the background of their kitchen (prior to the interior design makeover)
  • At work in my role as a Senior Resident, a student was named in relation to an incidence of discipline dealt with by a colleague - this was addressed at my team meeting on the day of this dream. I said I was 'shocked' by the allegation, as I teach him in my other role as a tutor of Law, and he is one of the nicest students in my class. I had been teaching earlier on the day of this dream also, just prior to the team meeting where my student was named

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
This dream was quite enjoyable to have, as I was really happy with my new boyfriend, despite 'stealing' him from RR

* I may have forgotten some parts of this dream. If I recall anything further, I will record it below.

Dream 565 (FALSE AWAKENING)

'I'm a Father!'
Dream date: 17 February 2016

Scene 1: An Interior Scene - Time Unknown
I was in a dark corridor - the light was blue and hazy. Everything seemed blue or grey toned and all I could see were the long walls either side of me, and a metal elevator door at one end. DL was standing beside the elevator door, and beckoned me over. As I approached him, he grabbed my arm to pull me closer. He then said: 'This is what I want you to see...' and showed me a video (on a laptop screen, which he had not been holding when I first noticed him in the corridor, and which I saw up close as soon a my attention was drawn to it). The video was of a woman giving birth. I thought it was disgusting and did not want to see the graphic scenes. DL said: 'We can enjoy watching this together', which made me think he was acting slightly strange. 

Scene 2: My Nan's House, Sheringham - Day
I was then in my Nan's house in Sheringham, with my Mum and Nan. The living-room was set up like a small cafe and we were sitting at a beige table, just beside the window. There were cups of coffee on the table. I was excited to tell my family the news I had - a male, WP, (known to me in real-life and someone I briefly 'dated' a few years ago) had moved to Yorkshire (so up north) and had just given birth to a baby girl named 'Arianna'. I was the 'father' of the baby - or at least, I was the other parent. I was saying to my Mum: 'I'm a parent now!' but my Mum was completely uninterested and was telling me that I should: 'Forget about it'. I thought she would be excited to be a grandmother, but she was not at all. I had a photograph of 'my daughter', but my Mum would not look at it. I felt disappointed and sidelined by her reaction. I am not sure what my Nan did/said, although I recall she also was not interested in my new baby either.

Scene 3: A Classroom - Day
I was then in a classroom - which was filled with people I attended high school with, including 'the farmers' - a group of boys who may not have actually been from farming families, but who were typical 'Norfolk farmer types' in appearance and attitude. Most of these boys would fall on the spectrum of 'educationally sub-normal' but they all excelled in agricultural sciences as a result of their upbringing. The same boys used to give me racist abuse when I was at school, being the only person in my year with a different ethnic background. My Mum was teaching the class - I think it was a science class. People were raising their hands to contribute to the class, but I cannot remember what was being said. The classroom was arranged very much like I remember my high school classrooms - tables of 4 - 6 people spread around the room. There were potted plants in the centre of the tables. My Mum was handing out items of makeup/cosmetics to each table - high-end brands and very desirable products. I was jealous that other people were receiving the makeup, even though I knew my Mum had given me more items than any of the other pupils in the class - I was looking into a makeup bag packed with makeup, still sealed in the packaging (many items had orange casing). I thought that I had the right to go around the tables of other pupils and demand that I take the items which I wanted since my Mum was the teacher and it was her who had provided the class with the makeup. I was slowly gathering items from other tables, much to the annoyance of the other pupils. However, at the back of the room, where 'the farmers' were seated, none of the tables would let me have the makeup items. The farmers would not give me the sparkly metallic eyeshadow palettes I wanted, and this was frustrating me as I was not sure why they wanted to keep them, given none of them would wear makeup (they are all homophobic and transphobic individuals, so none of them would ever entertain the idea of men wearing makeup). I went to my Mum to complain that I couldn't get the eyeshadows from the farmers, My Mum pointed out that I already had the same eyeshadows in my makeup bag, but I was not happy - I wanted EVERYTHING!

Scene 4: My Bedroom in Norwich - Night
I was then woke up in bed in my house in Norwich. It was night, but instead of being completely dark, the same dim, hazy blue light as in the first scene of this dream, was present. I looked at my set of drawers (which is next to the door) and saw that my housemate, SH, had brought home a laser printer and placed it on the drawers. I thought that this was useful, and I wondered what time she had arrived home and how she had put the printer in my room without waking me up. I decided that I should go back to sleep and then get up in the morning (I assumed, without looking at the time, that it was quite late at night) and use it to print my thesis drafts. It was only after I really woke up later on that I realised this had been a false awakening, although nothing had alerted me to this fact - I had truly believed that I had woken up and seen the printer on my drawers!

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

TIME: 20:00 - 04:20 hours (I am not sure when this dream took place)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information: None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • DL's behaviour
  • The appearance of my Nan's living-room which looked like a cafe
  • The fact a male had given birth to a baby and I was the father
  • My Mum was a teacher

Recurrent Dream Themes:
  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • I  had been watching Jam by Chris Morris the day of this dream. I had watched a scene in one of the sketches where an incompetent security guard fails to stop a  number of colleagues fall down a broken lift shaft - there was also a scene involving some farmer-like characters, described as 'the dung-breathed men who pick you up and van you to the Fens to wrestle pigs' (the Fens is an area of countryside in East Anglia, which covers part of my home county Norfolk. It is notorious as people joke about high rates of incest and bestiality occurring there as a result of the demographic, who are considered to be typically of a low intelligence and provincial in their views, coming from a sheltered rural community). I have included some screenshots of these characters from Jam below. These men are similar to the 'farmers' I attended high school with - dirty, ignorant, provincial etc
  • 'Arianna' is similar to the name of someone I know - and I had seen reference to the real-life person on Facebook earlier on the day of this dream
  • I had seen WP's engagement announcement on Facebook the day I had this dream
  • The day of this dream I had been watching some makeup tutorials on Youtube

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
This dream was really strange and I woke up realising that I had experienced a false awakening, although unusually for me, I had not become lucid (i.e. aware I was still actually asleep and in a dream state) when this took place. 

* I may have forgotten some parts of this dream. If I recall anything further, I will record it below.

Monday 15 February 2016

Dream 564 (NIGHTMARE)

'Golden Shower'
Dream date: 13 February 2016

Scene 1: A Public Toilet - Time Unknown
I was in a big, white public restroom/toilet. The entire room was tiled in white and brightly lit. Adjacent to the toilet cubicles was a large glass display, in which there was an odd-deformed version of JA - a former work colleague and friend who I have fallen out with following her betrayal. She was smaller than usual and seemed to be part-monkey. She was suspended by ropes, so it looked like she was hanging in the air, and there were objects also hang up, on the outside of the display cabinet, which looked like brown leather boxes and pouches. I knew the 'JA monkey' was a dangerous threat to me and was behind the cage for my safety. I went over to the display and started touching the brown leather objects hung on the outside of the glass. I looked into the display and saw there were plants/foliage/flowers in there, behind the JA monkey. As I touched the objects, the JA monkey reacted violently and aggressively, banging on the glass of the display which made me jump back in fear. 

I was then aware that I had a dream character companion in the room with me - I think it was a female, but I cannot recall anything about them, other than this person was my friend in the dream and I am not sure if they are someone I know from real-life. This person told me that I had to be careful because the JA monkey wanted to attack me. There was some  further action/conversation, which all took place in the same location. 

Somehow, the JA monkey broke loose from the display, which caused a panic. I knew other dream characters were now in the public toilet, but again, these were all people I knew in the dream. The original dream character informed me that the JA monkey was specifically out to get me, which caused even more fear. I was told the best thing to do would be to hide in a toilet cubicle, lock the door and wait until the JA monkey could be returned to the display cabinet. I did so - I noticed the toilet cubicle door was a deep orange colour and had a huge gap (of about 50 cm or more) between the bottom of the door and the white tiled floor, which worried me as it was obvious the JA monkey could slide underneath and get me this way. I could hear chaos and raised voices outside the toilet cubicle, and after waiting awhile, scared and anxious, I opened the door to see what was happening. 

The dream characters were all crowded around the toilet cubicle and when I opened the door, they tried to stop me, telling me to stay inside. They were all shouting it at me at the same time, but before I was aware of what was happening, the JA monkey jumped from the top of the cubicle onto me, knocking me to the floor. She then urinated on me - the stream of urine was bright yellow, hot and seemed to take ages to be released onto me - covering my entire body and face. There was at least 5 litres of urine and I felt dirty, disgusted, terrified, etc. The dream characters were screaming in panic and I was hoping that someone would help me as I felt like I was drowning in the hot urine splashing down onto me. The JA monkey was evil and wanted to kill me with the golden shower. After a period of time, during which the JA monkey continued to urinate on me while I laid on the floor, the original dream character friend grabbed her and handcuffed her, with the intention of returning her to the glass display. I was then reassured by other dream characters that the ordeal was over and I was safe, but I felt violated and shameful of what happened and was not pacified by the idea the JA monkey was back behind the glass cabinet, as she had been able to break free before and was likely to do it again. 

This dream felt like a nightmare because of the levels of terror I felt. I cannot recall what else happened.

TIME: 08:00 - 17:00 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information:
  • A 'golden shower' is where people urinate on each other for sexual gratification

Dreamsigns:
  • The whole dream was a dreamsign - it was all bizarre

Recurrent Dream Themes:
  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • The day before this dream I had been discussing 'golden showers' (generally - not from personal experience - with DL). I had mentioned that if I was forced to participate in a 'golden shower', I would prefer to be the one who urinates, not the person urinated on

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
This dream was awful - I experienced it as a nightmare and felt terrified throughout, and then ashamed and dirty afterwards. 

* I may have forgotten some parts of this dream. If I recall anything further, I will record it below.

Dream 563

'Dead Fish'
Dream date: 12 February 2016

Scene 1: A Hotel, Sheringham - Time Unknown
I was in a hotel, which I knew was in Sheringham, although it was not one from real-life. I was sitting on a sofa beside my stepbrother, JM, and we were in a relationship. There was some conversation between us, and we were hugging. I wondered what the family thought about this, given my stepbrother and his partner, NM, are estranged from my Mum and Stepdad (no reason other than JM's mother, my Stepdad's ex-wife, has some influence over the situation). 

I was then decorating a fish tanks - I had a number of small rectangular pieces of white foam-like substance, the size of approximately 1 cm x 2 cm. I was lining these up in a long row and painting them with a brown paint. I also had some 'fake' plants to place in my aquarium, which was a small, rectangular glass tank (the size of a domestic microwave). I looked into my fish tank and noticed that my fish were dead. There were all laying, still, at the bottom, on the gravel. There was one largish white-grey one at the back of the tank and I thought it was ugly - it made me feel disgusted to look at the fish. As I watched, I realised the fish were actually alive, but sleeping.

I cannot recall anything else about this dream.

TIME: 02:00 - 08:30 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information: None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • I was in a relationship with my stepbrother - a thought which disgusts me

Recurrent Dream Themes:
  • Water

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • A few days before this dream I saw an online riddle (see below) about how many fish are left in a tank - the answer is the starting number (i.e. all of them)

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
This dream wasn't particularly nice, as it was disturbing that I was in a relationship with my stepbrother, although fortunately this was not a sex dream.

* I may have forgotten some parts of this dream. If I recall anything further, I will record it below.

Sunday 14 February 2016

Dream 562

'Idris Elba Visit'
Dream date: 11 February 2016

Scene 1: A Pond/Lake - Day
I was standing on some grass near a pond/lake. I was with someone who I later recognised as Idris Elba (I cannot recall the precise moment I recognised that it was him). We were supposed to perform a task, which was causing me some anxiety, and Idris Elba was trying to ease my mind and convince me it would be safe. We performed the task - it was taking some black rectangular objects (which reminded me of i-Pads in size and shape) and then tying them with ropes and diving down into the pond/lake while holding them. I went under the water - it was clear and blue below the surface, but I did not experience the 'wetness' of the water in the dream. We did this several times - I am unclear as to what the purpose was.

Scene 2: A Cafe - Day
I was then in a cafe, at the cash register when I noticed my friend, ADT was behind me in the queue. I suddenly realised I had forgotten to reply to a message he had sent me (in real-life) about my availability to meet up with him when he has a forthcoming holiday from work. I was anxious to tell him that I wanted him to visit. I looked at my phone screen and noticed it was cracked badly. I was comparing this broken screen to someone else's perfect one and thinking that it was careless of me to break it when I had so long left on my contract and could not afford to get it fixed. The cracked screen cut my fingers every time I tried to use the touchscreen (although I did not feel the pain in the dream).

TIME: 04:00 - 12:00 hours (I woke up from this dream)
LUCIDITY: NO
SPECIAL NOTES: NONE OF NOTE

Dream Information: None of note

Dreamsigns:
  • The bizarre task I was performing with celebrity Idris Elba

Recurrent Dream Themes:
  • None of note

Potential Day/Dream Residue:
  • Before I went to sleep I saw an online article about Idris Elba
  • The day before this dream I was with one of my students who had a very cracked phone screen - I was watching him scroll through emails to find some information we needed

Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
This dream was more interesting to dream than it was to recall afterwards, when awake. This is common for me. I often perceive the dream as exciting and stimulating when dreaming it and then realise it wasn't quite as good as I experienced it when I think back upon waking.

* I may have forgotten some parts of this dream. If I recall anything further, I will record it below.