Airport Pets

Last night I dreamed that I was late to the airport. Though, even in my dream, I was not sure how I forgot about my trip to South Africa (Winter Term 2011), I was running out of time and was about to miss my flight. Luckily my bags had already been packed and I was pulling up to the airport with an hour left to go. The airport was surprisingly empty and I walked straight to the front of the line. I checked my bags and all of my friends had already gone and found their seats on the plane. Somehow, however, I forgot to pack my passport. Because the flight was about to leave, I did not have enough time to run home or for my parents to bring it to me. I called my mom and asked her to come and pick me up. Upset that I missed an international flight and was unable to go with all of my friends, I decided to wait to be picked up in the airport pet store... While I talked on the phone with my mom, I discussed with her whether or not I should buy an iguana. The iguana stared back at me as I decided to find another pet. When my mom arrived, we looked around until a Bull Terrier puppy came running up and jumping all over us. We both decided that we would impulse buy a new dog and we brought him home with us.

Interpretation:

To dream of an empty airport represents a change or delay in plans or goals. A passport represents an ability to traverse through various situations and can indicate a period of self-discovery. An iguana represents harshness or fierceness. It means that I approach problems with hostility and unstoppable determination. Seeing a dog represents both strong values and good intentions. 

The night that I experienced this dream I had just fought with my girlfriend. Though a pointless fight, I got overly angry and frustrated and had a difficult time dealing with my emotions. After we made up, my girlfriend assured me that I was a good person and that it was alright to feel so stressed out about everything (exams, social drama, etc.) I believe that my dream signified the self-reflection that I underwent before bed about my temper and the reassurance of my character that came later.

Jungle Dream

Last night I dreamed that I was running through a large, open field with a group of others. We were running towards the jungle and were trying to avoid being eaten by wild boars. I was the only one who made it to the edge of the forest. When I got there, I met a jungle woman who acted as my guide. She spoke broken, yet understandable English. She dressed my wounds and we hid from the attacking boars throughout the night. My wounds were severe and we made for a local village before I woke up.

Interpretation:
To dream of a field symbolizes freedom and happiness. To dream of a boar means that I need to look inward to answer questions or concerns about those around me. A jungle represents chaos or unpredictable circumstances. A village represents tradition and simplicity. While I am uncertain as to what my dream means, I believe it may be a representation of my free time. Because I have so much to do, I need to use all of my free time working. Lately, however, I have been wasting my time with friends or with other unproductive activities. Though down time is necessary to relieve the stresses of the day, I believe this dream represents the chaotic use of this time and my desire for structure in order to complete my work or "survive."

Kanye West Snoop Dogg Mall Robbery

Last night I dreamed that I was hanging out with Snoop Dogg and Kanye West. A strange dream already, things got even weirder when the three of us somehow ended up robbing a mall in the middle of the night. Seriously. Kanye went off on his own as Snoop Dogg and I decided to break into an electronics store. We stole a few TV's and I stole a projector. I broke off from the group and ended up in a library within the mall that was very old and very messy. The library had two floors, the top floor being a children's section that overlooked the entire mall. As I sat in the library in the dark, I saw a few security guards. I ran to get my two rapper buddies and the three of us made our way out of the mall and across the parking lot.

Interpretation: 

Dreaming of a mall represents an attempt to make a good impression on someone. Being in a mall means that I am trying to establish a stronger sense of self. To dream of stealing suggests that I am feeling deprived. Stealing also represents unrealized or unfulfilled goals. Often times this means that I have set my goals too high. To see a projector signifies the need to "project myself" and that I feel the need to make my presence known and my voice heard. A library represents a search for hunger and ideas. A library that is disorganized means that I am having a difficult time organizing my information and that too much information is coming to me at the same time.

While I am usually a very organized person, I have been feeling extremely overwhelmed by the amount of work that I have due before the end of the semester. I believe that this dream, with the exception of the celebrity guests, represents my inability to sort out and conceptualize the work that I have to do. This influx of assignments has made me question my abilities. Because of my increased stress levels, I have needed to look inward at my work ethic and dedication as a student. Though still stressed out, I feel better knowing the source of my issues and better able to deal with them. 

Night Terror: Vacation

Experiencing dreams in such a vivid manner has really changed the way that I sleep. When I go to bed, I feel like I enter another world and, often times, I am able to do whatever, wherever, whenever, with whomever. I wake up the next morning feeling like I have been awake for hours and remember all of my thoughts, feelings, and senses incorporated with each dream. My dreaming had been going great and I was really excited about how much I had learned about dreams and about how often I had been having them. My opinions on these experiences, however, changed a bit after last night. Apparently, as my dreams had become more vivid through the use of these various dreaming techniques, so had my nightmares...

The dream began with my roommate and I going on vacation with his family. Though I had met his mother before, she looked completely different in my dream. On the trip was me, my roommate, his mother and grandmother, and his little brother (which he does not have). The dream was going fine and everyone was enjoying themselves on the trip until his grandmother started acting strange. She became very ornery and curt with everyone. Though we could not understand what was wrong, we all decided to go to bed and to deal with it in the morning. That night, as I lay exhausted in the bottom bunk of a bunk bed underneath my roommate's little brother, I heard the door open and the grandmother walk in. She was speaking to the little brother and was saying strange things. Because I was so tired and pretending to be asleep, I recorded the conversation on my phone to listen to the next day. That morning, forgetting about my recording, I went about my day as usual. The little brother, however, started to act strange. He too became easily irritated and closed off from the rest of his family. A little concerned at how the grandmother and little brother were acting, I went back to my room to listen to the tapes. I can still hear the conversation. The grandmother was screaming curses at the little boy. She was telling him that she was a demon who was possessing his soul and that she planned to possess and kill the rest of us after him. He fought back but was unable to escape. He screamed for his life. The tape was horrifying and I was immediately scared. I went to sleep and woke up to find that my roommate's mother, too, was acting strange. As we were leaving, I finally caught my roommate alone. I broke down and began crying trying to tell him of everything that I heard. As I tried to tell him to listen to the tapes, I was suddenly unable to speak. No matter how hard I tried, I could not voice my warnings or tell him what was going on.

I woke up in the middle of the night screaming. I sat in bed shaking in a cold sweat for an hour before finally getting back to sleep.

Interpretation:
To see a tape recorder in you dream means that there is a message that I need to learn and incorporate into my daily life. To see someone possessed or to be possessed indicates a feeling of helplessness. To dream of demon possession indicates ultimate helplessness.
While I'm uncertain of what this dream means, I hope I never have it again...

Night Terror: Safari

Shortly after my terrifying dream about demon possessions on a family vacation, I was able to fall back to sleep for a few more hours. The next dream I had was equally scary and stressful...

For some reason, another one of my roommates, my girlfriend, and I were at a safari park. We parked my Jeep and I turned in my keys to the main building. Everything was going fine until there was a stampede of wildebeests. Somehow the animals broke free and were running wild throughout the park. The main building was knocked to the ground killing everyone inside. Luckily the three of us survived. After all of the wildebeests left, however, the big cats came. I watched a child's head crushed in the mouth of a tiger. His mother was helpless and could do nothing but scream as the tiger carried her son away. In a panic, my friends and I rushed to the rubble of the building to find my keys. The keys were everywhere and were pressed in the mud from the hooves of the stampeding animals. As I searched in a frenzy, I turned around to see a massive, blood covered lion staring us down and coming our way. Scared beyond belief, I had to make a decision. My roommate and I looked at one another and stood up in order to defend my girlfriend from certain death. Somehow, we were able to chase the lion away and find my keys. I woke up as we got back safely to my Jeep.

Interpretation:
To dream that you are on safari represents a desire to break free from the rules of civilization. To see a stampede signifies a need to show restraint. It represents wild and erratic behavior. To dream of a tiger represents power and an ability to exert this power in various situations. To see a key To dream of mud indicates that I am in a tough, stressful situation. To dream of a lion represents strength, courage, and aggression. To dream of being attacked by a lion represents challenges and self-destruction. Though I am still unsure what to make of the dream, I am glad its over. Both dreams were extremely scary and vivid. While I am usually able to control my dreams and avoid nightmares through lucid dreaming, I was unable to do anything in both cases. They were incredibly realistic. They were unbelievably terrifying.

Courage

My dream began with me looking for water. I was so thirsty and was driven by my need to find something to drink. I searched all across campus until I came to the Smith Building. Smith, the all-male, freshman dorm, is where I lived my first year at Elon. After I drank from the water fountain for a while, I ran into one of my friends. In my dream, my friend had just been promoted to RA of the entire building. She told me about a class that we both needed for our major that was being offered at nights. This class was unique in that it only met three times a semester. As we got to the class and met outside of the classroom with the teacher, we realized that not only was there only five other students in the class, but that they were shirtless. All of them! As I reached into my pocket and pulled out the key to open the classroom, my dream changed entirely. I turned the key and, all of a sudden, I found myself in the middle of the plot to one of my favorite childhood cartoons, Courage the Cowardly Dog. As is the plot to nearly every episode, I was trying to save my owner, Murial, from a monster while her husband, who hates animals, tried to prevent me from doing so. After a crazy battle with the monster, I saved my owners and was rewarded with a pat on the head and a warm, comfortable place to sleep.

Interpretation:

To dream of a water fountain means that I am feeling emotionally refreshed or rejuvenated. Also, drinking water symbolizes spiritual refreshment. To dream of a classroom represents personal growth. It means that I have learned an important life lesson or that I am learning something about myself. To dream of being shirtless indicates financial worry or a risky endeavor. To see a key represents opportunities or freedom. A key can indicate that I am locking away emotions or unlocking a solution to a problem. After completing a large class assignment and finishing packing for a weekend beach trip, I felt a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders. My stress levels dropped and I felt like I finally had some time to myself. This trip represented freedom from my schoolwork for a few days, however, the trip was very expensive and added a lot of unnecessary financial stress. Interestingly enough, a dream that is depicted as a cartoon may suggest that I need an escape from the stressful realities of my life. 

Lucid Dreaming and Multimedia

Jayne Gackenbach: Dream Writer and Researcher/ Former president of the International Association for the Study of Dreams


Gackenbach claims that there is a strong connection between video game play and lucid dreaming. She believes that, because video games increase absorption, reaction times, attention span, and spatial and problem solving skills, it enhances your sense of being within a virtual reality that is mimicked in lucid dreaming. In 2009, Gackenbach published evidence that links lucid dreaming to all forms of multimedia. She found that, through our advancements in technology, we have developed a much greater self-awareness. Her research suggests that because our society, driven by media, encourages these consciousnesses, we are innately developing our skills of lucidity. 


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