The Sweet Up and Down

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Anybody ever seen that British television series Red Dwarf?. Well, I had a dream that was the main character, David Lister. My cousin, Dustin, was Holly; Randy was Rimmer (apparently my subconscious really wants Randy dead) and the Cat protrayed himself. Audrey was in it too but not as any clear character. I guess she could've been Kochanski or maybe Kryten if you wanted to get technical.

I fell asleep watching Red Dwarf which is probably the reason I dreamed about it but it made me think that I really like the plots and storylines of the series. I wish America would produce a viable adaptation of the British series. Sure, we make copies of The Office, Coupling and All In the Family (adapted from the British series Till Death Do Us Part) and we've attempted to get a Red Dwarf pilot (starring Craig Bierko and Jane Leeves). But I digress. I'm just venting.


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Last week when I was driving around with Audrey, I noticed that one of the abandoned houses I seem to always take notes on was torn/burned down. The house was located on West Union Road in Shawnee County near I-70 and while I never actually approached the house because it looked like a great place for meth labs and crack addicts, I was hoping the house would be standing a little longer.

I figured it'd be torn down sooner or later because of it's proximity to I-70 but what strikes me as odd was the chimney and fireplace was still standing leading me to believe it wasn't knocked down but either burned down or destroyed by one of the many, many, many storms that have passed through the area. If anyone really knows what happened, let me know so I can punish those who did it.

Also I made this (with thanks from scrwtape) and it looks eerily like me, my fiancee and son that it kind of scares me. Although the dogs are not to scale.

Create your own family sticker graphic at pYzam.com

And did I mention I was engaged? Well, I am. But more on that later.

Until next time, I remain...
~Brian

The Pope was in Lawrence for some reason that wasn’t clear to me and was staying at the Eldridge and I was working for the catering company handling the huge dinner the Pope was throwing at the hotel. The dinner went really well and actually being able to see the Pope that close up was really cool and everyone had a really good time. I even got reacquainted with several people I haven’t seen in a while and finally got closure from a couple girls.

This dream was the longest and most convoluted dream I’ve ever had and the best thing was that I was able to control it. Just about everyone I’ve ever met was in the dream from old school friends, to former co-workers to acquaintances. It started out as your typical work dream. I was working catering for Baker as I was wont to do and it was going great. The food was delicious and the other people working the event were all having fun without being overly inappropriate. After the dinner, the Pope spoke which seemed to take a while but I was off talking with friends and ran into a couple of girls from my past who I never got definitive closure from.

I ran into Kate who I had a crush on when I worked overnights at Pearson. I attempted to stay in touch with her but failed in my endeavor but recently ran into her again thanks to Facebook (which I am using a lot more than MySpace these days). We talked and just got updated on what’s been going on in our lives. Then I ran into Heather. We talked, but mainly argued about who was the wrong one in our relationship. I eventually had enough and told her that I had moved on and found someone who loves me and who does love only me. Plus I don’t have to vie for her affections (unless you count her dogs but 9 times out of 10, I win) so I feel I finally got my closure in that area and the best thing was that I didn’t have to see her in person.

After getting my closure, I ran into a couple more old friends who I haven’t spoke with in a while and had a couple of drinks with a couple others. Then it got to be that time when the Pope was done speaking and we had to clean up the food tables. After that was done, I was ready to head home and get back to Audrey. I said good-bye to everyone and left the hotel, waking up.

So I feel that this dream is a springboard to better things. On Monday I start a new job and get away from Affinitas, I plan on proposing to Audrey sometime during the summer (I know when but I want it to be a surprise) and we should be moving in together roughly around September. I was worried that 2008 would end up just being an extension of 2007 and while it seemed to start out that way, 2008 has gotten so much better. It’s been the best year I’ve had in a long time. Here’s hoping it stays that way.

Until next time, I remain…
~Brian

I had a two-part dream last night. I don't understand it but that's nothing new. It started out with my cheapskate of a landlord selling my house to someone new. I really wasn't all that thrilled about having a new landlord but my attitude changed when I found out who it was. Kansas University's basketball coach Bill Self. Yeah, I don't get it either.

I'm not a sports fan so I don't know why I'm dreaming about Coach Bill Self. Turns out Coach Self, in my dream, is a douchebag. He raised our rent $200 and wouldn't come fix anything. Then one day, this Korean man and wife came to our door wanting to buy a car from Coach Self and wanted to know where he lived. I drove them to a small neighborhood near 31st and Kasold despite the fact I know Coach Self lives near The Yankee Tank on the west side of town. With me standing there, Coach Self gave the kind Korean man a very good deal on a 2006 Mercedes. Everything seemed all nicely wrapped up in a neat little package.

Until part two...

On a stormy night, I was busy throwing pots and pans under leaks Coach Self refused to have fixed, or reimburse us for fixing when the nice Korean man came back and was complaining that Self raised the price of the car $1,000 over Blue Book value. I had finally had enough of the Coach Bill Self and his National Champion douchebaggery and drove back to his place and complained. For some reason, Coach Self was getting ready for Christmas and was dressed like Santa Claus which made it hard to yell and be mad at him. He gave me a candy cane. It was really fun watching the Korean man tear into Bill Self dressed as Santa Claus. I awoke to the phone ringing so didn't find out if the Korean man got the car but I honestly don't know if I'd really want to find out.

I'm pretty sure Bill Self is one of the nicest guys in collegiate sports because on TV he seems a lot more approachable than a lot of the others so I have nothing against him. I'm just saying Bill Self may be a bad landlord.

Until next time, I remain...
~Brian

This is just a sample of what I have done. Before, I created a city named Mason City and it grew from a small town consisting of three pieces of paper to a sprawling city of about 40 pieces of paper. It was something I was proud of but, sadly, I had to throw it away because of liquid damage and other problems. I kind of wish I would've kept it as a reminder or even just to show it off. I tried to redo the damaged parts but the paper grew weaker and started to tear easily. Below is a small map of Mason City to give you an idea of what it looked like. Just imagine it spread over several feet of paper.


I love drawing maps and have for years. People have said I should be a cartographer or a city engineer but you really need to be good at math for both of those jobs and I want to stay as far away from using math at work as possible. The map below is of a town I had a dream about. The town bordered a man-made lake and the road winded around the lake and limestone bluffs. The imposing view of a factory interrupted the rural horizon. I didn't get too far into the dream until I woke up but the dream has always kind of creeped me out. Whenever I'm near a lake I drive around trying to find anything reminiscent of the dream I had.


I have always been fascinated with maps as anyone should be able to tell you. I don't know why, maybe it fits in with my fascination on street names. My fascination with maps doesn't just extend to city and county maps. Back in 7th grade, a friend and I created our own island nation: Shmand. I don't remember how we came up with the names but I was the one to develop the surrounding island provinces. I have no idea where he came up with the name Shmand but the name stuck.


As far as I could tell, Shmand was located in the Caribbean but when I actually drew the map and gave it a history, I moved it to the South Pacific, near Antarctica. I consider Shmand a crowning achievement of originality, even though you could say I stole the basis of the idea from someone else. It could also be considered the pinnacle of my dorkiness, of which I am very proud.



~Brian

I had a great dream last night. It involved me working at some form of grocery store-furniture store hybrid and the whole thing played out like an episode from a television show. The store had been robbed nearly every night for a week and I took it upon myself to try to catch the culprits. The majority of the dream was me and a few of my co-workers (two guys and a girl) trying to determine if one of our customers was the thief. I centered in on this couple--an older couple, husband and wife--and my hunch turned out to be right. They would cut open mattresses and hide food in there and just buy the mattress. I ended up being the hero of Grocery and Furniture World and at the end of the dream, I got a kiss from the girl in the dream. That was the best dream I've had in a while and I'm hoping I have many more like it.

I've only had one lucid dream that I could remember. I assume it's possible to have them, wake up and not remember that I had one but if not then I've only had one. The guy who sold me my car called me and said I still owed him some money on the car because of some weird Kansas tax. I realized it was a dream and said, very sternly "I paid off the car. I don't owe you anything. And furthermore, this is a dream." I hung up the phone and the dream ended. Another dream where I woke up smiling.

The one dream that I am still trying to figure out is one where I was the sheriff of a small town because I was wearing the uniform. I was in this empty, dusty old house with this girl. I never saw the girl's face but she had long brown hair and I don't know if she was just a friend or if I was trying to woo her but I got a call that a rabid horse was running around destroying the town. The horse ended up running toward my house so I spent the rest of the dream trying to protect the girl from the horse. I woke up before the dream could finish but I've been looking for that girl since. I feel like these dreams are trying to tell me something but I don't know what because I'm very good at interpreting dreams.

Feel free to examine them and let me know. I really want to know.

Until next time, I remain...
~Brian