Dreams, Flying Birds, and That's Life!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/babs4180/4347305428/

Have you ever wondered if you were dreaming and awakened to find you were?  Or, better yet, how do you know that you're not still dreaming, and only awake while living in your dream? 

(Oh, God, is Rich getting philosophical with us 

this week?)

What if none of us have yet to be born?  Could our entire life be a fantasy while we're still in the womb?  Could we still be a fetus, consumed in adult thought patterns, which would better prepare us for the life ahead once we see the light of day?  

(Kind of makes your number of Facebook Friends and Twitter Followers 

insignificant, doesn't it?)

And, "No, I haven't been doing acid." 

(At least not since the 70's.  Where's the damn flashbacks when you need them?)

I'm guessing that you have had at least one dream that influenced your life. 

(Oh, c'mon, I'm not talking about when you awoke 

from your first puberty experience.) 

I'm talking one in which something happened to which you woke up saying, 

"Damn, I know what to do now!" 

Whether it prevented you from doing something dangerous or embarrassing, or pushed you to travel beyond your safe zone, it had an affect on your life.  You're either a better person for following it, or a better person for recognizing that your subconscious wanted you to go forward and you should not have failed to listen to it. 

(We all learn from our mistakes. 

I've learned to always keep one's drug supplier's phone number safe,

if I can ever find one again!)

I remember dreaming that I could fly.  It was a beautiful summer day and one of my friends was running towards the back of the yard.  I was running behind him, and suddenly found that by holding out my arms and waving them, I was gliding in the air.  The harder I "flapped" them, the higher I rose.  I had been given the gift of the bird.  It was a gift I'd attempt to share with others my entire life.

(In fact, I can't tell you how many people I've given gift of the bird to over the years!)

It truly changed my life.

(Especially, in my "troubled teenage years" 

in many high school yearbook pictures, lol).

No, This Isn't Me ...
I Slipped In Mine In Much Cooler Ways!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/light_seeker/5563049245/

Anyway, this is another Finish The Sentence Friday.  Here is the obligatory JPEG listing the wonderful people hosting this hop, as well as the rules of the hop:

Each week, the hosts (or, "hostesses" if you may), start a thought with an unfinished sentence.  It is then up to those of us that participate to complete the thought with creations either from our past, present, or our deepest fantasies.  This week, the thought to get us started is:

"If I could go back and do something over it would be..."

So, this is supposed to be where it gets good.  

(My God, how do we ever live up to all the hype????)

"If I could go back and do something over it would be … 

to do it the same way."

I've had a tremendous amount of fun in my life.  I never looked at it as fun while I was doing it, but after it was over, it had to be classified as that.

Okay, so what am I talking about?  Have I really gone off the deep end this week?

Perhaps, but let's look back. 

I've always tried to live my life to the fullest.  True, I haven't amounted to much in the eyes of those who measure success by wealth.  (Of which I've squandered many times.)  Yet, the experiences I've shared are more than many would ever imagine doing in their lifetime. 

No, I've never been in a porn movie … yet!

During my high school days, I got to enjoy the perils of being in school politics (Student Body President, Class President 2 years, and Student Council), multiple clubs, sports teams, and other so called "popularity contests."  During this time, I also held jobs mowing lawns, breaking horses, and working in a grocery store. And, "Yes", I always did have a girlfriend.  

(Maybe I should revamp this post.  I did have a time in a high school Sociology class that I could do over.  It concerned a former girlfriend ... sitting next to me ... and whose top rose up exposing a bare small of the back.  Daringly, I reached over, and slowly worked my hand (and then arm) down and inside the back of her jeans.  Suddenly, a knock at the door occurred and my present girlfriend of the time (who was an office assistant that period) entered with a note for the teacher.  Immediately, my former girlfriend sat straight up quickly, nearly breaking my arm!  When I was finally able to get my hand and arm free, that one took some explaining, lol!)

One might say that I was a little busy during those days. 

(My grades showed it too!  lol)

College, and military days intertwined as I used the G.I. Bill to go back to school after having visited many countries throughout Europe and Central America.  There are many things I did (both in college and military) that cannot be discussed openly, but the experiences they provided made some adventure movies look boring by comparison.

(Does jumping out the window of a campus building that's been taken over 

by students to escape the authorities storming the building count?)

Next, came a career in radio announcing, followed by stand-up comedy and then business.  Times were good, bad, exciting, and lonely.  The third time I was engaged I finally got married.  It was the charm as I inherited two kids when I selected my wife. I've enjoyed their love and endured their pain.  Walking the oldest down the aisle to be married has been my life's proudest moment.

(Followed closely by the first time my wife ever reached the peak …

and I was actually there!)

I Captured This four footer In SE Arizona ...
Watch Out, Terrye!!!!!

The many phases of my life contained trying different adrenalin packed experiences.  These included snow skiing, water skiing, skin diving, sky diving, dirt track auto racing, high performance car racing courses, attack dog classes, hurricane disaster team, and firearms training.  My specialty tended to be working with (and hunting in the wild) venomous reptiles, as well as performing venom extractions (milking) for the research of others into cancer treatment and Alzheimer's Disease.  (This nearly took my life a couple of times.)

(Yeah, I know …..   "Ewwwwwwww, you dummy!)

So, what's next?

I'm still looking into bungee jumping off of a bridge over a river. 

(I may be old, but I'm not dead!)

I've enjoyed life, instead of simply going through it.  No, I've never reached the heights that many thought I'd achieve when I was younger.  Primarily, it's because I always wanted to reach higher and in another direction.  If it's there and worth doing, then why not do it? 

Yep, I'd do it all over again and not change a thing.  

Well, maybe I wouldn't have lost the number to my drug supplier, but besides that …..

555-1964 ....no ... 555-5465 ... no ...
555-6567 ... no ...555-2323 ... no ...
555-6776 ... no ... 555-4345 ... no ...
Damn it!!!!!!

Living In A Dream?

My wife classifies me as a bear when I wake.  
I can't figure out why!
stockfreeimages.com

I had a dream last night.  That may not be odd for you, but I never remember my dreams.  Dreams are only dreams to me, that have no recollection of dreaming.  

Why did I even type that?  Genius?  (Damn, I am dreaming!)

My dream put me into a home setting.  Not mine, but someone else's.  I have no idea whose.  In fact, I have no recollection of anyone else being in this dream that wasn't somewhat faceless.

No, it wasn't as though a bunch of people were running around with no faces, duh.  It's like all were blurred because they really weren't that important.  I have no idea why they weren't important.  Everyone's important, right?  If people weren't important they'd have no existence.  They'd be only formalities in the surreal life of the unknown.

More Genius?  (I'm feeling as though I'm still dreaming!)

I'm in this home setting (as I've previously stated) and for some reason, I'm wearing a pair of cuffed blue jeans that haven't been in style for years.  This makes me believe that perhaps this dream might have been setting in the back of my mind for many years and just now arrived to the memory status.  Either that, or it was the acid flashback that I've been waiting on for decades to appear.

I notice there is a spider on the floor.  (That's in my dream, let's go back to that since it's the primary topic of this writing.  You don't mind, do you?)  This spider is fairly large...say 3 inches in diameter.  It's thick black body is horizontally striped with the brightest of yellow.  

I squish it with the sole of my boot.   It's not that I'm afraid of spiders, I just know that all spiders are venomous.  Only a few are dangerous to man, but, having never seen this type of spider, I decide squishing is better than the alternative of finding out it is one of danger.  However, as soon as I do the dirty deed, another one jumps out of the cuff of my jeans.

Surprise, surprise!

I don't squish this one immediately.  Instead, I reach down and pull down the cuff.  It's filled with these spiders.  I keep grabbing them and flipping them on the floor to meet the same fate as the first.  Yet, more and more appear.  Not only that, but the other cuff on my other leg (Yes, I have two legs.  If I wanted to make this a smutty piece, I'd talk about a third, but that is not my goal.  I'm not dreaming that type of dream.  Maybe tonight, but not now.)  is also having more of these yellow and black spiders crawling out of it.  

They are almost to the swarming state.  They pop out and I squish.  Over and over this happens.  I start pulling them out with my fingers and notice they have almost no body weight.  I'm doing it so quickly, they have no time to sing their fangs in me.  Yet, it continues over and over and over and over.....

And then I awake.

In real life, I'm not afraid of spiders.  Actually, I'm really not afraid of many things.  Heights, perhaps, but only if I don't have a parachute on.  Skydiving never bothered me.  Standing on the second floor of the Smithsonian Space and Flight Museum did.  Why?  No parachute.

I'm not saying I play with spiders.  I really don't know anyone that does.  None of my neighbors would ever say, "Come on over!  We just got some new spiders to play with!"  

Would yours?

I recognize that spiders eat other bugs I don't like.  Flies and gnats in particular.  Flies and gnats only breed more flies and gnats.  I see no purpose there.  God made all of the creatures on the Earth and gave them purpose.  He screwed up when it came to flies and gnats.  After realizing that, he made spiders to eat them.  I guess that took care of the problem.  

Many reading this may be afraid of spiders.  In the United States, you have reason to fear only the Brown Recluse and the Black Widow.  They can cause much damage.  Australia, Asia, Africa and South America have many more varieties to be wary of.  But, for the most part, spiders are no more dangerous than a pesky house fly or gnat.  

This has absolutely nothing to do with my dream.  I tend to ramble.

Before going to bed last night, I received some disturbing news from a friend, that also decided it was a good time to remind me of some of the frustrations I've been dealing with.  It was all in good intention, I'm sure. Yet, for one trying to forget and find a little semblance of sanity in the crazed world in which we live, it obviously stayed on my subconscious and followed me to bed.  

Aren't friends wonderful?

It's my guess the spiders were in reference to the problems I've been facing and I find a way to squish them from my mind to survive.  The outpouring was simply a reminder that more and more problems were to come that would have to be dealt with in a similar manner.  It may have demonstrated that I have the strength to deal with whatever comes my way and not to stop trying.

I really didn't need a dream to tell me that.  My wife does it in real life.

If I believed in having multiple wives, they could be the spiders.  I can envision little wives heads on black and yellow striped bodies with eight hairy legs swarming out of my pant legs saying all types of wife things.  To squish them with my boot would be murder.  I could be classified as a psycho killer and have to shave my head and wear an orange jumpsuit the rest of my life while I sat in a prison cell repenting for squishing spiders with wives heads.   

Why Can't I Dream Like A Normal Man?
stockfreeimages.com

In twenty years, I could push my walker with wheels in front of a parole board telling them how sorry I was to have squished the spiders with wives heads.  Of course, the parole board would probably be made up of little spiders with black bodies and yellow stripes and the heads of parole board members.  They, of course, would see my remorse was fake, and would keep me pushing a book cart along the many rows of cells in front of my walker with wheels.  The prisoners that would ask me for a book would also probably be little spiders with black bodies with yellow stripes inside of tiny little orange jumpsuits and have heads of murderers, cheats, rapists, and all types of mean crazy people.  


However, I would prefer to simply awaken from this dream and roll over to kiss my wife.




I might even rub her horizontal yellow stripes for fun!

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