Your mom goes to my dream

... and so does everyone else.

For the sake of clarity, we'll number these:

Dream #1: I'm standing in the parking lot of my high school. It's the actual Newark HS parking lot, not an "it is but it isn't" thing. Lauren (one of my youth group girls) and her family live in the blue ranch house that borders the parking lot, where I remember Theresa Aubele (a classmate) living in junior high. Lauren's mom, Jody, keeps writing me encouraging notes and walking over to the parking lot to hand them to me. They were all super nice and encouraging, mostly thanking me for being Lauren's leader.

Dream #2: I'm at a Chinese restaurant in some suburban strip mall, and I'd just finished eating and paying, so I walk out. I think I was with a general friend at that point, but she left. In the restaurant, I saw Riane's mom, Nancy, and my college-freshman-year roommate, Amy Estes, eating. After I exit the restaurant and start walking along the sidewalk of the mall, I see them walking from the other direction, so our paths cross. I decide they won't recognize me even though I recognize them (since I hadn't talked to them for years, evidently), and even if they do, I don't want to talk to them. We actually make eye contact, and I say "hi"--but I said it in a way that indicated that I had never met them before and I was just being friendly, and keep walking. They didn't really say anything, but exchanged really annoyed/offended glances. I figure our encounter is over and I'm off the hook.

However, after we pass, they quietly turn around and start following me. I can tell that they're following me, so I start power-walking to someplace safe. Evidently, someplace safe was the women's public restroom, which happened to be nearby. I enter, hoping/thinking I'd lost them ... but alas, they follow me in since they're sharp enough to know that you can't really hide in the women's bathroom, and also, if you're a woman (which they both are), it's really not a problem to go in. They don't say anything in there, but leave, and after a few minutes, I leave too, hoping they gave up. But no--they're waiting outside, and I had some 'splainin to do. They're all "we know you recognize us but yet you just walk past and pretend you don't know us, and then you go hide--what's up with THAT." I'm all, "OH ... there you are ... I thought you were someone else ... you look different ... "

Same night of dreams, different plot: Aaron Rowand and I are in Wal-Mart, and he's searching and searching for the movie, The Prince of Egypt, cuz evidently he loves it. (We're searching in the toy aisle though, not in the electronics section where the DVDs are.) He asks me for help, because he can't actually remember the name of the movie, but I'm at a loss, too. I'm all, "uh I don't remember ... wait, I think the name of it is 'Moses.'" I feel like a freaking idiot cuz I can't help my boy Aaron Rowand with this one simple task, and I knew I knew the name of the movie, but I just couldn't think of it right then.

Later, I'm in a random locker room--not sure if it was supposed to be the Sox locker room or not--but it looked like a typical HS or college locker room. There's no one there except Aaron, my best friend from home, Kari, and me. He/we must've found the movie, except now he just has the soundtrack. He starts to play it, tells us how much this music means to him and how it touches him so deeply, and asks if we'd join him in meditating on the song by holding hands and closing our eyes. So, on the benches between the lockers, I sit between Aaron and Kari, hold both of their hands, and we bow our heads and close our eyes as the music plays.

Still same night of dreams, yet another different plot: I'm walking along Townhouse Road, which is a country road that leads out of town (town being, Newark, IL, where I grew up). I notice it gradually starts to flood, and I'm walking into it, so I'm trying to decide if I should keep walking--if I should go through it, around, etc. (was I goin' on a lion hunt?). Somewhere along the line, the road kind of disappears and turns into a field of really green grass, and the sun is shining really brightly. This whole time, I'm on the phone with the Gat, and he's trying to help me out and tell me what to do, although he's really not that much help cuz he can't see the flooded road/grass/field.

Somewhere along the line, I hear that George Roach has died. I'm not sure if the Gat told me on the phone, or if I was actually talking to George at some point on the phone? (And he informed me from beyond?) I remember being sad, and I went to Jen and Leigh and Donna's because they would know about wake and funeral arrangements and stuff. Note: in my dream, J/L/D's apt. was, in actuality, Kibibi's apt. I arrive and see they have the TV on ... and George's funeral was on TV, like he was a dignitary or something. I thought this was weird, but I sat down and watched it with them.

Dream #3: I'm looking for Christie Thompson (friend from HS) at my church from home ... I search out the stairwells, the sanctuary, the kitchen, the basement ... we finally find each other, and I guess we have to sit through a service or meeting of some type in the basement. We get there late and find a chair (the church-basement-kind of chair), and I look around to see who's there. I see Carlye Begnaud, who is taking some time off from her missions stint in Tijuana, in the next section of chair rows over. She has dyed her hair really dark red, and she's wearing lots of really dark face and eye makeup. I'm confused by her appearance, and make a note to ask her what the deal is with her new look after the service.

**Ummm. So this is what happens when you remember your dreams all the time but only find time to blog once a month. Sorry. I have like five more to go. Feel free to get up and run around the block and come back. Or just run around the block. Whatever.**

Dream #4: I'm in a Lowe's Home Improvement store, except ... it's also a fitness center ... and there's a mini-bar upstairs ... and also, it's not all-the-way built yet. My brother Todd is there, helping to build it, and he's all moving 2x4's and hammering and laying down tarp. Kat is also there, just coming from her workout, so we chat a little bit. I decide to stay and help out Todd, and then I see Wiese, who is also there for some reason. (Wiese=friend from HS whose real name was Jen Wiesbrook, now it's Jen Hamer). She's sporting a really high side ponytail, which I thought was weird cuz it's so 1987, but then I thought, it's Wiese, and she wouldn't do anything less-than-cool--so the side pony must be back. (Note: this had the exact same feel of a previous dream where Cory Whitehead had a mullet, but I figured they were back in, since it was Cory.) Wiese and I talk for awhile, updating each other on life, and then I guess I needed to leave. As I walked out the automatic/foot-sensor glass doors, the really great, soothing music from the current Lowe's TV ad campaign played, and I woke up with that tune in my mind.

Dream #5: I'm driving home, and I come to a rest stop, which is on the corner of Rte. 47 and 71, where the Shell is in real life. The rest stop is run by the Vejvodas; it's actually where they live. It's a ranch with the living room and kitchen in the center of the house and the bedrooms down the hallways. I walk in, and Mrs. Vejvoda shows me where I'll be sleeping (they take "rest stop" literally). Emma and Molly show me their rooms, which they share. It contains two single beds, some decorative stuff on the walls, and a curtained window.

Dream #6: I get on the Metra, which I'm taking into the city. I think I was with some friends. The Metra--at least this corner of it--is decorated like a living room (almost an RV feel). It has a TV in the top corner, rugs and curtains, and a couple barcaloungers. I see that the Gat's friend, Dave, is sitting in a barcalounger, and I go over and talk to him. While I'm trying to chat, Val keeps calling my cell phone and checking on directions to Wrigley Field--evidently, I'm meeting her there. I keep telling her, but she keeps calling back cuz she didn't get em or something.

Dream #7: I'm at Judson, and I'm late for class. I decide to ride the shuttle bus to class and I see Pastor Ron walking to class. Also, Pastor Ron was my history prof. I figured, since he's late, I'm fine--I'll beat him there anyway.

Dream #8: I'm at home, in the house in which I grew up. Amy, my little sister, and some of her friends are trying to light the drapes on fire upstairs in my old bedroom. They aren't having much success because the drapes are really heavy and polyester, and not super flammable. My mom and dad aren't there, so I'm in charge, and I thought something shady was going on upstairs. I decided to wait it out and see if she really lights them on fire, but I have my best friend and neighbor, Kari, wait outside her house (across the yard) so I can signal to her and she can get her dad if things get out of control. Sure enough, the drapes go up in flames, so I stick my head out the door, signal to Kari (evidently getting help had to be a secret), and she gets Jeff (her dad). Jeff, being the good volunteer fireman he is, calls the fire dept., and they rush over. Also, the fire dept. is like less than block away. They save the day, and Amy gets busted.