Journey to a Dream World

by Dina Sleiman

“Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing about you.” – Marsha Norman

* * *

I recently returned from my summer vacation in Florida, and while there, I visited the world capital of dreams. Disney’s Magic Kingdom. What struck me about this park was that it didn’t just provide rides and attractions, it allowed you to enter unique multi-sensory experiences. To travel Tom Sawyer’s island through a leafy forest covered with cool drops of rain and shoot booming rifles from a rough wooden fort. To blast off past a manned control tower into a pitch black mountain filled with glimmering stars on an outer space odyssey. To enter a zapping, neon-glow video game with laser guns where you alone must defeat the evil emperor Zurg. Or even to have an out-of-control blue alien jump on your shoulders, wiggle his fingers in your hair, and burp chili dog remnants in your face.

Yes, that kingdom creates a magic indeed, by engaging the imagination and allowing you to enter into a fictional world where almost anything can happen.

* * *

“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.” – Oscar Wilde

* * *

Some of the best vacations I’ve ever experienced have been through books. Last year I traveled to an alternate reality in Arena where spiritual elements took tangible form in the shape of hairy monsters, red-scaled creatures, and glowing mythical archways. Over the past months I’ve wept at the foot of the cross in A Stray Drop of Blood, faced abject poverty and disease while enjoying Jesus as my best friend in The Passion of Mary-Margaret, witnessed a horrific murder What the Bayou Saw, learned how to train a gorilla to use sign-language in Unspoken, and traveled throughout Europe with countless romantic historicals.

Once, I journeyed back through history by being chosen for the Time Lottery. Only a handful of Americans were selected for this brave experiment. We could travel back to one point in our lifetime which we wished to live over. After a specified period, we underwent a short interlude of awareness, during which we had to choose to stay in our new reality in that alternate thread of time, or return to our original reality. Of course, the catch was, if we stayed, it would be as if we had died within our original reality. What I and my fellow travelers learned through this experience is that regret is a wasted emotion that has a way of killing the here and now. What a worthwhile journey that turned out to be.

* * *

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.” - Epicurius

* * *

What is a dream? You enter a haze, a fog, a state of sleep. A dream can be a subconscious film our brain plays to help us work through issues in our lives. A dream can take us into spiritual wonders our logic can’t begin to unravel. A dream can be a hope, a wish, an imagination of the future. A dream can be reliving the past to find order and meaning within it. Dreams are the state through which our minds take us to another time and place. Sometimes dreams can seem truer than life, causing us to question: which reality is really real?

* * *

“There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.” – Douglas H. Everett

* * *

During college I played the role of a young woman in love for a short student film. The scene opened with a zoomed in shot of a bedroom mirror as I applied velvet smooth lipstick, dabbed perfume to my pulse points, slipped in diamond earrings to sparkle against my golden tresses. The pink satin of my skirt rustled about my calves as I walked to the door to meet my dream man, ushering him inside for a romantic candlelit dinner. I danced in his arms within a warm yellow glow. Until the jangle of the phone jarred me out of fantasy land. The scene switched. I sat on the couch in harsh blue lighting. Alone. Unwashed in a wrinkled flannel shirt. Hair disheveled about my tear-streaked face. I picked up the receiver. From the other end of the line came a voice. “You’re doing it again, aren’t you?”

Of course I was only acting. Yet the role felt surprisingly familiar. The truth is, writers live in their heads, and that can be a beautifully dangerous place to reside. People question how writers come up with such fantastic stories, how they imagine entire worlds. I suppose the writer must question how normal people slog through reality day in and day out with no internal dream land for respite. Is this good or bad? I’m not quite certain. While I love to escape into the dream world of the books I create, they can also provide an avenue to run away from problems, people, and challenges I should be facing in the real world. Escapism can be both a blessing and a curse.

* * *

“We are such stuff

As dreams are made on; and our little life

Is rounded with a sleep.” - Shakespeare

* * *

I learned something this spring that has vastly improved my writing. It’s a simple little statement. Pull your reader into a fictional dream world. That’s the true essence of fiction. We enter an alternate reality. A sort of dream state. We travel to a different time or place, but more importantly, into the minds of characters where we can feel what they feel. See, hear, taste, and touch what they do, and grow through their experiences. Each book becomes a journey of exploration. An escape from our own world into a new one. An opportunity to become a better person.

* * *

“Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today.” – James Dean

* * *

While on this summer’s Florida vacation (the real one, although I took several novels along for the ride), I had the opportunity to live out every medieval author’s dream. I attended a tournament complete with armor-clad knights, splintering jousts, a rainbow of pageantry, and a roaring crowd. Okay, I had to suspend my disbelief for the choreographed fights, the plastic pewter ware, and the Pepsi in my goblet—but I ate half a roasted chicken with my own greasy fingers, and it proved great fun nonetheless.

And even more enjoyable than that fictional dream world, was experiencing it with my real-life family. My youngest child bouncing against my side with excitement. My daughter squealing with delight. My middle-son mesmerized by the glinting weapons. Because no matter where we go or what we learn, none of it is worth anything without a real life to apply it to. Real people to love. A real family to build. A real world to make better.

* * *

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” – St. Paul.

Source: http://inkwellinspirations.blogspot.com/2010/08/journey-to-dream-world.html

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Snooze to Epic Dreams

Its kinda hard to wake up in the morning knowing that I'll get to none of the things I consider beneficial towards my future. I assume in a world in which each of us wakes up to fulfill our dreams we wouldn't need snooze 5x. As we grow older our standards for life are often lowered without much attention being payed to them. Eventually we wake up finding out that we have totally sold out on everything that was important to us and can barely recognize the life and person we've become.

One of two things happens typically - people die inside, or they have a mid-life crisis. Personally I lean towards mid-life crisis. However many people see this trend as illegitimate by the fact that I am in my 20's.

I say how isn't a full life and weaving a rich tapestry of self deceit that ages my every moment with unnecessary lies and compromises normal? At what point do we all realize we are miserable in some form or another with the lot life has given us, that we give each other.

Media, stories, and special moments in our lives will remind us of the raw wonder we once had. En masse we reject it all and cling to each other, but each shares this pain and reinforces it in one another. We treat each other as beings incapable of great things, think of it how many people who surround you do you think capable of changing the world? My guess is few if not none.

Yet in this cycle we do not see ourselves as responsible for this general torment, this degradation of the populations adventurism. The basic social truth being that when you perceive somebody in a particular light - that's how you treat them. If so few are seen as capable and all the rest treated as incapable, is this not stagnation's principal force? Stagnation by peer pressure and the incomprehensibility of capability.

Some day somebody's gonna have to say make a stand, say enough! You and all you self-doubting passive aggressive pussies can kiss my ass, I'm gonna do this - and try. Courage is socially acceptable, its time it became the standard in our lives and for each other. The courage to chase our dreams, the courage to help each other fight for them, and to defy our doubts.

When this urge to challenge and our lives becomes the trend, determination and yuletide defiance, mornings will be glorious.

Dreams are not for children, stories of men and woman who lived theirs are.

Source: http://jasuktk.blogspot.com/2010/08/raw-wonder.html

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Find the Car of Your Dreams From Used Car Auctions

Used car auctions are a great alternative to buyers who are on a tight budget but want to buy the best vehicle there is for their money. They can do so in many different auctions because these car auctions are sometimes not widely advertised. They are venues for different institutions and companies to dispose of their excess cars, unused vehicles or out-dated cars. There different car auctions held for various purposes.

Government Car Auction

A government auction usually sells cars confiscated by law enforcers, repossessed vehicles for non-payment of loans, and as payments for taxes and similar purposes. These are often sold at lower than market prices. The person with the highest bid gets to buy the car.

Dealer Vehicle Auctions

This type of auction is generally not open to the public but only to certified dealers. There are several types of vehicles that are up for auction. These are salvaged cars from vehicular accidents and the like. There are also the repossessed vehicles, the trade-ins, and the off-rental and off-lease vehicles.

The Best Used Cars

The best used car is one which is affordable, safe, reliable and easily available. One of them is the cars produced by the Hyundai brand. With its solid build and reliability, it provides a non-bumpy and luxurious ride for an affordable price. There are other excellent features that make it one of the best used cars. Toyota Camry also meets the characteristics of a best used car. It provides a more spacious legroom, an elegant look, and comfortable features, which make it a preferred car over the rest of the lot. It is also widely available and reliable in delivering comfort and usability.

The BMW 3 Series coupe is a sporty car that has special features like a retractable hard top, an athletic chassis, and reliable performance that equal any of the luxury cars. It is one of the best used cars if you find them in any auction.

The Mazda Miata has a steering wheel that is ultra-responsive, which would make it easier for those who wish to do some spirited driving and would give the everyday driver a good thrill every time he steps on the gas. It is also fuel saving and reliable at the same time.

A used car auction is a great venue to purchase your dream car at affordable prices.

Source: http://miatacarcover.blogspot.com/2010/08/find-car-of-your-dreams-from-used-car.html

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