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LARP-ing along without a player's guide
#1
I fell asleep in my chair today and had this weird dream. Didn't intend to fall asleep so there were no intentions set.

Spouse and I enter through a doorway. I see rolling hills, green grass and the occasional tree, fluffy white clouds in a bright blue sky, and a wide packed dirt road leading away from where we stood. Mild temperature, a slight breeze, all in all a lovely day. Spouse says, This is your show, what do we do? I shrug and reply, I guess we start walking. So we head out along the dirt road. I turn around and there's no open doorway behind us so we can't leave if we change our minds. We are now well and truly inside whatever's going on, without any supplies or information about where we're headed.

We walk along the road, chatting idly about what might be going on. Spouse seems to think I should know. I tell him I got nothing and if there's a purpose to all this, I didn't get the memo. We round a curve and discover a huge birthday cake sitting atop a wooden cart. The cake is beautiful. Multiple layers covered in expertly applied frosting. It even sports a kazillion birthday candles. It had to cost a fortune. Spouse and I stand there, studying the cake. Now what? he asks. We have to take it with us, I say, pointing to two wooden handles on the front of the cart. You grab one, I’ll grab the other. What if we leave the cake where it is? he asks. Well, I say, we can try but I suspect we’re supposed to take it with us. Oh-kay, he says as he takes one of the handles. I grab the other. We begin pulling the cart. To my surprise, the cart moves easily and smoothly over the dirt road. We continue on our way until we reach a place where the road separates in three directions. Which way? asks spouse. Beats the hell out of me, I say.

At this point, the cats woke me. I went to the restroom, went back to my chair, and promptly fell asleep again.

We’re back at the starting point, as if someone hit a reset button, but this time our younger son is with us. He peers around, studying the scenery, and says, Why are you in a RPG, Mom? No idea, I say, and how can you tell? He waves his hand in the general direction of the scenery. Sure, it looks real, he says, but if you know what to look for you can see the pixellations around the edges. I’ll take your word for it, I say, Do you have any suggestions for what we should do? Well, he says, you have two choices. You can either go on and play the game or you can back out. I point behind him. He looks and sees no doorway. Make that one choice, he says. Guess you’re playing the game, whatever it is.

The three of us start walking along the same dirt road until we come upon the birthday cake again. Was this here before? DS#2(hereafter known as 2) asks. His father and I nod. What did you do? 2 asks. We hauled the cake with us, his father says. Okay, 2 says, let’s see what happens if you don’t take it this time. I protest, saying, I think we’re supposed to take it with us. Look, he says, the worst that can happen is you end up back at the start again. So we circle around the cake and keep walking.

We don’t get very far before there’s a big cloud of smoke, a pop, and before us stands an old woman dressed in the stereotypical witch’s costume. Beware! she intones. You cannot pass. Really? A witch? says 2. Why not a dragon or something? No, I say, the dragons wouldn’t do this sort of thing. The old woman folds her arms across her chest and says, Look, we don’t have all day here. Can we get on with things? The three of us glance at each other, shrug in unison, and spouse waves for the woman to continue. Thank you, she says sarcastically. She resumes her previous pose of arms raised as if she were preparing to cast a spell. You cannot continue on your journey without the necessary item! See? I say to 2, Told you we needed to bring the cake. So we trudge back to the location of the cake. Spouse and 2 grab the handles and off we go again. When we pass by the old woman, who is sitting in a camp chair, drinking a bottle of beer-couldn’t make out the label-by the side of the road, she says, Your journey will be fraught with peril! For which we need a cake, just in case someone’s having a birthday party and forgot to order cake, says 2. The old woman eyes him. Don’t bust my chops, she says, I didn’t write this story. Who did? asks spouse. She shrugs, waves the beer bottle in the air, and disappears in a cloud of black smoke. Spouse and 2 look at me. I say, Hey, don’t look at me, I don’t know what’s going on, either. But we need to keep walking or we could be here all day. So on we go, until we reach the point where the road split into three. This time, however, there’s a small black dog sitting at the junction. Spouse says, The dog wasn’t here before. The dog trots over to where we’re standing and begins dancing around like a puppy happy to see its people after an absence. Spouse and 2 wait for me to say it. I sigh, Yes, the dog goes with us, too. The dog parks its butt on the road, scratches an ear, gets up, and says, Jeez, don’t act so thrilled to have me around, why don’t you? A talking dog, says 2, of course it has to be a talking dog.

Then I woke.


Okay, this was, without question, one of the weirdest dreams I’ve ever had-and I’ve had some pretty darned weird dreams in my life. I was going to skip posting it but got the vibe it was necessary so here it is.

Side notes:

Usually when I dream about our kids, they’re younger. This time, though, 2 was his current age and size. He’s also still an avid D&D player, part of a group that’s been getting together every week for over 10 years. So if I had to have someone as a guide or even a “cheat” in some sort of LARP setting, he’d be handy to have around(If it had been a first person shooter game, I suspect his brother would have made an appearance as the guide).

I seldom get dreams that continue or repeat after a period of wakefulness. There was a strong sense that the DM of the game-whoever that may have been-hit the reset when I woke. But why the game had different aspects the second time is a mystery to me.

If there’s a message or meaning to this dream, it’s lost on me.
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#2
I loved this dream and am happy you shared it. I have no idea what anything means but what a cool dream.
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#3
I've decided it wasn't supposed to mean anything. It was meant to be fun, for the duration of the dream time. No big message, no metaphors, just my team providing me with a bit of goofiness. And I'm good with that. I can always use more goofiness. Big Grin
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