** Baby steps by bluebird **

[bluebird]

Not much more to report as usual, I tried a few more WBTB's but they failed and messed up my recall :(

9th February 2012 (fragment)
I am a character in the game Left 4 Dead 2 (a zombie survival game) with my flatmates, and I seem to have an obsession with picking up the pain pills. After chugging the contents of 3 canisters, I find myself unable to swallow any more pills, which wakes me up.

I think this dream was induced because I was looking up G online shortly before going to bed

One dream I do remember from a solid night of sleep though.

10th February 2012

I find myself in the familiar situation of wanting to escape from somewhere. Me and my friend are for some reason trying to escape the town we live in (he moans about it all the time, but I don't mind living here). We are backpacking along the railway lines, sort of a lord of the rings style adventure with the big rucksacks travelling alone. I assume we were travelling in this odd fashion to avoid being spotted. Obviously there are lots of bad guys that won't let you leave the town you live in.

We are hiking for a while and creeping out of the way when I fall over on the train track. In case you can't guess this already, of course this was followed by a train heading straight towards me. I roll onto the opposite track but then suddenly the train is on that track instead. I roll back just in time and clutch on to avoid being sucked under the train (I'm not sure if that happens in reality, but I've always been told it's possible to get sucked under a train). I brush myself off and we head onwards to escaping.

My friend then complains that he is thirsty, but we can't go to a shop so I take him to the river to get fresh water. There was a brief encounter with a strange man, probably a farmer, here but I don't recall that too well. We are at the river and there is a very steep bank that is far too high to reach the water from. Before I get the chance to warn him not to fill up here he has already leant over, and fallen into the river. At this point he suddenly becomes a different friend, but I do not notice and sprint down the riverbank trying to keep up with him (friend #2).

The location changes and I am in what I believe to be a water filtration plant, and my friend is up against the bars that sift out debris. I first try and rescue his backpack that has sunk to the bottom of the river, but then he starts to drown so I dive in after him (I'm such a hero). I manage to save him despite my terrible swimming abilities, which I think I have already mentioned, and then I go back to try and find his bag. The bag is missing, but it turns out someone rescued it and handed it in as lost property to the bar maid (this water plant had a bar apparently). I go to get his bag back but the dream ends.

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Still noticing a common theme in my dreams of running away, don't think that is unique to me though. This is the second time I have found myself swimming, might try to use that in future when trying to induce a WILD, and also for Reality Checking. Slightly annoyed at myself for the terrible recall lately, maybe I will get lucky and have a WILD tonight :-)

[bluebird]

The WILD wasn't successful, but here is 2 dreams I can recall

12th February 2012
I can't remember the setting but there is a pandemic of vampires everywhere. We don't know who the vampires are, but they are all wearing V for Vendetta style masks. I think the "good guys" are all wearing masks too, but I can't remember the style of them. There is also a lot of Christmas trees everywhere, which the vampires like to hide behind.

While hiding from the vampires, I find two masks under a table, one good and one bad. This means one of the people who is on our side is secretly a vampire. I later somehow realise it's one particular person, and I name and shame them. They say I'm lying but I tell everyone to look under the table and my point is proven. The vampire tries to run away and hides behind a Christmas tree, which has a stepladder over it, trapping him in place. We can't touch him, but someone suggests water so I pick up a bucket and throw it on him. He starts screaming as he begins to evaporate, the water turns to steam immediately on contact. A few buckets later and he is completely gone, although we ruined the Christmas tree in the process :(

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(Fragment)
I am in a back cave which later leads to the area where dream #3 is. There is lava and water everywhere (minecraft style) and my friend D has made a mob killing system using the lava and water. I am impressed and decide I want him on my "team".

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Second dream and I am at a house party of some kind, playing the game Assassin's. If you've never heard of the game, it's a real life role playing game where you go around trying to "kill" other people with ridiculous weapons like Nerf guns, Water pistols and bananas. Me and my team are devising a plan to kill other members, which we do in secret on a balcony which we used a ladder to get up to. A few minutes later, I spot that there is string everywhere and we can attach a note saying it's deadly razor wire then push someone in to it for an assassination.

However, as I am about to do this I spot a high priority target facing the other way, so I pick up a pen and walk behind him and shout "STAB", before dropping the pen and running away to protect my life and identity. However, the player is someone from primary school who I didn't like very much, and being the douchebag he was he pretends nothing had happened. His team leader also plays along, and even when I prove it by showing the murder weapon they still don't agree. I start getting really angry and worked up, stealing the guy's food from the cupboards in the party and throwing it around everywhere.

I then hear the team leader in the distance talking about me, using less than appropriate words. At this point I go ballistic, I start shouting and screaming and tell him to say that to my face. I chase him all the way to the front door, and then I start shouting some more. As I lean in to punch him, I naturally wake up.

[pj]

Do you play a lot of video/computer games, bluebird?

[bluebird]

Do you play a lot of video/computer games, bluebird?

I do indeed yeah, it explains why they come up so much in my dreams. It's very strange though, there's a lot of other things I do a "lot" which have never appeared, I think my brain or SC prefers to generate scenes from computer games.

[pj]

There are many studies that imply the state we are in during the playing of those kinds of games is very conducive to developing lucid dreaming skills.

My son is a very involved, intense video gamer who designs and publishes scenarios.  He developed the ability to lucid dream seemingly directly from doing that.

[bluebird]

There are many studies that imply the state we are in during the playing of those kinds of games is very conducive to developing lucid dreaming skills.

My son is a very involved, intense video gamer who designs and publishes scenarios.  He developed the ability to lucid dream seemingly directly from doing that.

I had no idea, that's good to hear Not that I find those skills an adequate explanation for wasting so much time, but at least it gives me a chance to lucid dream I think I might reality check more often when playing games, it might prove helpful

[Sunshine]

(content removed by user request)

[bluebird]

This isn't my most interesting of dreams and very poor recall on my part, so feel free to ignore my post today

15th February 2012

A failed WBTB because I was too lazy to get up and turn the light on... I'm literally kicking myself for falling asleep during this.

Nevertheless I do have some recall.

The dream before my forced awakening was of me going to the pub with my friends. A very normal scenario, except as soon as I got there I left immediately. I was then suddenly eating chicken off the bone, and then I walked to a pizza shop and bought a pizza which was horribly burnt. I have noticed this before in dreams that food will often look very disgusting and unappealing, something to watch out for...

I had another dream after falling asleep again where I was in some foreign city with people I don't talk to any more. This is all I can recall, but I do know I was constantly waking up and falling asleep again (not FA's) last night, I had remembered many dreams but I was too tired to write them down. I was well aware they were dreams and would like to think it was my conscience fighting my SC over control of the dream, but who knows.

As I said, I was very tired throughout the whole night and I think it stopped an opportunity to become lucid. My G should be arriving any day soon so maybe that will help kickstart some WBTB lucids.

[Rhapsode]

Definitely do your homework on Galantamine before using it in a WBTB. I took a pill last night and ended up getting only about an hour of sleep afterwards despite the precautions I took. It may take a few tries before you figure out the best way to use it effectively.

[bluebird]

Definitely do your homework on Galantamine before using it in a WBTB. I took a pill last night and ended up getting only about an hour of sleep afterwards despite the precautions I took. It may take a few tries before you figure out the best way to use it effectively.

Thanks Rhapsode, I have read up a lot of tutorials and discussions about G and I will make sure to use it with caution. Hopefully I do not get any negative effects but nevertheless I will not be using it often it is just an experimental thing

[bluebird]

16th February 2012

I am at my university campus preparing for some sort of protest. We are all going to wear black balaclavas (I think it's in protest of ACTA or SOPA) so I am wearing a hat that pulls down to be a balaclava. We all meet up in a big crowd of people and music starts playing and we are all dancing to it. After a while the music goes silent, and we all pull down our balaclavas in protest. Then myself and some friends go inside to watch some films, one of which is about a killer who is on the loose.

We notice that one of our teacher's does not look like who he really is, the killer must have killed him and tried to disguise as him. He walks in to the room we are in and tries to act casual but we all say nothing. He then suspiciously goes through a fire exit door. At this point I run away and try to get home. I am not lucid, but I have magical powers, and I start to fly around. I am trying to figure out a way to have him captured or to kill him. Next thing I remember the killer is phoning me, asking me where I am. I give a fake answer and decide to trap him there, on the first floor of the main building.

I am reading a book to try and learn more magic but it is just a text description of what is happening in my dream. I get confused so I ignore it and fly to the building. I try to imagine hard that there will be a super strength pill in my back pocket that will save me so I may have been slightly lucid here but there isn't so I am disappointed. I try to smash a window by punching it hard but it barely cracks. I fly up to the first floor to have a peek, but all I see is a room full of minecraft buttons (COME ON BLUEBIRD YOU IDIOT). Still no reality check, I fly back down to the ground and then the killer looks directly at me. As I try to escape, I wake.

I believe this was a FA, but shortly after my alarm clock woke me up IWL.

I can be so stupid at times, how these dream signs are not triggering RC's I don't know. Maybe it's time to read through my DJ more often before bed. Also it is interesting to note that the book had the killers name in it. It was either Mr H____ or Mr M____, If I can remember it I'll update the post

[bluebird]

Still not much to talk about today I'm afraid.

Bed at 10.30, woke up at 4am for WBTB. I spent 20 minutes awake and in that time I went to the toilet and chatted to some people on MM chat. After this I went back to bed but failed to fall asleep. I think an REM cycle ends at 4am for me (assuming I go to sleep at 11) as I always have difficulty waking up before 4am for a WBTB. When my G arrives I will attempt 11pm sleep and 3:30am wake up, going back to bed at 4:15am.

I don't think I even came close to a WILD, I relaxed well but my brain couldn't turn off, I spent a lot of time daydreaming and unfortunately every 10 minutes or so a car would pass on the nearby road distracting me.

I had 3 potential transitions, the first I don't recall (although I know I saw some very faint HI) but the second was a falling sensation (at which time I was picturing star wars - first thing that came to my head). The third I believe was quite close, I felt like I was moving forwards and backwards (up and down the bed) in a rocking motion, and the only thing I could think of was Santa's sleigh So I tried to imagine that scenario and was picturing it quite well when the birds starting singing...it was 6am. I failed to get back to sleep and will have to spend today on 5 hours of sleep. I know what people might say but I am absolutely certain I was awake for all 3 of these, which is a shame as even if I had fallen asleep and not noticed that would have been better than nothing.

Better luck tonight hopefully! :(

[pj]

I seem to have a natural very wakeful period that hits about five hours after I go to sleep.  I have recently learned that this is probably natural and not uncommon - it is just that western culture doesn't recognize it as being a natural part of the sleep cycle.

It is convenient for me because I wake without effort, and have time to do a little reading and meditation before returning to sleep.

[bluebird]

I seem to have a natural very wakeful period that hits about five hours after I go to sleep.  I have recently learned that this is probably natural and not uncommon - it is just that western culture doesn't recognize it as being a natural part of the sleep cycle.

It is convenient for me because I wake without effort, and have time to do a little reading and meditation before returning to sleep.

How do you think it relates to the REM periods, do you think one REM phase ends just before this 5 hours since falling asleep?

By the way pj, would you like a game of chess, i'm looking for more people to play with

[pj]

I would be delighted to play.  I'm in and out and am not the sort to just sit through a game, but if I catch you in there will gladly chat a bit.  I always have at least a couple games going.

For me, the break does seem to come naturally at the end of either REM or maybe even NREM.  I often but not always remember a dream or two from before the break, but the recall is not clear or easy.  Dreams coming after returning to sleep are usually remembered in detail, and that is when my lucids most often occur.  I had two this morning - a DILD and a WILD, without any supplements or planning.

Part of what I have been doing during immersions is allowing myself to follow what seems to be my most natural and comfortable sleep cycle, which is a short nap in the afternoon and a longish awake period after 5 hours of sleep.