How The Mind Works

My first Galantamine experience being pretty over the top, it wasn’t long before I tried it again.  It was during the huge snowstorm we had last winter.  I took the capsule at approximately 3:00AM as recommended.  I fell back asleep quickly, then “woke up” to see a large picture window on the wall across from my bed.  I could see daffodils, green grass, blue skies, bird singing – SPRING!  Realizing that we don’t have a picture window in our bedroom and that in reality we had three feet of snow at the time, I thought, Cool!  This must be my lucid dream.”  I got out of bed and hopped out the window.

So there I am, wondering around in this gorgeous nature scene.  I thought, this must be part of heaven.  And if I’m in heaven, God must be around here somewhere, right?  So there I am, I am wondering around looking for God and starting to feel kind of slighted because I couldn’t find him, when I encounter this cranky cleaning lady.

“You people!” she said.  “All you ever do is come here and make a mess!”

I wondered how anyone could be in such a place and still find a way to be a grouch.  “Have you seen God by any chance?” I asked.

“Try over there,” she said, pointing to a large building.

So I headed off towards it.  I went inside a big open lobby.  It was some kind of museum.  There was an exhibit room right in front of me so I went in.  It was full of lost things!  Remember in Reconnecting - Sychronicity, Dreams, and Antique Pianos I mentioned having to throw away an old stuffed Snoopy dog?  This old toy – falling apart and filthy beyond cleaning – came to symbolize all the pain and agony of cleaning out my parents’ house.  Putting that in the garbage was probably the most painful thing I have ever done.  And HERE, in this crazy galantamine induced lucid dream, is a room full of lost objects, and right in there in front of me is my old snoopy dog!  Good as new!

I pick him up and I am standing there hugging this thing and crying.  Then I remembered my stuffed lamb.  I had a stuffed lamb that was bought for me in the hospital the day I was born.  I had it until about fourth grade, when it vanished.  If I’m in some mystical place where lost things go, then my lamb should be here too!  So off I go in search … and then I noticed that there were other people there too, finding their stuff and either crying or laughing with delight.  That’s when I overheard someone say, “they have that book for sale again – “How The Mind Works”.  It’s really hard to get.”

Holy cow!  This I have to see, I thought.  So I went out of the exhibit and found a security guard.  I asked him where this book or pamphlet or whatever was being sold.  He directed me to a bookstore inside the building.  Eagerly I got in line.

“Do you have that book, “How The Mind Works”?” I asked.

“Sure,” she says.

“How much is it?”

“It’s free.  But first you have to read workbooks one and two.  They are $20 each.”

Whatever, I thought.  She obviously wasn’t going to give me one without my buying these workbooks.  I was carrying a back pack, so I opened it up and thought to myself, OK, Bill’s wad is in my backpack.  I have lots of money.  I stuck my hand in and pulled out a huge wad of $100 and $500 dollar bills.  Not funny! I told my mind.  Let’s try this again – I have Bill’s wad in my backpack, and it is all small denominations.  I pulled out the wad of money again and it looked normal!  I fished out two $20 bills and handed them to the checkout lady.  She gave me both workbooks and then The Book.  It looked old – the cover and spine were leather, but were also orange.  (Remember this – orange is important and will show up in dreams repeatedly over the next few months.)  I crammed them all into my backpack and then headed for the Starbuck’s I noticed across the hallway from the bookstore.

On the way over I ran into some of the people I’d seen in the lost artifact room.  “Hey check this out!” I told them.  “I just got a copy of a book called “How The Mind Works”.  I’m going over to Starbuck’s to read it.  Can you imagine what it might say in a book called “How The Mind Works” in a lucid dream?”

They were excited too and followed me into the Starbucks.  We were all sitting together at a table.  I unzipped my backpack – another zipper!  I unzipped that one – still another zipper!  I closed my eyes.

OK, I told my subconscious mind, this is not funny!  Open the backpack!

I opened my eyes and unzipped again.  Another zipper!  Perhaps it was punishing me.  I should try to be respectful.  I closed my eyes again.

OK, PLEASE open the backpack.

This time when I opened my eyes the backpack had turned into a load of laundry!  The dream began to destabilize.  I considered spinning but decided instead, screw this!

I woke up briefly and then went back to sleep.  I had several other less exciting dreams where I complained to dream characters about how I’d been wronged about that book.  In the very last one, I was lying on the sofa at my parents’ old house.  My dad and my brother John were there.  I was still complaining.

“Well the backpack is right there!” said my dad, pointing.

Sure enough – there it was on the floor next to the couch!  I grabbed it and unzipped it.  There was the book!  I took it out and opened it up.  Ugh!  It was full of 1950’s style psychobabble!

So I guess that’s how the mind works: it plays tricks on you!