Monthly Archive: January 2019

29
Jan
2019
16:21

My Journey To Atlantis and Beyond

I had an item. The exact details of this item are unimportant, personal, and will not be detailed here. It was a special item to me that I had acquired shortly after my last breakup, over two years ago. It was a totem. A token representing love to me. I have a tendency to anthropomorphize a little too much so this item was alive to me. I spoke to it. Especially when I couldn’t speak to her. It was also a conduit, a connection.

Now, I’m sure many of you at this point are probably thinking that it sounds like something I should have been rid of long ago, but we each have to walk our own path, be true to ourselves and no words will do this item, or my relationship with it, justice. For me, it was a symbol of unconditional, unwavering love, despite any obstacles, storms, or logistically unfortunate circumstances. It was a symbol of a promise that I had made. A badge of being a steadfast Love Warrior. I figured I would probably keep it until such time as someone new entered my life, if that is to happen, or else until such time as it felt like it was time to let it go.

A while back, I started using a dice rolling app when I was having a hard time deciding between two things. I would ask the universe which way I should go, and then use the virtual 2 sided “die” to get my answer, choosing to believe that it was universe answering me and not just random digital bits giving me a meaningless random outcome. Over the last two years, I had checked in with this item at least a couple of times to see if it was time to let it go. The last time I remember was just before I left for my six month journey on the cruise ship. When I asked then, it told me that it should come with me, so I brought it. Over the course of my time here (at this point, I’m just about at the halfway point of the 6 month contract), I started to get the feeling that maybe one of the ports of call would be its destination of release.

Yesterday, I stood out on the bow of the ship, held the item in my hand and found myself afraid to ask it the question. In fear that it was time. Part of me laughed at the ridiculousness of all this, but never the less, it was a real feeling. So I told it to show me a “1” if it was time to let it go, or a “2” if I was to keep it around for now. I hesitated tapping the screen, and then willed myself to do it, closing my eyes for just a moment. And there it was on the screen. “1”. Tears filled my eyes. I rushed back to my cabin and cried for a few minutes. Tears that I felt had been just below the surface for quite some time, and yet at least partially surprised me at their appearance. Tears that come back now as I write this. I let the feelings and tears flow until they were done and then made peace with it. I spent last night, another “Elegant Evening,” walking around the ship with the item in my pocket. Eating, listening to music, just feeling the energy of life and all the people around me.

This morning, after a safety drill, I left the ship with the item. My initial plan was to go to a nearby beach spot behind a hotel and let it go there, but then I remembered that across the water was a popular resort called “Atlantis,” and something about that just called to me. Plus, I liked the fact that it was a bit of a trek. Not much, only a mile or two at most, but still I liked the idea of having a walk and making it feel a little more like a journey and a mission. I walked across the huge Sydney Poitier bridge and as I neared Atlantis is was starting to sprinkle a bit. As I got closer it started raining harder but I would not be deterred. Besides, it’s not like there was anywhere I could really go. I arrived at Atlantis soaking wet. It was impressive. Very cool Atlantean decor. I went inside and wandered around a bit, enjoying some huge indoor aquariums. It very much reminded me of the two posh resorts where I had stayed in Cancun with my ex when we were dating. Unfortunately, I found there was no beach access unless you were a guest so I headed back out. I eventually found out through messaging my band mates and talking to some locals that there was a public beach further down the road in the opposite direction, so I set out that way. Eventually I saw the “Beach Access” signs and followed them to a beach (Cabbage Beach, I think).

I was in luck. It was high tide and there were huge, crashing waves. I found a spot a little further down that was less busy where a couple were enjoying playing in the giant waves. They looked about as high as a person not very far out, and were coming way up the beach. I took off my shoes and put my phone, wallet and ID in them, then stuffed my socks in, and wrapped it all up with my NASA shirt, and set the bundle on a beach chair, safe from any incoming waves. I walked just a little way toward the ocean, and each wave would bury my feet up to the ankles in sand, and threaten to pull my legs out from under me. I took the item from my pocket. I had contemplated the ramifications of letting the ocean have it, and determined that I didn’t think it would do any harm. Nothing, plastic or harmful. Somehow, this is just what felt right. I thanked the item for its support and comfort over the years, and said it was time to release that energy back into the universe and the largest, most powerful force on the planet, the ocean. I said a lot more to both the item and to the ocean, but those words were just for them. As another huge wave rolled in, I plunged my hands deep into the sand and let the item go. I stood there for a while, with each powerful wave moving lots of sand. I never saw the item go, but I’m fairly positive it would have been carried away powerfully and quickly.

This wasn’t goodbye. This wasn’t a death. This wasn’t grieving or mourning. The item wasn’t her and she wasn’t the item. For better and worse it was too easy to anthropomorphize the item. This wasn’t any admission of defeat or hopelessness. It was simply a step in healing and letting go of the past. Trying to always be more present. This was saying that I trust the universe. Releasing control. Believing that whatever path I am on is always the path I need to be on. This was knowing that even if some crazy timeline brought this woman back into my life in the future, it would be a new beginning and not a continuation of the past. The item was a token of love, but it was also a token of pain and desperation. Too often we hold on to our pain. Swaddle ourselves in it. Weave identities from it. It is a particularly human trait that I’ll never understand. I don’t need the item to be a Love Warrior, or to send wishes of love and happiness to her into the universe. It has no bearing on any connection I may or may not have. Like almost everything in life, I have a choice as to how I view all this. It doesn’t have to “a thing.” It doesn’t have to be painful. It can easily be viewed as positive. A new beginning. Leaving behind pain. Letting go of that which doesn’t serve us. Our perspective is quite often much more in our control than we think. I’ll never forget the item. I’m sure I’ll even miss the item when my ego and pain body starve for food and try to poke the sore places, but its watch is done. As is this step of my spiritual journey. In the end, I walked over seven miles. I hadn’t eaten all day so on my way back, I stopped at Phoenix Chinese food, where I had eaten once before and had some of the best Chinese food I have ever had. As I write this back in my cabin on the ship, I feel like Samwise at the end of Lord of the Rings. Don’t get me wrong, my journey was nothing like his, but it was epic in its own very small way.

“Well, I’m back,” he said.

29
Jan
2019
16:19

The Item

I had an item
The time came to let it go
The ocean took it

15
Jan
2019
15:24

Dream Theatre 47

Wow. So many crazy dreams last night. Let’s see how much I can remember. 

First I was on a shuttle bus to Disney World. We were almost there and I realized that I had only brought a warm long sleeved shirt and my Indiana Jones leather jacket. I was annoyed because even just the shirt was going to be too hot and now I was going to have to carry this stuff around all day and be shirtless. I thought I would just buy a T-shirt when I got there. Also I was wearing gym shorts so they would look stupid with shorts. 

When we arrived we were all led to a big waiting room that was like a locker room. A worker came in and asked if we had seen the big buildings and spaceships as we approached. Somehow, I had not noticed, probably because I was so preoccupied with my clothing dilemma. 

She (the worker) explained that earth had been invaded buy aliens and we were all needed to fight for our survival. I now realized that this was all part of the totally immersive new experience at the park. A huge sci-fi super advanced laser tag type place with a futuristic city, building sized alien spaceships to fight in, etc. We were each given a gun in a holster that strapped to our thigh with two straps. She asked “How far do you think any one of you would get alone out there?” 

I screamed “Let’s find out!” And I jumped up and ran out the open bunker door into the fray. 

Immediately, robotic aliens resembling the Geth from the Mass Effect video games started appearing and coming toward me. Big silver robotic aliens, with sleek muscle like contours and a face that was one big red glowing circle. I started blasting and quickly realized that you could one or two shot them if you hit the red “eye.” More and more started appearing and it was obvious I wasn’t supposed to take this force on alone. I noticed holographic power ups appear around the ground and the aliens would grab them for shields or other powers. I couldn’t get to them at this point before the aliens so I decided to run and see how far I could get. I dashed into the streets dodging and firing. I eventually made my way to huge alien building (or possibly gargantuan ship). 

Inside was the size of a huge office building with computers and such and a huge staircase built into a slanted floor leading up to another level and then on to another and so on like one side of a pyramid. 

At this point there was a break in the dream, possibly for some other dreams but I can’t remember the order or details exactly. I do remember that at some point I was back here and this time knowing it was a dream decided to count the levels to see how many there were leading up and away in front of me. It was hard to count them as they seemed to change or multiply as I tried but I eventually counted about 15 levels. 

Then suddenly I had a disguise. I activated my disguise and was now dressed as one of the humanoid alien workers in an a white and black uniform and mask. I started fiddling with the computers trying to figure out controls and messing with crystal device that was inserted in one of the computers. Other workers would acknowledge me and I would nod, hoping to not be discovered. Then one worker came up to me and said a phrase, something like “Point 432.” I had a feeling this was a security phrase and I was supposed to issue a particular response. I didn’t know the response of course so in an effort to distract and not get discovered, I started blatantly coming on to her. It seemed to work for the moment. Sadly, I think that’s all there was (or all I remember) to that world. 

Dream 2 involved me and Larry Soileau writing a silly comedy short. We wrote this short skit where I played Rick James and was giving a serious monologue about Rick James’ charity for abused and battered women or something like that. It was all very earnest like “We all know someone who has been abused or gone through hard times,” etc. Then the punchline was that after this heartfelt plea, it ended with Rick James yelling “BITCH!” Because that was his “catch phrase” in this dream world and we thought the dichotomy in tone was hilarious. Look, dreams are weird man. Larry and I actually wrote really funny stuff in the real world. 

In dream 3, I woke up and Larry and I shared a huge house with glass walls on the bottom level. He was a about to leave and I started telling him all about my crazy Disney World Alien Battle dream. I was about half way through when he informed me that he really had to leave to be somewhere, so I didn’t get to finish my story. He grabbed his stuff and went outside and threw down his remote control hover board which was the size of a skateboard with propellers built into the board at the front and back. He had the remote in his left hand with his jacket and stuff, and gave a kick to get going. He hovered off at a very slow pace, probably about half as fast as waking which made me wonder what was the point in using the board if it was that slow. I wondered if maybe it got faster after warming up or something. 

In dream 4, I got an out of the blue text from my ex asking “Enjoying a day off?” I’m not sure if it was dream me, or real me who wondered “How did she know today is my day off?” but I responded with “Very much needed!” She also sent me a video of the condo after it had been cleared out right before she left it for the last time. The video had some text on it like you add after the fact in Instagram saying something like “The condo as of two day ago.” I hadn’t seen this posted on Instagram though so I was puzzled. Maybe she just added the text another way before sending it to some other folks before or something. Or maybe she had some way of hiding posts from me. And though I was shocked to get this message, I thought it was a good sign that she was just texting me like it was normal and that maybe she wouldn’t just be “Somebody that I used to know.” I was glad for the exchange but the video also made me sad. 

I think that’s about all I can recall. My brain had a busy night.

15
Jan
2019
15:18

Dream 47

Many dreams this night
Aliens, friends, and an ex
Very active brain