Digging Up the Bowling Alley

Time travel, action, adventure, nail polish – this dream has it all! Kane and I had traveled back in time about three days (lame, I know) to the beginning of an endeavor my family was taking on to find the hidden passages under Holiday Bowl.

This was some sort of treasure hunt with an unknown prize waiting for us when the right area of the intricate catacombs was found, all Indiana Jones style. And there was action too – some sort of time limit was imposed upon us, some impending doom, some threat to be neutralized with these activities. We were archaeologists digging up the tunnels of the past while being spurred on by the vague yet imminent threats of the present!

The men-folk of my family were alternately digging/exploring the passageways and discussing/planning strategies for where to dig next. The Bowling Alley was not actually the facility in Hayward that we all know and love, but rather some other building, most of which I didn't get the chance to see in the dream.

My dad and uncle Jerry were standing outside the entrance to the underground excavations; they had taken a right turn once they had breached the surface and Kane and I were frustrated because we knew that the good stuff was to the left (since we were from the not-so-distant future and all). But they had found hobos living in some of the underground tunnels and they had thought this meant they were going the right way. I love how dreams make sense.

I was doing a bit of waiting around with some of the women-folk inside the building during these extensive excavations. My mom, all of a sudden, decided to start doing my nails. I have only had my nails done twice (and it certainly wasn't by my mom), and I hated it. But she wasn't hurting me at all so I let her continue.

About halfway through the manicure, she let one of the previous secretaries from Thom Hume's office, Kellene, take over. Kellene did my nails the rest of the way putting acrylics on (though they weren't as bulky and awful as the ones I had gotten for senior prom) and painting them a tasteful clear color. She then tried to put awful sparkly jewel things on every nail (the kind you sometimes see people wear on their pinky or thumb nail, if you're keen on contemporary nail design) which I was not happy about. But she sort of whined until I let her, so I had a diamond-ish gem on my thumb, the number '7' on my first finger and a slew of sparkles on my pinkies. Way to muck it all up, Kellene.

So that was it, and despite being knowledgeable time travelers, we had an obligation to follow a sort of skewed version of the Prime Directive and couldn't help our fam find the treasure. So, treasure-less and tacky-nailed, I awoke to another day.

Hotel Vandals

We're staying in a hotel at the moment, but the hotel in my dream was slightly different. It was far nicer than the one we're actually in – dang. Kane and I had gone to some party in the hotel lobby and had returned to our room late. It was 1am and we were just turning in for bed, reading our books. That's when I heard a shuffle outside our door and someone trying to get in with a key card.

It sounded like a family, children and all. Their key cards weren't working, which I was thankful for. Kane and I glanced at each other and then I went to answer the subsequent knocking at the door. When I opened the door, a woman holding a small girl, a man, and a small boy barged in the room in a big fumble of confusion and talking. I stared, confused, at them and asked them what they were doing. They rushed into the bathroom at the back of the room, insisting this was their room. I assured them it was not, but they insisted. I didn't exactly know what do to.

I looked at Kane and he told them, no, this was not their room or else their key cards would have worked. This was room 211, perhaps they had read the numbers wrong. They were insisting still as they fumbled around our room. It was odd with the kids there because we didn't exactly want to start a confrontation with children around. I don't remember if I just waited until they left or if I ran straight to the reception desk for help, but when I arrived at reception and told the woman there what had happened, she assured me that the family were thieves.

I was shocked. She said that this happens often. They steal your valuables while you're confused as they rush in. The woman handed me something and told me that the authorities had retrieved this from what the family had taken from us: it was a light brown bar of soap shaped like a grand piano, still shrink wrapped. I was relieved that this was all they were able to acquire from our bathroom. Then she informed me that they probably also stole more stuff but they weren't able to retrieve it. I replayed their steps around our room in my head and wondered if they got my wallet or our passports.

I felt really stupid for falling for some con; I tend to be very cautious about things like that and am typically very good at reading people. It was very odd and alarming.

Thanksgiving Horrors

Thanksgiving has become a trying time for my family, I will admit. My aunt used to do all the cooking but she has recently come into bad health and is no longer able. Everyone else in the family refuses to go out to dinner for reasons that I don't understand at all. They want a home cooked meal, which I can understand, but refuse to go out on pain of not seeing each other for the holiday. It baffles me.

Anyway, so the last few Thanksgivings have been a bit of a battle: the people who want a nice dinner out just to spend time together even if it's not over a perfectly home-cooked meal, versus the people who refuse to eat anything but 6 tons of home-made turkey, potatoes, yams, etc. And apparently my anxiety about it has bled into my dreams.

In my dream from about a week ago, I was cooking Thanksgiving dinner. In real life I have never done anything of the sort and would certainly not attempt to for my highly expectant family for my first try. I don't even eat meat for goodness sake! But, despite this, I found myself slaving away in the kitchen (of my mom's house) preparing this epic meal for my family.

I was making a turkey even though I don't know how. Everyone was already there which meant that I was supposed to be further along than I was. I was sweating. I was stressed. My uncle Jeff was complaining that I didn't have enough appetizers out on the table for them to eat. Then I realized that I had forgotten to buy potatoes and yams. The irony is that I had forgotten to buy these staple foods because I had focused my energy on getting good appetizers, which apparently weren't good enough.

So I had to rush out to get potatoes and yams even though I was woefully behind schedule. No one was helping me. As I dashed out the door, my mom laughed at me telling me that she used to even do all this (correctly) and serve venison for Thanksgiving. I have no idea what she was talking about, we've never had venison.