I just woke up from a very weird dream! Joe and I were visiting his family, except none of my dream people remotely resembled his actual family, and the place looked nothing like Illinois. (Isn't that always the way?) Anyway, the part I remember best was being in this huge mall arena type place. I think we were going to watch a soccer game on the field inside this big mall...? I kept almost doing something, second guessing myself, and then choosing another direction, another person to talk to, another chair, another bathroom stall, even! And the second choice was always a bad one. I said out loud in my dream, "When will I ever learn to follow my first instinct??"

Then Joe and I were standing in line to get snacks. The line seemed to be migrating to the right, so we followed the other people. Then, just when it seemed we'd be able to talk to the sales guy, he walked back to another group of people we hadn't even seen forming! I looked up and a sign above that crowd said, "Place order." We were in the pick-up section and hadn't even ordered yet! So I walked back over and even though my intention was to get at the end of that short line, I had thought, "I should be closer by now," and suddenly I was the second person in line (why can't real life be that easy?). A huge guy behind me got really angry. "Why are you cutting in line?!" he asked loudly. I started trying to explain it, and then, all of a sudden, I was talking to someone different. I was telling the story to the guy in front of me. I looked around and the huge man was gone, and so was Joe. Everyone had gotten frustrated and left. The guy I was now talking to was listening patiently as I tried to explain myself. And all at once it seemed too exhausting. I knew that even if he did understand, he'd order and move on. Having him understand was not vital to my life. It wouldn't accomplish anything. I sighed and said to him calmly, "You know what? Forget it..." And I walked away to find a different snack stand.

As I was walking, I saw Joe. I was on the upper floor, but I could see over the railing, and there he was, sitting with his family. He was dressed in a suit, too. (Joe never wears suits!) As I walked along the upper level, there were people against the railing and people sitting against the wall. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, the entire upper level tipped forward, towards the ground! Everyone was saying, "Woah! Hey, how about that? I didn't think this could move!" And they laughed. Everyone except me. I was terrified, crying, my heart racing, and I clung to the railing so as not to fall 30 feet to ground level. The floor tipped back, and then as people leaned against the railing, it tipped forward again. I was seized with fear, incapable of moving, and I didn't know what to do. I thought to myself, "I wish I'd never come to visit..."

And I woke up.

Bizarre, yes?

I'm really not sure what to make of it. But for one, I don't wish I'd never gone to Chicago. I'm happy we went. It was nice meeting everyone, and there were actually some moments of happiness and fun over the trip. There was lots more stress and tension than I thought there would be, but whatever. We're not going back for at least another few years, and we're not going back during winter EVER. It was kind of hellish in many ways, but good in some others. It was a weird trip.

I'm going to have to think about what my dream might mean for a little while and maybe add some thoughts about it later...

Bye for now!

~Meg