Dream Interpretation!

[ralerin]

I do this every once in a while, offering dream interpretation to members of boards I'm on for the fun of it. Post as many details as you can remember about the dream, and if necessary a bit of background information about the characters involved, like your mom, your brother, your boss's half cousin twice removed that you met at the office Christmas party, that sort of thing. The more information you give me about the dream the better. I will in turn interpret your dream for you, using the two different dream dictionaries I have and also my own point of view. I've usually been pretty accurate in the past, but of course I can't be 100% accurate. This is more for fun than anything else, consult a therapist if you need to, I'm not a substitute for proper medical advice, so on and so forth.

Post away!

(As an FYI, the dream dictionaries I use are The Element Encyclopedia of 10,000 Dreams and also Zolar's Dream Dictionary).

[Kheldarson]

This is an old one of mine. Struck me as odd at the time and re-reading it, still does...


I'm apparently a demon hunter in Roanoke. I know it's Roanoke because several times I'm driving on the wrong side of the street to get somewhere nearby in a hurry and almost kill myself. We're (as in my team) trying to capture something; I never saw what, just the massive damage it dealt to the area. We had it cornered in a quarry/train station.

I can only assume at this point that we got whatever it was, because then I was back at what I knew was base training the next group of hunters. It's at this point I (the meta-dreamer) realize that technically all of the hunters are dead, because the last training room is completely closed. No doors, no windows. I (dream-self) settle down and tell the students that the only way out is to open a door to heaven. Which some apparently do.

Then it jumps to a weird Tom and Jerry parody where I and the hunters are racing down the River Styx in one of those rowing boats against a team of demons. Tom's on the hunter side, Jerry with the demons. We win, which pisses the devil off royally cuz he has to free some friends of ours (who turned out to be shapeshifters) but he thinks he's won anyway because all of the hunters are covered in water from the river, which means once we pass a certain point the water will become acid. So we got showers in holy water which actually made Tom melt...

It then jumped to the final training room where I was being told I was going to be allowed to go to Purgatory...


I'm not sure what's to blame for this whole sequence. And still not sure.

[Kogarashi]

Ah, what the heck.



Everything's in grayscale instead of color (which is what I normally dream in). My second-youngest sister, my youngest aunt, and I are off to the grocery store in my family's old brown minivan. We get to the store and are browsing, and when we get to the frozen chicken aisle, one of the frozen whole chickens suddenly catches fire. The fire alarms go off, and everyone evacuates through the two rear exits, drops about five feet down to the ground, and hides under the covered walkways we just came from (right against the building, even though I as third-person observer was aware enough that this was a very stupid thing if the building was indeed on fire.

Finally, after a very long time waiting, the alarm turned off. Supposedly the fire department came and put the fire out, even though I never saw or heard them. Sister, Aunt, and I got back into the minivan and headed home, and were about halfway there when I started to doze off, then realized that the three of us were curled up on the futon-seat in the back of the minivan and that the van was driving itself. Also, for some reason, my aunt was wearing a fake afro.

We all woke up in a run-down part of town, parked near a broken wooden fence. There were scraggly trees around, and abandoned houses and mobile homes. We didn't feel safe, but the van wouldn't start, so we took refuge in one of the mobile homes. We wandered around with blankets wrapped around us like shawls (over our heads, around our shoulders, only our faces peeking out), and I happened to have my baby blanket as my "shawl." We walked through the mobile home, which was much larger inside than outside, and had rooms like a small convenience store (unmanned), a library/study, a fancy living room, and so on. No bathrooms, no kitchen that I recall, no bedroom. There were a few other people in the home, all wrapped in blankets and wandering around, and to get from one room to the next, you had to crawl through vents because there were no doors or windows.

Finally, at some point, we each individually crawled through a vent into the center of the mobile home, and things changed abruptly. Suddenly everything was in vivid color, sounds were amplified, the very mood lightened tremendously (everything leading up to this was ominous and subdued), and we were standing in a massive arena with muppet-style monsters as spectators watching as we puny humans competed in various gladiator-style games. The dream quickly faded from there.

After briefly waking up, I was back in greyscale-vision with Aunt and Sister, and we were riding in that brown minivan again up the road where my grandma's house is, which is long and winding. Again, none of the three of us were driving, though this time we were all awake. We knew that we needed to get out of the van before it reached the end of the road, so Aunt and Sister each jumped out the side door at some point and landed safely in the grass. I couldn't bring myself to jump out, and the van was picking up speed, but just before it reached the end of the road the dream segment rebooted and the three of us were back at the beginning of the road and it played through all over again. It played through about three times before I woke up.

I had the same dream sequence (from going to the store all the way through the repeating jump segment) every night or at least every other night for a week or two. For details on the family members, Sister is the second-youngest of the five of us (I'm the oldest), and the one I probably most related to growing up. Aunt is my mom's youngest sister and second-youngest sibling (mom is the oldest of eight, though one aunt died in early childhood), and went to school for about five years or so with me due to how close our ages were.


I'm curious to see what the verdict is on this.

[Greenday]

Hm, I had two decent vivid dreams last night. It's been happening more and more lately. I'm enjoying it.

First dream was me and some friends at another friend's graduation party. We were hanging out at her party and after awhile, I got my friend whose graduation party it was alone and I confessed to her that "for the longest time, fall semester, and part of the spring semester, I had the biggest crush on her". Somehow I ended up driving us all back to school (which is about an hour from her home) and I was dropping everyone off. She was the last one I was dropping off and when I got to her apartment, she told me that she liked me too and then we started making out in my car.

Then my bastard beagle scratched on my bedroom door and woke me up. Always during the good parts! I'm pretty sure I know what that dream is getting at though.

My second dream was much more random. I was once again at school and I was walking around in town and there was a huge party in the street with a lot of underage people. I joined the party and once I got noticed, some guy who seemed important at the party asked me what I was doing there since I wasn't underage (by underage I mean everyone was about 18-20). I told him I was just there to have fun and that I wasn't a cop. If I was a cop, there'd be a lot more cops coming any second. Right after saying that, a crapload more cops come and everyone scatters. I don't run, as I'm 21 and I wouldn't be in trouble. I blacked out then when the next scene started, I was in jail. I noticed a bunch of girls that I went to high school with, some I was friendly with, some I didn't talk to. We hung out and ended up chilling in a jacuzzi. The jail seemed more like a resort really, but it was clear to me that it was not a resort, it was a jail.

Yea, how bout them apples?

[BethB]

Alot of my dreams have me running from someone or something. I've "run away" from my husband during a barbecue and was being hunted down by him, his friends, neighbors, and police until I ended up in a Walgrens type store and they helped me hide. or I'm running from unknown people who want me dead in either an office building, a school, or just a large city. i get more exercise in my dreams than in real life. Too bad. I'd be a size 4 if I did.

That or I'm being intimate with someone who is not my hubby and I know it and I don't care. I have so much guilt when I wake up and I didn't do anything.

[fireheart]

Mine at the moment are fairly straightforward...

...me and my ex-boyfriend. On my bed. Having sex. In a variety of different positions too
And surprisingly, he's good. at the end, we're just cuddling. Think of sex scenes from just about any movie (not porn) and that's pretty much it.

[ralerin]

*blinks* Wow, all of your dreams are incredibly interesting. Seriously.

Kheldarson: What I'm confused about is the reference to Roanoke and driving on the wrong side of the street-I'm going to assume you're talking about the colony of Roanoke that disappeared during the early 17th century. What is interesting is that they speculate that the survivors married into the local Native American population, which would fit into the theme of the rest of your dream-negativity and rewards.

What's interesting is that you cornered your quarry in a quarry and were on Roanoke to begin with. Demons can represent all sorts of things, and the fact that you never saw it/them but cornered it indicates that you were attempting to chase out negativity that you knew you needed to get rid of but feared to, as it depended entirely on someone related to you, friend or family. Who were your teammates in the dream? The fear of being cut off while trying to get rid of said negativity REALLY shows up in the room with no escape paths except to open a door into heaven, as that is a place of rewards. Interesting that you tell the other students how to get there because your subconscious knew that once you got out of this negative situation you would have a reward, but also the fact that the entire dream took place on Roanoke could mean said negativity never really went away and got absorbed into your life in some other fashion.

Tom and Jerry parody: Highly interesting on that, since isn't Tom the one who wants to hurt Jerry? But it makes sense since Tom's the one with the brute strength and Jerry's the one who wins through cleverness and luck. The River Styx is the one you have to cross in Greek mythology to reach the underworld, and you were racing down on it. In the end you won over the demons, which is good, as you also won over the negativity and its symbolic death (Styx); but it came with a price, as you would be burned by whatever the situation was. Cleaning up with holy water and seeing poor Tom melt also shows that you would win over the situation, but, again, you would somehow be harmed. I think more than anything Tom and Jerry symbolize comic relief and some sort of happiness (yeah, I know) that would have been harmed by the situation more than anything.

Also interesting is the purgatory bit, since purgatory is a place of cleansing and you would have to be cleansed before you could accept your reward.

Does any of that make sense?

*

Kogarashi: Why do you dream in grayscale? That's wicked interesting. Do you remember when you started dreaming in grayscale? Because that seems more like you feel the color's been washed out of your life. STOP being so indecisive and learn to stand up for yourself and formulate your own goshdang opinion! Shopping for groceries is indicative of wanting to get new ideas. Do you remember what you were shopping for? The frozen chicken catching fire indicates uncontrolled passion for something that you are too "chicken" to admit in real life; as a matter of fact, that your sister and aunt are involved in whatever the situation is are also too chicken and all of you would rather run and hide. Yet you realize this is stupid which is good! But you heard only the alarm turn off, which should be a bad thing as you've turned off your own inner alarm for the situation and would rather let someone else cool down the situation.

Another point: Who drove the van to the store? Because while it appears they have a grip on the situation, none of you do, and are content to let the situation drive itself while you stay in the backseat. Your aunt is driving herself mental with the situation, which is why her hair turned into an Afro-not just simply frizzy, a full blown Afro, one of the messiest looking hairstyles you can have.

So you woke up in a run down part of town next to a broken fence?Definitely the situation calls for communication, mend your fences, as it were. Could also indicate a breaking down of beliefs and conceptions held. In either case, all of you did not feel safe; you feel vulnerable and insecure in real life. Interesting that you ran and hid again and wrapped yourselves in the most comforting, secure things that you could find. The mobile home could indicate the weighing down of your life (it is a mobile home, you're supposed to take it with you!). But the fact that it had no bedrooms indicates a loss of security, no bathrooms to help you cleanse away your fear, and no kitchen to nourish your emotions is bad. The fancy living room and library are the front you like to put up in your life-being fancy and educated and convenient to rely on with a good source of knowledge within you. The other people wrapped up within the home, did they interact with you or were they just there? Interesting with the passageways, because you lack the means to open the door and open the window to clear the air out of your life/the situation.

Interesting that after you crawled out of the ominous home the dream lightened. Do you feel as if you're being watched? Gladiators often fought to the death, what sort of games did you fight?

Back to grayscale and to your grandmother's house. The fact you were awake indicates a desire to control yourself, but grandmas are a sign of security, but the fact that your aunt and sister had the sense to jump out while you didn't and the van picked up speed as it hurtled to your grandma indicates that grandma is either part of or the cause of the problem or else your aunt and sister are tired of feeling insecure and are going to pick themselves up to take charge of the situation. Your brain rebooted that 3 times, which is a giant sign going "DING DING DING" with flashing bells and lights and whistles! And as if you didn't get it enough, it was recurring! Examine the situation and take action!

*

Greenday: Hahaha, I know, beagles have a knack for destroying dreams! *points to avatar* My little girl there, especially.

The graduation: Did it happen in real life? because graduating is a HUGE accomplishment and the fact that you were enjoying yourself at the party indicates a need to loosen up and have fun in real life. Question: Do you like this girl in real life, too? Is she single or does she have a boyfriend/girlfriend? Because if she's single and you're single, you've got a giant flashing sign with lights and bells and whistles going "DING DING DING" too.

The second party, also indicates a need for fun, but also a fear that you're "too old" to enjoy yourself but not too old to be noticed by important people. But you do have the ability to break up the party when it feels like you're having too much fun, which is sad. However, interesting that you did get caught and that the jail was a resort. And also interesting that you hung out with these girls in a jacuzzi, relaxing. Whatever punishments you mete out to yourself aren't harsh but it's still not good to punish yourself for having fun.

*

Beth: Ah...the running away dream, I had loads of those. Do you ever understand who you're running away from or why? Why are you running from your husband? The personal relationship between you and your husband really can't be harmonious, and the not caring feeling from the sex and guilt when you wake up is a HUGE indicator of that. I'm really, really, REALLY not going to touch that because I am not a therapist nor counselor. But to start with, figure out who wants you dead in the dream and why you run from your husband. Once you've chewed through that and if the dreams still reoccur, then get the help you need.

(Edited to add: Before you go "OMG HOW DARE YOU! I have a perfect relationship with my husband!" I wanted to say that if you (and I'm using "you" as in the general sense here, not just specific to Beth) have running away dreams, they can be also be specific to a situation in your life, not just the person. In my own running dreams, I feared the loss of respect my parents and boyfriend and friends would have for me if I did what I wanted to do (and I'm deliberately being vague here), so most nights I dreamed I was running from the police and concealing myself in plain sight. For all I know, Beth could have the perfect relationship with her husband. Also for all I know her relationship could be headed for divorce tomorrow. I'm only saying that running could be from a situation and/or from a person.

*

Fireheart: The last and the easiest (phew). Sex dreams indicate a real desire to get closer to whoever you're doing. How long have you broken up with said boyfriend? Because I get the feeling you still harbor feelings for the boyfriend. Which is okay, so long as they do not border on the point of obsession. But your dreams are fine.

[Kogarashi]

Interesting interpretation, ralerin.

Kogarashi: Why do you dream in grayscale? That's wicked interesting. Do you remember when you started dreaming in grayscale?

This is the only point I feel I need to clarify. This was one of only two dreams I've ever had in grayscale. The rest of my dreams (at least the ones I can remember the next day) are in color, usually very vivid color. The other grayscale dream didn't have enough details for me to remember much beyond the fact that it was dark, there was a bit of burgundy somewhere, and I was running from a fantasy novel villain.

Interesting, because I'd read somewhere once that people don't usually dream in color, yet I do almost all the time.

[RayvenQ]

I fear dreaming, why? because normally, even though I know that I had them even though i can't remember anythign about them, anyway, the very few times that I've remember my dreams in great detail have been, well, scarily prophetic.

Dream 1. (I was about 6/7 at the time)I dreamed that a girl I knew from school and I got chased all through my local swimming pool building by a freaking big crocodile, eventually ending up on a canal boat in the kiddy pool, the croc got her though.

Go to school the next day: We're informed that said girl is moving schools.

Second Dream: I dreamt that one of my mice got loose and got on the main road and got run over by a car.

Next Morning, I wake up to find that one of my mice (albeit the other one than in the dream) died in the night.

Though interestingly, I used to have the dream form of an invisible friend, I was, in my dream, entirely aware that it was a dream and that the girl who was my dream invisible friend wasn't real.

THe absoloute worst dream I ever had though, was dreaming that I was someone who was present at the burning of Joan of Arc (and someone who was a friend of hers), That experience was so detailed, smells, sights, sounds etc that, to this day, I maintain that it wasn't a dream, that it was a memory.

[sarasquirrel]

ok i have lots of random dreams, but i have a re-occurring thing

its kinda weird, kinda gross but anyways

i'll be in a bathroom, could be a store, mall, school, whatever any that have multiple stalls, and they're all completely disgusting and filthy (not far from the truth eh) anyways even though there's this nastiness everywhere, i still have to go and manage to go somehow. i know its stupid, but i keep on having these dreams lol, and no i don't have the urge to go when i wake up.

the other night i had a dream i was at work and some dude comes in, saying hes robbing the place. i stand in the aisle and witness it. and someone hands him money from a drawer. then i see a random former employee try to mention something like giving him the change drawer. WTF don't tell him that! anyways, the guy goes outside. and my brother gets on the phone and is calling the police, i take over and start giving them the details. for some reason the guy just stays there outside, its like dude, run, you just robbed us. and it was weird how i was giving such detailed description. i cant remember it too well now, but yea that's about it i think i woke up after that.

[Kheldarson]

*blinks* Wow, all of your dreams are incredibly interesting. Seriously.

Kheldarson:
*snip*
Does any of that make sense?

Yeah. Although it was the city of Roanoke, VA--place where I lived for 7 years (longest stay ever). A lot of my dreams tend to go back there.

[ralerin]

Rayven: I firmly believe that dreams can be prophetic, as in your case. I also believe that dreams can be glimpses into your past life. In your Joan of Arc one, yes, it was a memory because 99.9% of dreams are not that vivid.

Kheldarson: Ah! You must love the place still.

Sara: 1. Do you pee in your dreams or do you poop? What are the bathrooms filthy with? Poo, pee, toilet paper, blood or water? Filthy bathrooms indicate a need to relieve yourself, and a need to clean up your life. The fact that you're able to relieve yourself is a good thing as it means you're trying to get rid of whatever's weighing you down. Just need a touch more info on what you do and what the bathroom's covered in.

2. Robbers indicate good fortune (I know, seems counter intuitive) and the fact that you stand and watch instead of stopping him indicates the desire just to watch your good fortune get on by without you. The two people in the dream aren't random because they've had good fortune or better jobs or something to do with getting something better than you have and the fact you were WTF over the change drawer indicates a small hint of jealousy. Your brother is willing to help you and you're also willing to help yourself but not enough to go out and catch the good fortune even though it's standing right there in front of you.

[sarasquirrel]

Rayven: I firmly believe that dreams can be prophetic, as in your case. I also believe that dreams can be glimpses into your past life. In your Joan of Arc one, yes, it was a memory because 99.9% of dreams are not that vivid.

Kheldarson: Ah! You must love the place still.

Sara: 1. Do you pee in your dreams or do you poop? What are the bathrooms filthy with? Poo, pee, toilet paper, blood or water? Filthy bathrooms indicate a need to relieve yourself, and a need to clean up your life. The fact that you're able to relieve yourself is a good thing as it means you're trying to get rid of whatever's weighing you down. Just need a touch more info on what you do and what the bathroom's covered in.

2. Robbers indicate good fortune (I know, seems counter intuitive) and the fact that you stand and watch instead of stopping him indicates the desire just to watch your good fortune get on by without you. The two people in the dream aren't random because they've had good fortune or better jobs or something to do with getting something better than you have and the fact you were WTF over the change drawer indicates a small hint of jealousy. Your brother is willing to help you and you're also willing to help yourself but not enough to go out and catch the good fortune even though it's standing right there in front of you.

hmm i think i pee in the dreams. they are just dirty, wet, maybe crap in the toilet lol. i never though of it that way, i just thought i was weird.

and good fortune? hmmm

[BethB]

Mine makes more sense now. I love the hubby but somedays I want to sell him on Ebay. We're having a situation at home($$ wise) and instead of understanding how I feel about it, he plays it off like he did nothing wrong and it's times like that I want to get away from him.

I think the other running dreams could just be my feelings at work. I feel like I'm running my ass off for no good reason. I've tried to get promotions but I'm passed over for people who have worked there less time than I have. It's a bit enlightening and I will have to look into it further.

[Andara Bledin]

Kogarashi: Why do you dream in grayscale? That's wicked interesting. Do you remember when you started dreaming in grayscale?

Here's something for you: I always dream in greyscale. I have never had a dream that had any color in it, although I could always tell what color the things in the dream are.

I've also never remembered a dream or remembered remembering a dream (if that makes sense to you) where I didn't know, while I was in the dream, that I was dreaming.

Here's an old one for you, from back when I was still in high school:

I'm running through the neighborhood where I live. I'm being chased by weird alien blob things which are mostly around and above me, and I'm also being chased by classic Men In Black (back before I'd ever heard the term... this was in the mid-80's), who were behind me somewhere in a black Cadillac, cruising the streets.

It was nighttime out, but because it's my dream, I can see everything perfectly (It looks like a dark filter over a cheap b&w movie being filmed in bright light). I'm running through yards to avoid being seen by the MiBs in the car. I'm not actually worried about the alien blob things, though. I knock or ring at a few of the doors where friends live, but nobody answers. There don't appear to be any other people in the dream. (I didn't, in real life, know anybody at any of those houses)

I find a large pedestal with a spiral staircase around it in the middle of the streat. The stairs lead to a platform and I run up the stairs. Once I get to the top, I realize that there is nowhere for me to go to get away from the Men in Black. The blob things disappeared sometime while I was running through the yards, but I didn't notice.

When I realize fully that there is no way for me to escape the MiBs and they are coming up the stairs after me, the scene blinks and I'm off of the pedestal again, further up the street, and still running from the Men in Black.

That's about where the dream ends.

As an aside, I used to have a lot of dreams where I was being chased by Men in Black. Most of them followed the same sort of pattern, but with slight variations. This particular one, however, was very different.

It's also the first time I can recall that I had such an obvious cheat point in a dream. Some time later (years, I think), I had a dream where I got into a situation that had no decent way out. I did a rewind and try again three times before I just skipped whatever it was I was stuck on and continued like the problem part never happened.

^-.-^