The theme is DREAMS.

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illusion and merriment by Nate

Sleep Deprivation From Putting Off Your Psych 101 Term Paper Until the Night Before It’s Due by Tom

“In 1953, Aserinsky and his advisor published the ground-breaking study in Science.[4]”
(Aserinsky and Kleitman, 1953. DOI: 10.1126/science.118.3062.273)via Wikipedia.

Though in many cases a butterfly effect is tortuous and enigmatic, in this case Aserinsky can reasonably be credited for his minor role in a run of mega-successful releases beginning with Murmur and finishing with either Automatic for the People or New Adventures in Hi-Fi, depending on your taste.

“In 1968, Celia Green […] concluded that lucid dreams were a category of experience quite distinct from ordinary dreams and said they were associated with rapid eye movement sleep.”
(Green, 1968) Also via Wikipedia.

The date was not going well, conversation had been stilted and each of their lattes had been consumed by nervous discomfort sips within 15 minutes. But now that Lucia had excused herself to the bathroom, Alex had an opportunity to reset. They had chatted on the app about movies; maybe there was an opportunity. He, of course, knew many cool movie facts.

Lucia slowly made her way back to the table, and, as she did, threw several rapid and deliberate glances towards the door, hoping that he would be tipped off by body language. Instead, she sat down and was greeted with:

“Did you know that Christopher Nolan practiced lucid dreaming as a teenager and college student, and he drew inspiration from these experiences in the crafting of his 2010 sleeper hit (no pun intended) titled ‘Inception’?”

She weighed whether responding “yes” or “no” would allow for a quicker departure.

the errant purse by martin

https://www.mboxdrive.com/percyloop2___11_1_21__1.47_PM.mp3

Sleep by :/

Reeds by Tim

Reeds hide the wheels
Hold the trailer
Where we sleep
Between life
And everything else
Dying could be eternity
A big bang inside you
Every chemical apparent
Pulling to the outer limits
Of perception
And you and yours

A New Place by D'Quiche

Waking up in a new place
Is never comfortable
But it’s not so bad
When you throw the covers back
And walk downstairs

And perhaps this place
Isn’t so new at all
But we’re older now
And we’ve got different things
On our minds

And that dream may seem nice
Because it was
But it’s funny how things look different
When you look back at them
Instead of forward

And what we wanted
Is still important
But it’s cold outside
And these new wool socks
Are reaaally cozy

And don’t forget
There’s always tonight

Original Dreamers by Xico González (source)

In the immigrants’ rights movement
often times we hear of the Dreamers
with their graduations gowns
fists in the air
and beautiful butterflies

Marchas, rallies and sit-ins
that lead to deportations
Sacrificios de sueños soñados

In senators’ offices
self-sacrificing dreamers
get arrested and deported
to prove a point:
the US immigration system is broken

For the dreamers,
la escuela o los guachos
Dos caminos
that end in papeles and green cards

Let me ask you a question,
what about the original dreamers?
Who speaks for them nowadays?

They have sueños too

Have we forgotten about the
padres, madres
hermanos y hermanas
that came to the US too old to go to school
or join the armed forces

They have sueños too

Pero le tubieron que chingar
In low paying jobs
como los files, la construcción, los hoteles,
rich people’s homes, and restaurants

You know the ones bumping
cumbias, norteñas, banda y racheras
in the kitchen
the ones that yell,

“Apurate güey,”
“ya esta listo güey,”
“No mames güey,”

They have sueños too,

They dreamed that their children
will have a better life in this country
instead of discrimination and exploitation

They have sueños too

Migra raids at workplaces
that lead to deportations
Sacrificio de sueños soñados

For the original dreamers,
el trabajo y la explotación
Dos caminos
que los llevan al miedo y a las sombras

They have sueños too

Jesús
El jóven que trabaja en la construcción en la Bahía
has dreams too

María
La señora que cuida güeritos en Hollywood Hills
has dreams too

Jóse
El señor que trabaja en los files del Valle de San Joaquín
has dreams too

So let us help the original dreamers
dream their dreams of a better future
without the fear of being deported,
Exploited and used

Next time you hear of the Dreamers
think of their parents and siblings
because they share the same dream
They have sueños too.

April morning by AZ

There was an earthquake last night
I'm certain of it
hours ago
I rumbled half awake
and wondered
is a train passing by?
Is someone rocking my bed?
Am I dreaming? (Yes)

In Santiago I remember
looking out the open window
as the office desks swayed side to side
and watching a man
check his watch
get into his car
and drive away
as I clung to the doorframe

I push my sheets to the side
and stretch my left leg into the air
with the red cord my father gave me
counting slowly to 30
then across my body
then hugged to my chest
breathing in through my nose

I put on pants, a jacket, a hat;
a commitment to a morning walk
I wash my hands and think
is this poison oak on my wrists?
Frankie and I don't get poison oak
but I still wonder
I slip out the back door
and let my phone sleep in

Excerpt from On Mortality by May-Li Khoe (source)

...

Now, I’m trying to play the long game. I figure I have so many interests, so much left to learn, so much more to try. I want to unblur my blurry dreams and see them through. I want to stay healthy and alive for as long as possible. I already know that everything I want to do won’t fit in the years I have left, no matter how many.

There are people who feel that the solution to all of this would be to get rid of death altogether. To just make it obsolete, like some old VCR.

I am too Eastern in my philosophy to align with that. I believe in the natural cycle of life and death. I believe that it’s essential for balance and harmony on this planet. Absolutely everything works in cycles at some level, from the solar system, to ecology, to our breathing. I don’t believe we should disrupt that. Death does, ultimately, make way for change, as painful as it can feel.

In the end, none of us know how long we have. Kobe lived an incredible 41 years.

My mother used to say: it’s okay, as long as you did your best. Have fun, she said… those were the last words I ever heard her say.

Hopefully, when it’s all said and done, I’ll all be able to look back, and know that I did have fun, Mom, and that I did the best I could.