Eating at the Garage Sale

My husband and I were at home, and my sister was over. I saw that my husband had made a pie, and I was very impressed. Then I noticed that there was only one piece of the pie left, so I asked my husband if he ate it all, and he said yes. Then we drove off and went to this garage sale. When we were parking on the side of the road, I kept seeing people that I knew. We went inside, and my husband disappeared up the stairs. I could hear him talking to some other guy. I sat down and pulled out some food and ate. Some other lady sat down and ate too. I was hoping the lady who owned the house wouldn't mind, and she didn't say anything.

When I finished up, my husband came back, and we sat down and started watching a movie on the tv. When the movie finished up, I looked around and realized that they had three rows of theater seats in their living room, and they had all filled up with people.

I saw a big fish tank on the other side of the room, and went to look. My friend Nora was over there. I put a glass under the water dispenser to get a drink. After I filled it up, I looked, and the glass was full of algae. I said, "Nora! What'd you do? Fill this thing with tank water?" I looked back at the glass and realized it had several fish and a crab in it, and wasn't really a glass. Nora decided to change the water for them, and she dumped out the water, and started ladeling out of the main fish tank. Her landlord was pounding on the back door, so she yelled at him to come in. She was having a hard time getting water out, because there were so many vegetables in the water, and her ladle kept getting filled with onions! The fish were flopping aroud without water, so I went to help her, and drew the water out of the other side of the tank. I asked whether the vegetables were really good for the fish. I was skeptical. She said, "Do you think they'd like a strawberry?"

Late and Muddy

I had to get ready for an interview, so I was running home. I ran across this muddy field in my boots, and the mud splashed up all over me. When I got home, I realized the people who were going to be interviewing me weren't going to be coming to my house, I had to go to them, and it was supposed to start in 20 minutes. I couldn't skip showering, because I had gotten all muddy. I ran upstairs. One of my best friends was there. She told me she wanted to take a shower. I realized that would work out fine, because there was a shower where the bedroom closet was supposed to be, as well as a shower in the attached bathroom. I tried to shut and lock the door. It didn't stay. I inspected it closer, and realized there was no hole drilled into the door jamb for it to latch into. Luckily there was a hook latch at the top of the door. I realized there was still no way I would make it to the interview on time, since I had to go back across that muddy field and up a big hill.

Easter Pizza

I had to use the toilet, and someone was in our bathroom, but miraculously, there was another toilet in the bedroom. How convenient. I didn't shut the door all the way, and while I was sitting there, some guy I didn't know walked into the room. I said "Hey! Get out of here!" He turned around for a second, then came back in. He had no respect for my privacy. Another guy followed him in too. They walked into our amazingly large closet to look for some clothes. I tried to cover myself a little and hold up my pants as I stumbled across the floor and shut them in the closet.

I buttoned up and went out into the rest of the house to find my husband, but instead, there were a ton of people I had never met before. They seemed to be having a pizza party, even though it was early Easter morning. I found my husband and complained to him. We were going to be having guests arrive shortly for Easter- what were all these people doing here, and get them out of here! My husband says, "Relax, we're having fun! Have some pizza!"

I turn, and there is a pizza man standing in front of a waist-high stack of pizza boxes, doleing out slices of pizza. He says, "What kind would you like?" I storm off into the next room, pissed off.

A Dangerous sort of Nurse

After my husband had surgery, we were leaving the hospital. We had to drive down a lot of icy roads, and my brakes didn't work, and we slid down a hill, back down to the hospital and crashed. I went to find someone to help us, because everyone was really busy and ignoring us. I finally found a nurse and demanded that she come help us. It was Kim Kardashian. She was kinda cranky to come down and deal with us, until she saw my husband and started flirting with him. He flirted back a little bit, then told her that he had to go have sex now. She said "Oh!" real excitedly. He said, "Oh, sorry, not with you." She said, "Oh." sadly. I piped up, "Yeah, he's married." She came over to me, put her arm around me, gave me her best puppy eyes, and said, "well, that's okay, I don't mind," indicating that I could be involved. I told her I didn't roll that way. We also told her she had to drive us home, since our car was all busted up.

All in a Day's Adventures

We were driving on the freeway, when I noticed in the semi-truck ahead of us, the back had about four diamond shaped panels in it, and one of them had been popped in. There were guys inside the truck jumping up, trying to get out. They were wearing some sort of body suits, so all you could see of them was their hands. I realized that they were being smuggled in from some other country to commit a crime. I tried to call to report them, but I realized I didn't know where to call. I wrote down the license plate #.

My friend and I went in my brother's room to use his computer. I noticed that he had a new, super-widescreen monitor. I was worried that those men had already been there and would be able to tell I was trying to report them, but I felt that it was important enough to be worth the risk. I was looking up "supreme court". I had a hard time finding what I was looking for- (just a phone # or something) instead I just found some kind of form you were supposed to print off, fill out and sign, and mail in. I figured that would take too long, and the damage would already be done by these mystery men.

I was waiting with a whole bunch of people to go to a sports game or something, and everyone was trying to dip their things in this bucket of dye that was supposed to put like logos or something on what was dipped in it. You were supposed to dip it in real quick, and then take it out before the water permeated the object. Pretty much though, things were just coming out wet. An older guy by me kept dipping in clothes, and leaving them in there too long so they came out soaking wet. I was wondering how his family was supposed to put them on. Lastly he dipped in some thong underwear and then held them up and proudly gave them to his daughter.

I dipped in a sweatshirt for my cousin's little baby. A lady next to me was dipping in a stack of cards. Apparantly she didn't think about the water warping the cards. I realized that nothing was really changing from being in the bucket, and decided I was done with it. On the side of the table the bucket was on, some lady was taking a picture of her baby dressed up as a duck, and was going to turn it into a cute yellow themed card. I really enjoyed the fact that the baby blew out some yellow snot just before the camera snapped.

On the way back, there were some police stopped on the side of the road, so we stopped, and I jumped out and ran to go tell them. I realized I knew one of them, so I ran up to his window. He was in the back seat. The policeman in the front seat jumped up real quick, but the one I knew, Luke, told him to relax. Their police car was really weird. It looked pretty much like a black and white Honda Element from the outside. On the inside, there were tons of rows of seats, two by two. It reminded me of a trolley. I told Luke about what I had seen. He wasn't sure what he would be able to do with that information. I said, "Oh, that's right, I also wrote down the license plate #." He said, "Oh good, that should help us out." I dug in my purse, and I couldn't find where I had written it down. I was very disappointed. I asked if I could get it to him whenever I found it, and he said sure. I asked him for his phone # so I could contact him.

Then we went to some kind of a meeting with a lot of young people in a big room. We were being divided into groups. It was kindof boring, so I left, and went to a friends house where some people were hanging out. I invited a friend to come sleepover, and then we went to walk to my parents new house. It was only a few blocks away, so some of the people from the party walked us over. One was someone I knew from elementary school- I told him how I had been to a meeting earlier that day with all the kids from Hamel, and they were dividing them up into groups for the new schools, so they would know some people. He didn't live in Hamel anymore, so he didn't go.

When we got to my parents' house, my friend, her little sister, and my cousin all came in with me. I figured oh well, 3 people is okay. My parents jumped up- they were surprised to have us come there. The little girls went to look at the things in my room. My mom asked if I had a bike. I did. She said they had won bikes for the whole family. They opened the door to the garage. I saw my mom and dad's new bikes. They were very nice. Then they were pulling in the ones they had picked out for us kids. Two of them had paper around them with a note warning that the color had faded. I wondered why they had chosen those bikes. They were also pretty dinged up and dented. I was glad I already had a bike. The little girls finished looking at my room, and my friend's little sister ran outside. I went out after her. She was looking nervous. I asked her if she meant to go back with the rest of the people, and she said yes. I told her that we could drive her back to the party in a few minutes.

Biking in San Francisco

My husband and I are in some bike race. We have to ride all the way up a mountain. When we get to the top, the way to get down is over a waterfall. As we look down towards the city, San Francisco, I see there is like a large pool of water with another waterfall on the other side. There are a few police parked at the shallow edge of that pool. We are told that they are there to protect the city and keep people from shooting at it.

We jump over the waterfall. At the bottom, I nearly bounce over the rocks and off into the bay, but one of the policemen catches me and saves me.

My sister's place, Italy

I was visiting my sister somewhere in the world. I had been swimming somewhere early in the morning, so when I came back I decided to take a shower. It was in the middle of the room, and suddenly people started coming in, so I grabbed my towel and went in the next room to dry off. When I came back, Some of my personal items had gotten left out on the floor, and some guys were laughing and asking me what they were for. I told them they were for my shoes, to make the soles more cushiony. They didn't seem like they believed me, but left it at that.

I was walking up a grassy alley, coming to my sister's again, and I noticed a whole bunch of easel's with sale tags sitting out, and realized that there was an art store on the other side. I went around to go look at the store, and bumped into some of my sister's friends. They wouldn't let me continue on to my sister's place, because supposedly she was coming down to meet them here. We went into a coffee shop/bakery. I was going to get a little scone, and I looked behind the counter and saw these little containers of tea and realized I was in Florence, Italy. Noone was talking in Italian though, and I realized that you really didn't need to worry about knowing Italian in Florence. This girl was buying my tea for me, but didn't want to buy my scone. She was stuttering trying to explain what kind of coffee she wanted, I tried to help her out, and the girl behind the counter says, "Oh, ok, we call that a gym coffee" I say in Italian "Hai?" or "You have that?" She stares at me for a minute, and then says "Yeah."

She brings out the gym coffee, and I tell her "Grazie." Then it is my turn. I am ordering a blackberry shake all of a sudden. She enters purple on her little ordering screen, and tells the guy behind the counter that purple will mean grape flavor this time. I know it's not what I want, but I don't bother correcting her. I am more focused on the fact that I have two ice cream cones in my purse- a sugar cone, and one shaped more like a cake cone. I am wondering whether they will take them for part of the payment, and if so, how much money they would give me for them.

Diapers and Babies

I am at a grocery store. There is some sort of diaper wash service that is collecting diapers in the entryway. They are collecting disposables, not cloth diapers though. I am filling my second bag with dirty diapers when a man comes up behind me. I quickly tie off that bag so that my diapers won't get mixed with someone elses. The man is Dermot Mulrony (the actor). He compliments me on my skills with babies ("My" baby is not there.) He hands me his baby boy to hold while he unloads his diapers. His baby has some sort of severe facial deformity. I worry that it is going to have developmental problems. I try to be nice and comment on how great the baby's hair is. It is very dark, about an inch long, and as stiff as a broom.

Dream Marathon

I am in some giant building with wood floors. There is a dog falling through trap doors in the floors. A girl is following him. Going through the last one would mean a fall to the street. However, inside that floor, just under the opening, there is a bad guy in there somehow. She shines a flashlight down to try to see what is going on. Some guy down on the street yells about the light shining down on him.


I am with two other guys- one is Gibbs, from NCIS. We are carrying big rock mural thing, trying to get it to the right spot before dawn. If sunlight shines on us while we are carrying it, we would turn to stone forever. We are going up cobblestone streets past walls covered with stone murals- it is very quaint and old-fashioned. The momen dawn is about to happen, Gibbs yells, "Drop!" We all fall to the ground, saving ourselves from turning into stone. As far as everyone going by on the street can tell though, they think we are a pile of stones. We have to wait til the next night to try and finish bringing the mural to our destination to save something.


I am at a store in a mall, when I notice a black thing on the floor with a blinking red light. Only one other guy has noticed it so far, and then me. I yell, "There's a bomb!" Everyone evacuates, and waits far out in the parking lot. There is a plastic tented around and over the parking lot to maintain the shrapnell. A teacher lady is explaining how she has tested gas fires to try and keep everyone safe. Lastly Monica Geller comes out of the store, the teacher tells her to get out here, and she just says, "No, I'm going back in for my colors." No one says anything, so I yell, "No! Run!" She turns and runs at a 45 degree angle from the door, just as the place explodes. We turn and hunch over, covering our necks. I feel tiny glass shards hitting me. Then, it is over, and people are leaving. I am talking to a friend from high school and some other Indian guy. We are sharing cds and music. The Indian boy saying something about having me do pictures for him.



I am on the computer at my childhood home, setting up a new computer for someone. I put in a program, and it warns me that some malware has turned itself on. Whoops. I'll have to figure out how to turn that off. I'm listening to Sweet Devotchka, and my dad is yelling up the stairs at me for listening to "Soviet" music.



My Dad is a real estate agent. We are out at some rural lakefront property he is trying to sell. He is throwing rocks down in the water to make the slope walkable and the beach stable, while talking on his cell phone to someone who might want to buy it.

Transportation, poverty, and travel - fragments from one night

I was with my husband at the gas station. He goes inside to buy the gas. I have to get something (can't remember what), but I can't get it at the gas station. I get on a bus looking for the nearest place I can get what I need, thinking I'll be back quick. The bus goes some roundabout way, and ends up at a mall. I look at the bus map, and learn it is the end of the line. I wonder whether I should get on the bus the other direction and get back to my husband or whether I should call him to come get me.

I was with some girlfriends at some guys apartment. We decide he's a schmuck, and get out of there pronto. As we are running away, we go over some frozen pond area. I thought it looked really cool and thought to myself, "I guess Kansas is all right." It led to a restaurant. We wonder if we should steal the food, since we have no money. That guy comes there.


I am in LA at a bus station. I am wondering where I should go. I have my bike. I decide I should fly home. WaLah, there's the airport! Some girl tells me I should ask for Hannah when I check in. I walk across the airport looking for the right airline. Then realize it was NW which was the first one. When I get there, I realize I've left my bike on the other side. I am running, hoping it didn't get stolen. I am lucky today. I bring it over to NW. Hannah has some magical ability to fold up my bike and not ring it in as a bike- so I won't get charged extra.


I am at home. My mom comes in, and tells us we have 15 minutes to get to the airport. We are so poor she has decided we are going to move in with my aunt and uncle in Kansas. We are mad she didn't give us any warning. I am trying to stuff things into a bag- throwing in craft books, jewelry findings, anything that might be worth a little bit of money. We take off.


I am in the black hills, overhearing some people talking about how much they like club med- they are filming a commercial or something. I am hiking on the sidewalk when a little boy falls down the hill a little bit. I give him a hand and pull him up. I see a house a mile or two away giving out tons of smoke. Some guy hiking near me says its possible that it isn't on fire, because it's all coming out of the chimney. If they are burning some specific type of local wood it would give off tons of smoke, which then falls down in the valley and enriches the soil.
We go on, and a lady pops out of a door of a house right up against the path. The guy talks to her- it's my mom?! "Where are you staying," he asks her. She points to a cheap motel. He's like "Oh." I'm thinking maybe she was in the club med commercial and that's why she's here. It's embarrasing not to be staying where the rich people are. I go down some steps on the edge of the hill to the main motel entrance. The owner is an old lady who gives me some things to cover the planters in the entryway for the winter.
My family leaves the motel to go to some buffet restaurant. We are trying to figure out what we can afford. I have to pay for myself. I have 6 dollars. My uncle has 10. My dad has to feed him, my mom, and my sister. We can get ham, a dinner roll, and corn for $5 each. I want a rootbeer too, but it costs a dollar and I won't have money for tax. There is a small deli/grocery in front of the buffet line. My mom opens a package of swiss cheese to see if it smells good. She doesn't think it's good enough, and gives it to the cheese man and tells him he should sell it.