.png)
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: How are you sleeping these days? Last week I interviewed an author named Matthew Blake, who wrote a very cool thriller called Anna O. About someone who does (or doesn't) commit murder while they're sleeping.
Our conversation evolved into a discussion of dreams.
And I am always fascinated by recurring dreams, the ones we have over and over, which sometimes we think can be explained and sometimes, we cannot.
One dream I have all the time, I mean all the time! Is that I am in a house, and it is my house, but it's not where I live now or any place I've ever lived, but in the dream, it is definitely my house.
It has a huge open living room, with wall floor to ceiling windows, and it looks out over a lake? Maybe. With mountains behind it. It is absolutely sleek and beautiful.
But upstairs, well, the stair risers are hand painted with gorgeous flowers, and when I go upstairs, I turn the corner and ohh! There's a room I forgot about! How did I forget about that?
And I open the door to the room and there is... well, it's gorgeous. It's full of books, and gorgeous things that I can't quite put my finger on to describe, but one of the things is a big chest of drawers, like map drawers, very thin. And when you open each thin drawer, inside is velvet lined with beautiful cashmere scarves and pearls and things like that. Why did I forget this was all there? I think in the dream.
I love that dream.
I also used to have a dream that I was in a play, a musical, and suddenly, I was about to go on stage and I realized I had never practiced, and I did not know the words, and I did not know the steps, and Oh my golly, what was I going to do? It was absolutely terrifying.
Then, one night, I had the dream, and I was in the midst of it, and in the midst of the dream I said to myself, “Hey. This is a dream, so don't be upset about it. And also, anyway, you know the steps and you know the words so everything is fine.”
And then I woke up. And I have never had that dream again.
However. Lest do you think my stress is over. A few nights ago I had a dream that I was giving a dinner party, but it wasn't at my house, it was in some hotel, where the kitchen was incredibly far from the dining area.
.png)
And for some reason I was cooking, and for some reason I had forgotten about the whole thing, and guests in glittering outfits were arriving and I had not even started the salmon!
In my dream I ran to the restaurant in the hotel and said: Please! I need 20 salmon dinners right now! Please! And the woman said: "No, we're closing, there's no way can do that."
And in the dream I burst into tears, collapsed into her arms, and said "PLEEEEEASE! I need the salmon!"
And then I woke up.
And I am still laughing.
Reds and readers, how about you? What's your recurring dream? And what do you think those above mean, if you have a theory...
I am sure that I dream [don't we all?] but I never remember my dreams . . . .
ReplyDeleteOhhhhh that is fascinating—not at all? Does your sister remember hers?
DeleteNo, she doesn't remember her dreams either . . . .
DeleteThat is SO interesting!
DeleteThe only recurring dreams I can think of are the nightmare ones - being chased by someone or showing up for class completely unprepared.
ReplyDeleteClassic!
DeleteI frequently remember dreams, the scary ones, the frustrating ones, the sexy ones. Usually, I recall them just as I am waking up. I have recurring dreams where staircases are missing or have missing steps. Last week there was a JRW blog post about NYC where we used to spend vacations at my grandmother's apartment.
ReplyDeleteI dreamed about my mother and my grandmother the other night. I was lost in NYC trying to drive to them. They were expecting me. My brother is in the hospital with Covid and his poor health has led to complications. Last night I got a phone call that he had taken a serious turn for the worst. Now I think that the anxiety dream about my mother was triggered by worry for my brother.
I like your dream about the room full of books and pearls, Hank.
I hope your brother takes a turn for better soon, Judy.
DeleteOh Judy, will be sending the best thoughts to you and your brother xo
DeleteJudy, sending the best thoughts to you and your brother. Diana
DeleteJudy, sending your family love and healing vibes for your brother's health challenges.
DeleteJudy, hugs from afar. I saw your comment below about the prognosis. My heart hurts for you and for your brother.
DeleteJudy, I’m so sorry about your brother’s illness. My prayers are with him, and all of you who love him.
DeleteDebRo
Many fervent good wishes for you, your brother, and the rest of your family. I can see how you might be having anxiety dreams.
DeleteBTW, I've had the lost-in-NYC dream, too.
Hope your brother will get better Judy.
DeleteThinking of you, dear friend...
DeleteThank you all for your prayers and good wishes. I believe fervently in the strength of these prayers. Last night, a doctor called to tell me that my brother might die during the night. I just heard from the physician de jour, and he told me that my brother is much improved, awake and talking. Not out of the woods yet, but I am hopeful. So thank you, dear ones!
DeleteThat's great news, Judy, but I'll keep you and your brother in my thoughts.
DeleteThinking about you and your brother, Judy, and wishing all the best for him.
DeleteSending positive healing vibes to your brother, JUDY!
DeleteThinking of you, dear Judy, and sending healing thoughts for your brother. xoxo
DeleteMy current recurring dream is that I didn't really graduate from high school, that I needed 5 more credits. Here I am this much older person back in school and the only class available is with teaching kindergartners. I kept going to the principle asking him like can't you give me some life experience for those 5 credits. I've been working for many years as an administrative assistant and that should count for something. He wouldn't go for it. So I keep going to class and it's finally graduation day and I get up on the stage when they call my name and they can't find my diploma.
ReplyDeleteOh, such a classic dream! And yes, you should DEFINITELY get real-life credit. Next dream, call me and I will show up and argue alongside you!
DeleteWell I sure want that dream with the beautiful house and the fantastic library and the furniture with drawers full of scarves. I love scarves, although I'd fill those drawers with my paintings and with art paper. I really relate to the dream of not being prepared for the play you were in. When I was teaching, I sometimes dreamed I showed up at the playground to lead my kids all lined up into class and then realized I was in my bedroom slippers. Or my hair wasn't combed. Oh the embarrassment. Or some such: I couldn't find my roll book. I forgot what the lesson was. On the other hand, the restaurant-cooking-for-20 dream for me would be a true nightmare.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth, I have teaching dreams too. Although I frequently dream that I'm at a school, (sometimes my old high school, sometimes a random school) and I don't know if I'm a student or a teacher and I'm too nervous to ask anyone ;-)
DeleteOh, teaching embarrassment dreams..awww> it probably means you were a diligent and caring teacher...
DeleteJill, I have so many anxiety dreams that involve school, but I've never had one where I didn't know whether I was a student or a teacher! That's a gem. Captures all the worries brilliantly!
DeleteAh, dreams. I have occasionally been able to DREAMSCAPE, which is the act of lying in bed and planning out the exact scenario you'd like to dream about that night. I have also had LUCID DREAMS, when you are aware that you are dreaming while the dream is happening. Because of this, I have been fascinated how the mind processes dreams. I took several psychology electives at university to improve my knowledge about how the brain works.
ReplyDeleteNot surprisingly, my most recurrent dream is missing an urgent flight/not able to board my plane. So many different reasons why that happened: forgot my passport, long lines, at wrong boarding gate etc. These dreams occurred the most when I had a frantic work travel schedule.
P.S. I always dreamt in colours. My parents said they only dreamt in black & white, which I thought was so weird. Is that a generational thing?
DeleteGrace, that's fascinating you can lucid dream! What a wonderful way to entertain yourself.
DeleteJILL: Lucid dreaming can be fun. You’re aware that the events flashing through your brain aren’t really happening, but the dream still feels vivid and real. And similar to dreamscaping, sometimes I can control what happens in the dream, as if I am directing a movie in my sleep.
DeleteGrace, I've read about lucid dreaming, and a friend in my poetry group in Sacramento practiced it. It's a fascinating idea. Especially in your case where you actually plan what to dream about. I haven't lucid dreamed, but I have given myself assignments: to solve a story problem or wake up at a certain time, and usually it works. As for dreaming in color, I always have. I was surprised when I learned some people only dream in black and white.
DeleteSee my comment about travel nightmares, Grace!
DeleteGRACE, this reminds me of my childhood. I remember having dreams on the night before Christmas and having dreams about all of the good stuff that comes with celebrating Christmas. They are happy dreams. Sometimes I do plan my dreams as if I was writing a movie script.
DeleteDiana
Grace, I often lucid dream, and quite enjoy them. The problem is that I can feel myself becoming more conscious, and want to yell, wait, wait, I want to see the end!
DeleteGrace, I never dream in color. As far as I remember I never have.
DeleteKAREN: Interesting! My parents told me they dreamt in B&W since they grew up watching B&W movies & TV as kids/young adults & their brains were molded/programmed to dream without colour. Whereas I grew up watching colour TV from a young age. Who knows if their hypothesis has any merit.
DeleteAs a child I dreamed in black and white. Then one night the dream was in bright, brilliant color. After that my dreams were all in color.
DeleteMy first response was, I don’t know? I guess if I never noticed it must be color? But I wonder if it’s linked to that test where you have to imagine an apple and there’s an entire range of responses, from people who see an outline to people who see it in full color with dew drops glistening on it? I am definitely on the sparser end of that scale.
DeleteWHOA. I wish you could give us lessons in that! And my dreams are completely in color--and so real that sometimes during the day I can't remember whether something really happened or whether it was a dream.
DeleteHANK: I wish I could teach you how to do it! Like any learned skill, you have to keep doing it to become part of your (brain) muscle memory, if that makes any sense.
DeletePAT D: That is so cool you transitioned from dreaming in B&W to colour!
And I am happy to tell you all that out of the 100s of flights I have taken in real life, I can count on one hand the # of times I actually missed getting on a plane. And yes, I really did forget to bring my passport with me once when flying out of Toronto on a domestic flight. Fortunately, I had my Canadian federal government photo ID card & they let me on the flight...phew!
DeleteMy dreams are absolutely in color--sometimes that's the thing I remember most. Dreaming in black and white seems very strange to me.
DeleteDEBS: It's interesting that some commenters do dream in B&W. I am like you. The vivid colours in my dreams often stand out.
DeleteHank, I've had very similar recurring dreams about a house! It's mine (but it's not). My dream house isn't as lovely as what you've described, but yes, there are rooms that weren't there before. And sometimes it has two kitchens! I remember thinking "This kitchen is so nice, why do I keep using the other one?"
ReplyDeleteWeird.
Lately, I keep having dreams about traveling to a mystery convention...in RUSSIA? I mean, seriously? I've never been to Russia and have no plans to. In my dreams, the travel arrangements are always messed up. That part, at least, is easy to translate: I always stress over flight delays and missed connections.
Annette,
DeleteInteresting dream. Were you reading about the news from the Ukraine or something to do with Russia before the dream? I remember having a dream about a village in Russia, or I thought it was Russia.
However, when I was travelling in England or Scotland, the villages there looked like my dream. Not Russia. Perhaps I saw photos and saw someone talking about Russia so I thought my dream was about a village in Russia.
Diana
Annette, I have the same house dream - sometimes it's my house, sometimes my grandmother's. I open doors and there are bedroom and sometimes a greenhouse and always a second kitchen! And i get excited, because i can now live in TWO houses, moving from one to the other.
DeleteNext time i have the dream, I'm going to start looking for the room with the velvet-lined drawers and the scarves.
Yes, it is so perplexing! Why did I not remember this was here?
DeleteFairly traditional ones. I am in a pulpit (that's my day job) and I have no idea what I was going to say. I am in a town with many curving streets, lost, and I keep coming back to the same intersection.
ReplyDeleteOh dear, our brains are so adorably predictable ….
DeleteI love talking about dreams! They can be so mysterious and illuminating all at once. Sadly, I rarely remember them anymore.
ReplyDeleteA lot of the dreams I do remember now are just very boring anxiety dreams. Not as bad as nightmares, but not fun either. During the lockdowns I kept dreaming about showing up somewhere without my mask. Now I have one where I'm trying to catch a plane and I keep forgetting things like my ID or my wallet, so I try to run back home, but then there's a traffic jam on the way to the airport or I miss the shuttle. . .
The only fun one I had lately is a dream where I was at one of those fancy hotels with a big central mezzanine. All the floors open up to it so you can look down. I was on a very high floor and I was watching all the people below and I thought, "hmm, this is a dream, I think I'm just going to jump from here." I didn't fly, but I floated and I was very proud of myself. I'd never flown or tried anything like that in a dream before. I'm not that afraid of heights, but definitely *not* something that would occur to me in real life.
My Dad taught me a trick about checking to see you're in a dream. Try to read something, even look at your phone and try to text. If you can't read it, you're dreaming. Your brain can't process text while you're dreaming. It works most of the time.
Now, when I was little I used to dream I was reading the most wonderful book in the world, but there was just the sensation of the book in my hands and turning the pages and being engrossed. When I woke up, I could never remember what the story was about. I'm sure a lot of readers can relate to that one.
JILL: I do like it that you were able to make yourself safely jump off & float in that hotel!
DeleteJill, I had similar dreams about flying. In my dream, I just start flying though I cannot recall where I was flying from. My body was just up in the air and I was looking at the tiny villages from above.
DeleteDiana
Oh, flying dreams. I’ve only had one, that I can remember. And I remember it was so much fun! And then someone in the dream asked me if I could bring something with me, fly it somewhere. And I remember thinking: oh, don’t be silly. You can’t carry something when you fly.
DeleteLast night in my dream I was upset because I'd lost my purse, and after a while I realized - while dreaming - that I had dreamed the loss and I still had the purse. Such a relief!
ReplyDeleteMy recurring nightmares almost all have to do with flying, often to China. Sometimes it's the classic where I get to the airport late but forgot my passport at home an hour away. Or that I forgot to pack. The worst are when I'm flying the airliner full of passengers, and I know perfectly well I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FLY. Once it was amidst downtown skyscrapers. Terrifying.
I've always had vivid dreams. Hugh says he never remembers his, which I find bewildering. Once in a while if I lie down during the day, a dream I'd forgotten I'd had will come flooding back (while I am awake).
Thanks, Edith. It's a dire prognosis and I began worrying at around 2:30 so I got up.
DeleteI, too, will remember a dream all of a sudden and some dreams stick so you really remember the dream and not only your description of what it was.
Yikes, those are travel nightmares for sure, EDITH! I usually don't make it on to the plane or actual fly in my dreams.
DeleteNow that I'm actually in the planning stages of that Singapore trip, I wonder if I will start having travel nightmares about that 16.5 hour Vancouver-Singapore flight. Like running out of fuel half-way across the Pacific Ocean. It's been so long time since I have done a long-haul flight to Asia (previously been China & Japan).
DeleteGrace, you better lucid dream some flying lessons, some jet fuel and maybe Jill's free float...oh, and a raft.
DeleteAnd I'm going to have a flight about that long to Tokyo at the end of March. Let the nightmares begin!
DeleteHA HA, JUDY. Sure, just add plan a lucid dream for Vancouver-Singapore flight on to my long to-do list. Frankly, I am still more worried about missing the flight. You know I'm an early morning person, and the Vancouver-Singapore flight departs just after midnight at 00:05 am!
DeleteEdith, these days it is rare for me to recall my dreams.
DeleteWill this be your first trip to Japan?
Diana
No, Diana. I lived there teaching conversational English for almost two years more than forty years ago and have not been back. I can't wait!
DeleteEdith, have a wonderful trip to Japan! Diana
DeleteIt's SUCH a relief when in the dream you realize you're dreaming... SO many times I think :WHY did I cut my hair? And I am so happy when I didn't.
DeleteI find it humorous that your recurring dream became a recurring post. At least I am seeing it twice.
ReplyDeleteMy recurring dreams are never a nice house with a beautiful library. I dream ai am in high school and my locker won’t I open because I’ve forgotten the combination. Or I am back in my last work situation having an extremely bad day. Or I am in a locker room trying to find a usable toilet stall….when I start having that one it is time to get up and go to the bathroom.
ReplyDeleteBrenda, that reminds me of old dreams, back during the dial phone era, of trying, over and over, to successfully dial an emergency 10-digit number with no mistakes. I was SO grateful when 9-1-1 was instituted, and the nightmares stopped.
DeleteOHHH the horrible locker dream! SO frustrating!
DeleteMost of my dreams involve travel or driving somewhere. Often I’m under some time constraint and nothing is going smoothly to allow me to meet the deadline. Anxiety dreams are my specialty! When I was a child I had a recurring dream that someone was chasing me and as I ran to reach the safety of my house I would miss the big step up to our porch and at that point the dream would end. Yikes!—Emily Dame
ReplyDeleteWonderful topic discussing dreams.
ReplyDeleteHank, may I ask if you were reading a magazine about beautiful houses or a novel about houses before you had the dream about the house with the map drawers?
Your dream about the house sounds similar to my dream. I have this dream about my grandfather's house. In the living room, it is all white. The walls are white. The sofa and the armchairs are white. the bookcases are white. The carpets are white. The window sash is white. The window drapes? curtains? are white. The house was built in the 1920s? and it looks like a hacienda from the outside.
And I have dreams about travelling. I had a dream few years ago. That was before the Queen died. For some reason, I met Prince Charles and I called him "Grandpa David" then apologized because I immediately realized that he looks like my Grandfather. He was gracious about it. They really do look similar. My grandfather's sister looked like Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
And I had another dream where no one was wearing a mask. Then I realized that I was dreaming about life BEFORE the covid pandemic started.
Recurring dreams? I do not recall.
Diana
Of late, I don’t sleep well. I can wake up several times in an hour, so wonder if I ever get any rem sleep. I started taking a half of the lowest dose gummie (it is legal in Canada, so you know of what I speak), and not only does it put me to sleep, but I can deep sleep 4 hrs at a time, get up, pee, pat the cat and instantly go back to sleep. I wake up refreshed at 7:45.
ReplyDeleteWhat is it doing to my dreams – I don’t know, as I don’t seem to have them, or can’t remember them. What I do know is that my morning blood sugar and blood pressure are much improved, and I wake up feeling refreshed.
Wow, Margo. A good night's sleep is life changing!
DeleteMARGO: Getting a good night's sleep & feeling refreshed is so important. Not being able to remember your dreams now is worth it, I think.
DeleteHere's a recurring dream that followed me for a couple of decades after I stopped working in TV. I'm with Rod at the broadcast center when something happens to the Chyron operator with five minutes until SportsCenter. But good news! Chyronda is in the house!
ReplyDeleteSo they plunk me in front of the keyboard, tell me all the data for the show is in the machine, and then hurry off to their spots before we go live, but there's no log of addresses on the disc as to where I can access the lower thirds, score listings, and promo graphics for the show. Yikes! Fortunately, at that point, I'd have an adrenalin spike to wake me up.
How I got rid of that dream was for Rod to tell me, repeatedly: Chyrons aren't used for graphics anymore. My lizard brain finally got the hint.
Our new super hero: Chyronda!!
DeleteKaren: LOL! Oops. There goes my secret identity.
DeleteWhen I was still working at 9=1=1 I had recurring anxiety dreams. I was on Net 2 (a busy police radio channel) and the keyboard didn't work. I kept punching the buttons and nothing happened. Or I was trying to plug my headset into the console and there was no place to connect it. Or I was trying to get back to work after a lunch break and not getting there. I was lost or the streets were closed etc.
ReplyDeleteThe most memorable work anxiety dream came when I was pregnant with my son. I have to give a little background before I describe the dream. At the time, we had 15 minute roll calls before we started each shift, where the supervisors would give us a small lesson or let us know about big incidents or upcoming changes. As police dispatchers, we had to know all the police districts which were geographic divisions. We had to memorize the district map and know which units were where. In my dream, I came into roll call and there was a map of the United States on the bulletin board, divided into police districts. Portland Police was responsible for patrolling the whole United States and it was our job to respond to calls everywhere. I imagined dispatching a call, "592, I have a cold burglary for you in New Mexico. I know you are a long way off, but it's been holding for 2 weeks."
Gillian B: Calling that "a day at work" anxiety dream doesn't even come close to that. I would imagine you had and may still have lots of anxiety dreams about an even broader scope of responsibility.
DeleteI am envious of my husband and the rest of you who remember dreams. If I dream I rarely remember them, even if they wake me for some reason. And I dream in black and white, and always have.
ReplyDeleteOver the years, though, I have had recurring dreams (not for years now) that were so frustrating or scary that they did stay in daylight. One was about stairs in a house that would dead-end up high, close enough to see the upstairs room I wanted to go to, but too far across a chasm to get there. My fear of heights would kick in, too. The house was never the same, interestingly; my brain kept inventing new (impossible) floorplans.
The other dream required hypnosis to get rid of, it was so terrifying. I kept dreaming that my youngest daughter, about two or three at the time, was drowning in the kiddy pool. I'd wake up completely freaked out and wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. At the time my husband was away for several months, leaving me to manage the family, the house, the business, and everything else on my own. Once I realized it was NOT my daughter who was drowning, but my fun-starved inner child, the dream went away.
Karen, that last dream is terrifying, but also amazing in that you realized what your subconscious was telling you.
DeleteKAREN: Great that hypnosis helped you figure out the meaning of that horrible dream & that it went away!
DeleteThank you both. I must have known somehow, because it took the slightest bit of questioning to tease out the reason. And I was able to make changes easily.
DeleteI'm not having as many high school and college dreams these days (forgetting an exam, not able to open my locker) but I am dreaming about a specific house: lost and found items, red wine stains on the furniture, and a safe room with a bullet-proof door. Odd. Probably the setting for my next book.
ReplyDeleteHank, I've read that a dream of a house, discovering new rooms, can be interpreted as your subconscious showing you new rooms in the 'house' you live in--in other words, your subconscious is revealing new parts of yourself to you. So, we all know you are wonderful and fabulous, and your dreams are telling you there are wonderful parts of yourself to explore.
ReplyDeleteI'm a lucid dreamer, always have been. When I was a child, I had a recurring dream about an evil clown who was always perched in the old cherry tree at the corner of the porch. The other recurring dreams I have involve drowning, or having to drive a car but it's a stick shift. And I can't swim or drive a stick in real life. So, those come when I feel my life is out of control at the moment. The worst was a dream within a dream within a dream--that took some doing to wake up!
The dreams that are sticky, that stay with me all day or several days, usually involve people I love who are no longer with us--they come and visit and give me a sense of comfort and being loved--often when I need it the most.
I rarely dream about people I know well, but on Christmas I dreamed about both of my parents. It was so lovely to spend some time with them now that they are gone. And yes, that was a sticky one.
DeleteLisa and Flora, I've had lovely dreams where my parents are alive. I always feel as if those dreams are a gift.
DeleteSame with me. I always wake up smiling when I've dreamed of my father, his sister Jo, or my mom.
DeleteHank, I have the house dream, too! It has an entire wing that I always wonder how I forgot and It's the most comfortable place.
ReplyDeleteMy other recurring dream was my ant dream. There were giant ants everyplace and they all wore safari dresses, stood on their back legs and threw notebooks at me. That was how they made war. I had the dream from childhood - now I wonder if I'd watched the movie Them, but I don't remember ever seeing it. Years later I bought a safari dress - the dream stopped when I realized it was the same dress the ants wore.
My little brother always called that movie Them Ants.
DeleteKait, what a hilarious description. I'm sure it was worrying to terrifying at the time, but in retrospect it's pretty funny.
DeleteIt definitely is funny now, but it was disconcerting to discover I was dressing in my scary ant clothes! I did love that dress, though.
DeleteGah! Scary ant safari dress...
DeleteI've had and enjoyed the new house dream. In one we had just moved in, no furniture, and yet I was throwing a cocktail party for all the people who had drifted in. My stress dreams all involve either high school or college. Maybe it is more a frustration dream. I've ditched classes to the point I'm not sure which classrooms they're in. Final exam is here and I haven't done the reading. I've moved to Austin, Texas, have a place to stay, but can't figure out what to major in. None of it sounds interesting. These and variations. But I've also had fun dreams and dreams where I was mad at Frank. I always tell Frank the next morning what he did to make me mad in my dream. Sadly, I have never had a dream where I'm flying.
ReplyDeleteI used to do a lot of presentations and speeches. I had a recurring dream before each one. I dreamed that I forgot to get dressed and gave the presentations and speeches without any clothes on! Thankfully, that never happened! I usually fretted before I went to sleep about what I would wear because I didn’t want my outfit to distract the participants from the topic I was presenting on.
ReplyDeleteHank, I’ve had exactly the same recurring dream— about to go onstage but can’t remember my lines or steps. I hunt for the script but can only find a grocery list etc. sometimes it turns out well. I step out and say the right thing. Sometimes I’m in panic mode. I guess it means we are insecure with our role in life!
ReplyDeleteAnd the house!! I studied dream psychology at college and the house is your reflection of yourself so you are in a great place and still have unexplored hidden talents!
Rhys, I left acting behind me in my early twenties, but I STILL stress dream about getting a "places!" call and realizing I don't know my words or my blocking. Although as I've gotten older, I often tell myself, "It's okay, you're good at improvising." Which I guess is a pep talk form my subconscious!
DeleteI have weird, upsetting dreams. I don't remember them, just know they were weird and the feeling of the dream will stay with me throughout the day.
ReplyDeleteI don’t have recurring dreams. When I worked, my stress manifested as dreams about being chased, but they were all different.
ReplyDeleteA therapist once said to me: “Ah, a nice straightforward anxiety dream”. Elisabeth
DeleteOh, dreams! The house dream is always about finding a room I never knew was there. Or finding a whole part of the house I never knew was there. It actually happened to me once. When we lived in Italy we had a sprawling house with an apartment basement. I never did much exploring there, but when I did I found a huge room I didn't know was there! It had all kinds of interesting things in it. But my biggest recurring dream is my "telephone" dream, where I'm trying to reach someone on the phone and the phone won't work. Once in the dream and operator came on the line and laughed at me for trying to reach someone. And once the telephone burst into flames! My favorites are serial dreams that continue for a few nights. They're fascinating because as I fall asleep I know i'm going to continue the dream from the night before, and it's like watching a TV program I really like.
ReplyDeleteThat is so interesting Terry!
DeleteOccasionally I have dreams where I am trying to get somewhere and I keep taking wrong turns, or getting lost and can't get to where I need to go. It is very upsetting.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was younger (much younger) I used to dream I was being chased by someone and had to get away. Many times I would start to flap my arms and take off flying in the air to get away from the harm.
ReplyDeleteI have the recurring dream about final exams in college where I thought I had dropped the class but hadn’t so must take a cumulative test on a topic I hadn’t learned. That used to be the dream where I am frantically searching the (unrecognizable) campus for the classroom. Lately I have found the classroom, but still have no knowledge of the subject matter. I guess that’s progress?
ReplyDeleteIn recent years I’ve had more trouble falling asleep and/or staying asleep. I don’t know if this is linked, but I now remember my last dream throughout the day. Kind of like Hank or someone said - where you can’t remember if it actually happened or was a dream. I don’t like it.
Oops! That was me, Pat S
ReplyDeleteMy recurring dream with my cell phone is so frustrating. I need to call someone, sometimes it's more urgent than others, and I can't remember how to get the names/contacts to come up on the phone. It's like a computer where there's a screen and you choose where to go, but I can't get where I need to go, to the names and numbers I need.
ReplyDeleteKathy, that makes me think of a bad-weather tip I recently read: if there might be a power/cell outage, write out a list of names and numbers. Because, of course, we all use our phones as our address books these days.
DeleteThat's a great idea, Julia!
DeleteMy daughter, Amy, has lucid dreams in color where she can also smell odors. Like if she is in a bakery she can smell the bread. Last night I had a prophetic dream. Amy came into my room wearing a newsboy's cap and a printer's apron (symbolic for giving me the news) She told me our senior cat, Ginger, had died. It woke me up, and when I asked about Ginger, Amy said yes. Ginger is doing the feline behavior when they are dying. She is refusing food and is hiding in small places. I guess this was my unconscious preparing me. Tomorrow will be the day her suffering stops.
ReplyDeleteOh, Coralee, I'm so sorry to hear this. I'm glad you're giving her the final kindness. Sending you and Amy virtual hugs.
DeleteCoralee, I'm sorry about your senior cat. That is a hard step to take. Sending peace and hugs to you and Amy.
DeleteOh, so sorry about your dear cat, Coralee. It's so hard.
DeleteCoralee, I just saw this. I am so sorry to hear about your pet. It is so difficult. I know what it feels like to say good-bye to a beloved pet.
DeleteI used to remember many of my dreams vividly, the good ones and the ones about suddenly finding out you have a test that you forgot about, didn't study for, are late for, and can't find the classroom for! I always tried to review them when I woke up and understand what had caused them. Now I'm sure I dream because we all do, but I haven't remembered a single one of my dreams in years. I miss them, even the bad ones.
ReplyDeleteAhhh recurring dreams...so much fun. Or not.
ReplyDeleteI've had plenty of them. Some of the nightmarish kind, some of the "Where the F did that come from?"
And then there's been the annoying ones. I mean, only I could dream about the Swedish Bikini Team except instead of a group of hot blonde women in bikinis, they were all dressed in business suits sitting around talking about macro economics.
But there is one I would LOVE to figure out why I've had it more than a few times. I'm walking along what feels like some kind of boardwalk, like you'd find in some kind of seaside tourist-y type place. I go inside one shop and it turns out that it's a record shop and the sales floor is packed with all kinds of albums (LP, CD and cassettes). I'm looking at some of the stuff in the racks but I can't see what the titles or who the groups are. But I know I need to have a lot of it. Somehow, I wind up in the store's back room which is really just another sales floor packed with more stuff that I HAVE to have. But now this room is packed with other collectors too. And then I'm talking with people and they ask have I been to the OTHER room. I have to walk out of the back door of the shop across a wooden ramp and then I'm in a warehouse full of even MORE music I want (but still no titles). And that's where the dream always seems to end. Once, I actually saw prices on the labels and a few times, it has been comic books instead of music but the store layout is exactly the same, even the conversations were the same but about comics instead.
And there's the one about being on what seems to be a video game screen laid out like Donkey Kong but instead of a barrel-throwing ape, it's Nazi zombies firing rotten apples at me...I'm not quite sure I want to know what that dream means. HA!
OMG, Hank! That is not restful. I dream very very very rarely - well, maybe I do dream every night but I never remember them. And I don't seem to have stress dreams. The dreams I have that I remember are of being with people I have lost - like they have come to visit me. I always wake up so grateful to have seen them again. I wish I would dream see them more often but it's very rare - so I treasure those dreams.
ReplyDeleteJenn, I was so frustrated after Ross dies, because the girls would have lovely dreams where they were together, and any time I dreamed of him, he did something completely infuriating, and I would get SO mad at him. Like, hopping up and down and yelling mad. I wanted to have a sweet dream! Finally, I was complaining to a friend, and she said, "Do you think... you're mad at hm for dying?"
DeleteBingo. Of course. In the past year or so, I've finally had a few dreams where I don't want to kick his @$$. I guess I'm begrudgingly forgiving him.
Julia, hugs to you today too.
DeleteThat makes perfect sense, Julia. Did the realization help?
DeleteJulia, sending hugs. Diana
DeleteOh, you all, my whole family is here today, and I am behind on comments! More to come!
ReplyDeleteHank, thank you for so faithfully commenting throughout the day…no matter what. Elisabeth
DeleteHank, I read the blog very first thing this morning and have chuckling about your salmon dream ever since. I often have the house dream, where I know it's mine but it's not anywhere I've ever lived or seen, and there is such great detail. Those are fascinating, and I love the idea that it's our subconscious telling us we have unexplored talents. I want your drawers and scarves, though! And of course I have the classic anxiety dreams, where I'm in high school or college and when I get to class I find out there was a paper due and I haven't written it (subconscious, duh) or there's a test I haven't prepared for. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child I had a recurring nightmare about being chased through an endless gigantic supermarket by a witch (black hat and all,) and somehow the trolleys turned into trains. I still think about it on nights when I hear the train whistles on the other side of town.
I was wondering about that book Ana O. Thanks for the mention. (I love your books.) My reoccurring dream
ReplyDeleteis in what seems to be in an old hospital and I know my way around. It's dark. Not a modern facility. Usually trying to get out. (I have worked inamy hospitals) Also about walking around the same city, nothing I know of, and having lost my purse or my phone or I am lost. I guess I read too many mysteries. Lol
Doesn't gotta be 'in-your-dreams', lil1;
ReplyDeletethey canBas real as we wanna make
'em. How so? If yooNeye journey2the
Son -n- live for 999,999,999,999,999+
oemnillions O years writin' oemnillions O books and exploring weird, psycho
planetoids, our fantasy won't be A-L-L
in our effusive-wooFMasta-dreams...
they'll become more active than the
velocity4eternity, miss girl gorgeous:
● NOPEcantELOPE.blogspot.com ●
Cya soon, dollface...
I am back at Wheaton College, Norton, MA and I have one more class that I need to complete to graduate and I did not go to the class, nor read the book. And then it is graduation with all of the pomp and I can't remember where anything is and I miss all sorts of ceremonies and events. Every time that I go to the cafeteria, it is closing and they have put all of the food away!
ReplyDeleteI just ordered a book by New Yorker author Roz Chast titled "I Must Be Dreaming" and can't wait to hear about her thoughts and cartoons on the subject.
Over and over, my husband dreams that he has a cell phone that he can't dial or that he is running down the street with minimal clothes and is in a neighborhood that is in the wrong place!
I used to have a recurring nightmare that started when I was really small, and continued until long after my divorce. I called it The Pink Soft & The Evil Green. (I was small.) basically, I was bouncing around in a room covered in soft pink pillows. Great fun. Then, they started turning into this nasty very dark green twisted with black vines stuff chasing after me. It was terrifying. Even when I was an adult and I knew it was a dream, I’d try to fight myself awake. I was so terrified it would catch me.
ReplyDeleteI have a house dream too. It’s my perfect house. With a library and a big porch and a tower. I also have dreams in the old farmhouse, the lake cottage, the little house in town, and my high school. The settings recur but the dreams don’t. They are places I grew up in and are comfortable. Ann M
Hi Hank! I am behind on my emails so just now commenting. Love hearing about your dream of the gorgeous room! I don't have recurring dreams, only new ones. :)
ReplyDelete