RDM and the Amazon River

So, there I was with Ronald D. Moore, and we stood on the bank of the Amazon River. He looked to me and then into the distance at the far bank and said quietly, "Let's go." He then stepped into the river and leaned down to swim across. I followed hesitantly. As we slowly crossed the water I asked him if there were not snakes, piranhas and worse in the river that would attack and eat us. His reply was a confident, "Yes. We'll be fine." Somehow I wasn't reassured. I could see or maybe just sense hundreds of strange and different creatures moving about in the slow black waters below. We still had quite a distance to cover to the far side and I concentrated on making as little commotion as possible, lest I attract the hungry bellies and razor teeth and claws of whatever mysterious beasts prowled below me.

Alas, as we neared the other side, the mist lifted a bit to reveal twisted roots, vines and brush, a very small and muddy shoreline, and a rock face pocked with crevices. Ronald D. Moore was undaunted. It was here, about 20 feet from the shore that I first saw a creature come to the surface. It was a snake and he was (thankfully) swimming away from us. It was an amazing creature, he was perhaps twenty feet long and about as big around as your average arm. He was bright white with a few dark markings along his body and had a sort of small fin along his back. Strange for a snake to have a fin... What worried me was the snake was headed to the same area Ronald D. Moore was leading us, but I'll tell you now that I never again saw that snake in my dream.

Once on the shore we immediately began making our way up the rock face. It was tough, but not too difficult to get to the top. Once there, I saw around me, turned up soil, as if construction vehicles had recently demolished whatever housing or vegetation had occupied this area, in the dark distance I saw a house, or small building of some sort. I think there was a large vehicle next to it. This is where my memory of the dream gets hazy. Ronald D. Moore began speaking eloquently about something or other, and small animals I'd never seen before scurried about as we looked out over the valley.

I was not really sure why I was there, and pretty much just did what Ronald D. Moore told me to, despite my fear of the unknown and of bodily harm to myself. I don't think I really trusted him, I just think I didn't have much will of my own. As you can see, I never made a choice of my own, and never voiced dissent, besides asking if I'd be safe. Maybe that's all I need, just to know I'm safe... or maybe I'm too trusting...

Overheard No. 2

".... wandered into the forest and was attacked by a blob........ some kind of gummy creature........ shows you the blob, then you, then the blob, then you --"

"That's fucked up!"



I mean seriously. I totally agree, it's fucked up. Whatever it is. A gummy/blob creature jumping out at you when you're alone in the forest can't be a good thing. History tells us the likelihood of him inviting to his lair just for tea is fairly unrealistic...

Safe in distress.

I'm reminded of a time when I was a child. I feared whatever followed me as a walked down to my room at night. The hall was dark, the switch for the light at the entrance, far from my room. I stepped fast, but I did not run. If I ran, surely it would seize me then. But I did not linger too long, and I did not look back. For looking back, seeing the monster there would send me into shock, confirming my deepest fears. As long as I did not see him, he did not exist. As long as I did not run from him, he did not attack. As long as I was captivated by fear, I was safe.

Not the first time...

Last night I was shot in the head.

It is the newest dream in my memory, and one of the most memorable yet. But not the first in which I was shot through the head. There was another dream I was shot in. I died in that dream. Yeah, they say if you die in a dream, you die in real life, but I didn't. It was terrifying, make no mistake, but the dream continued in a bizarre inhuman fashion... Maybe the description of that dream will see life in another blog... but...

In this latest dream, I did not die, however the results were extremely gruesome and very terrifying. I was struggling to cope with being shot, bleeding everywhere, flesh and bone dangling. I was a bloody mess. Somebody wanted me dead.

I was actually shot twice. The first one glanced me, or grazed me, or something, but did little damage, like being punched or hit with something, but the second shot...

The second shot, I don't know why it didn't kill me. It went through my head. It went through my brain. It splattered my flesh. It cracked and shattered my skull. It matted my hair with the fluids contained in my cranium. My brains were certainly damaged.

Yet I was alive. I don't know why now, and I didn't in my dream. I was confused there, as much as I am now. I can't explain how I could survive, and I think of those shows on TLC or Discovery where they show people surviving bizarre trauma. In fact, my attackers seemed quite disturbed by the fact that my skull could be opened by a bullet and yet I still lived. I think, on my part, there was some acceptance of the fact that my brains were smashed, but I could still reason and I still had motor control of my body and that was enough, whatever damage or loss there may be, it was enough still, to survive...

So I ran. I ran like a motherfucker. Shit. I was just blasted through the fucking skull and I was still alive. I was delirious. Desperate. I ran into some kind of shop, like a department store only smaller. It was bright, but at night. Maybe there was jewelry, and perfume. Possibly clothes. It was definitely feminine.

And while the people there were rather concerned, they were reluctant to help. In fact they did not help. I tried to escape my attackers, yet they followed me everywhere I ran to.

The results of the dream remain unknown. Like so many dreams, there isn't really a start, middle and ending, like the movies. Just senseless events.


I was alive, last thing I remember....

Terminal 3

I noticed the other day, after landing at LAX, that in Terminal 3, where gates in the 30's are, the escalators going down to the baggage claim are the only escalators I've been on where the handrail moves at the same speed as the steps. Every escalator I've ever been on the handrail moves either faster or slower than the steps. That always bugs me.

But as an added bonus, that freaky long, tiled, and fluorescent-lit hallway that takes an hour to walk down always reminds me of THX 1138.

...which is the best movie ever.

Overheard No. 1

After the banana encounter, I crossed the street walking towards the building in which I work. There were two black men standing on the corner talking. I only caught just a sliver of their conversation, but it made me smile.

".... with it's five blades."

"You'd take the top of your head off with that shit."

What the fuck are they talking about ?

The only five bladed weapon I know of is the Krull Glave, and what are the chances they know of it too ???

The last banana

I parked my car this morning, in the lot at work. I gathered my things and locked the car, and began walking to the building. As I weaved through the sea of parked cars (which is actually misleading since I parked in the smaller of two lots and it only holds about 30 cars), I saw a co-worker walking into the building also. He waved at me and gave me a friendly smile hello. I see him on occasion although I don't know him, and I don't think I've ever actually met him. But I did notice that, among his coat and assorted personal belongings in his hands, he carried a banana. And I thought to myself, 'Hey! I have one banana left on my desk. I'm totally going to eat the shit out of that banana.'

I just ate it. It was delicious.

Life is short...

If you're not going to laugh and have some fun, kill yourself.

Drooler

I woke up this morning and my cat, Motor, jumped up on the bed next to me and started making biscuits. She can be a bit sloppy and affectionate when she gets like this, but it's cute, and even though I was only half awake I started to scratch her back. Well, that really got her going and she stumbled clumsily closer to me as her nails caught on the blanket. She stood right over my face with this dreamy look in her eye and before I could fully awaken and move out of the way, she drooled into my right eye.