College Dream

I was on a college campus, Sac State, and I was looking for the library. It was night time. I decided to take a short cut through the freshman dorm area. It was really crowded and I had to navigate around people. There were steps leading to the main area of campus. They were wide, scalloped and long, reminding me of an ancient Mayan temple. Some of the freshmen were playing beer pong on the steps. They had set up 30 cups and were taking turns trying to get a ping pong ball into them from below. There was a special pink cup in the middle that was worth extra prizes.

I continued to look for the library in the center of campus. This area was also crowded with people. In the middle of the quad there was a giant sculpture made out of barbed wire. The shining silver points were twisted around each other in a giant hairball tangle. The students milling about were also wearing barbed wire as a fashion accessory. Some had it around their waists, other had cleverly woven it into their hairdos. As I walked, people handed me barbed wire to wear. I got a belt and a bird nest type thing to wear on my head. It didn't really fit so I looked for someone else to pass it off to. I ran into a guy who was whining and upset about his class schedule because he didn't get the classes he wanted. I told him that it would all work out and not to worry, but I was secretly really glad that I didn't have to deal with that kind of thing any more. The sun started to rise and as soon as the light hit the campus everyone was gone. The party was over and the whole place became deserted. I was able to continue my search for the library without any crowds, although I don't think I ever found it.

It was all a dream

I was in a city that was near Canada. Everyone there spoke English but also another language. It was lunch time so I set out with my family to try and find somewhere to eat. We chose a restaurant and parked. I had my laptop bag with me and set it down in the parking lot. I started to walk away to find a restroom but when I glanced back there was a man moving towards my bag. I turned and quickened my pace in order to reclaim my stuff and he started running towards it with the obvious intention of stealing it. He didn't take it because I had thwarted his plans, but I memorized his license plate number and tried to call the police. Instead of connecting me with 911, it sent me to a website. I gave up trying to contact the police, but I decided to leave the restaurant in case he wanted to prevent me from relaying his description later.

The roads were icy and snowy so I had a hard time driving. A friend that I had met earlier was trying to navigate me to somewhere I could get lunch, but I ended up on a side street. A group of us decided to have lunch at an out of the way local Hofbrau house that was rumored to have really good stew. It was a place that was familiar to me, I had been there before. I let my friends order for the group because they were natives and knew the menu better than I. They spoke French to each other and I was able to tell what they were saying. The French evolved into Spanish and I was able to join the conversation to an extent. The service at the restaurant was terrible and it took a long time to get our food. I was really hungry and complained about the lack of food in front of us. That was a mistake and I embarrassed the locals I was with. I looked at my watch and saw that we had been waiting for our food for almost 4 hours. We actually never got more than bread and chocolate milk before I woke up hungry. So now I am going to go get something to eat. I have waited long enough.

Dream Excerpt

I had to get it there. Everyone was counting on me. The toothbrushes, the parchment and the personal items needed to be in place to defeat the giant dragon. But he, as most giant dragons, did not want to be defeated. As I set out in my car from my parents' house I felt afraid. I knew that he would be searching and watching the roads trying to sabotage the ritual. One can't bake a cake without the batter right? The parchment hid easily under my friend in the passenger's seat, but that was only a temporary fix. Soon the presence of the sacred ingredients would be sensed by the one trying to stop me. I tried to stick to back roads, never knowing when the strike would happen. In the distance I saw a dark column appear over a car on a different country road. He was searching. I tried to drive casually so that his attention would not be alerted, but my terror continued to increase. It was not only for my sake that I needed to succeed. Dark columns, reaching from somewhere unseen in the sky, appeared above more cars on other streets. The searches were getting closer. I tried ducking down side streets to avoid detection, but inevitably the dark column found me. As soon as my car was discovered I lost control of the wheel. I had to use all my strength to keep it on the road. Survival instinct is strong in those on whom others depend. I made it to the ritual site and unloaded my precious cargo. I had the toothbrushes and the parchments, but the personal items had not made it. I walked away trying not to look conspicuous. I had failed. The evil reign would continue.

Panera isn't that good

So why am I sitting here? I do like the atmosphere. It has lots of booths with plugs and free wireless. Plus I can help myself to bottomless coffee and tea. The food is so bleh though. There are many times that I order something that sounds good and end up running to the bathroom halfway through my meal. It seems like a good concept: soup, salad and sandwiches, but the execution sucks.

On the positive side, there is plenty of parking and it is near Joe's work. That makes it easy for him to come visit me around 1pm for lunch. This is about the time I am starting to pull my hair out because I have been working on BTSA all morning. By "all morning" of course I mean "since 11".

Downtown Sacramento is a good place to study. I like Infusion Cafe but their food lacks inspiration. They serve mostly sandwiches which are overpriced but good. Parking is a nightmare during the day and they close pretty early in the evening. I really like the Naked Lounge (not a nudist colony) but it is small and popular. If you want a table you could end up waiting for hours (not an exaggeration). A lot of hipsters hang out there so bring your retro 80's clothes and bored look on your face. Tiny dogs are a plus.

I am a big fan of the new trend in bars having free wireless internet. One has to be careful though because it is possible to spend a lot of money hanging out there. R15 is a good one, located on the corner of R St. and 15th St. (what's the opposite of irony?). They have Cafe Bernardo's next door which has really good food. The daytime bartender makes a mean Lemon Drop.

If you have any suggestions of cool places to hang out that I have neglected to include, please comment and tell me about it.

Sigh

Yesterday I was reminded why I am primarily a PC gamer. I tried to play Super Mario Galaxy on the wii and had to stop because I got frustrated. The thing that kills me is jumping. I can collect coins and beat up goombas, but if there is an obstacle to jump over I am screwed. I also suck at racing games, especially when there is an edge to fall off.

I have been playing Portal also. Puzzle games are fun. Keeps the brain active and helps prevent the onset of Alzheimer's.

Dreams

My dreams are way too vivid. I can see colors, hear sounds, feel things and smell odors. The world that is created by my crazy mind seems absolutely real and relevant. The people that I meet seem like the ones that I encounter in my waking life. They are just as real and insistent about their own importance. Some of them tend to get upset when I tell them that they are figments of my imagination and doomed to disappear when I wake up.

One that I had recently I met Britney Spears. I was trying to be friendly and give her the benefit of the doubt so I was talking to her. Then I realized that it was a dream. I was thinking of Joe and decided that it would be fun to create a story that he would enjoy hearing. So I challenged her to a leg wrestling match but she was too stupid to figure out how to play. I lost patience and yelled at her for being so stupid. So I got to tell Britney off. We didn't quite get to the part where she was all in my head and would disappear when I woke up. She wouldn't have understood me anyway.

People tell me that I should write down my dreams, but they are too lengthy and detailed. Each one would be an entire novel. All I can do is pick pieces to relate. Sometimes I wonder if it would just be easier to stay asleep all day, or stay awake and not ping pong between two realities. I think that I would rather be sane all the time.

Welcome

Hello everyone. I am a math teacher in California and off for the summer. Now is the time when I start new projects (hence the blog) and catch up on all of my video game playing. I am mostly a PC gamer and currently I am obsessed with the Sims Life Stories. I also like RTS, but suck at FPS. World of Warcraft is of course in my repertiore.

Lately there have been a lot of fun things that I have found online. There is a you tube show called "man in the box" that is very funny if you have ever worked in an office. The episodes last about a minute or two and are freaking hilarious!

So check that out and let me know what you think. Then, if you're good, I will fill you in on some more fun stuff :).