In The MistJanuary 4, 2010
Happy New Year, fellow Mortals!December 2009 was an exciting and productive month here in our cozy little community and in the greater Lucid Dreaming World.
The big news is that
Dream Views has been sold. The new owner,
Alex, has been around Mortal Mist under the user name
4711. Alex is a gracious German gentleman, and has been attentive to understanding the issues that drove many of us away from the Dream Views community. He has already made changes for the better.
The most significant change Alex has made was inviting
Seeker to again don his Red Robe. We congratulate Alex on recognizing one of the greatest influences that made Dream Views what it was. Alex brings web development experience and a fresh perspective to the table, while displaying refreshing approachability, open-mindedness and respect for the staff and community. We all know Seeker for his deep-rooted passion for lucid dreaming, love for the Dream Views community and legacy, and his vision of uniting the greater Lucid Dreaming world. The partnering of these two in restoring and managing the Dream Views empire is promising indeed.
So what of Mortal Mist?
While it is true that Mortal Mist emerged from a general disgust with the direction that Dream Views was taking under the auspices of the previous owner, we were never intended to be a "
DV Lifeboat" or even a competitor. What we are doing here is working to build a highly focused community owned and run by its owner-members, for the purpose of exploring and promoting Lucid Dreaming. Dream Views' return to sanity does not change our goal or purpose any more than a public radio station would change its direction when a similarly programmed commercial station changes ownership and improves the quality of its offerings. We serve the same general audience, but in different ways and for different tastes. While some may prefer the excitement and pace of the commercial station, others will lean toward the deeper focus and more esoteric offerings of the public station. Enjoying one does not preclude appreciating the other.
Where Mortal Mist goes from here is entirely up to you. The Town Hall discussions of December 2009 have led to the formation of a Guild system, intended to remove roadblocks restricting projects, improvements and goals our member-owners would like to see implemented. The guilds created thus far are:
- The Aegis Guild – the system and security team, formerly the Admin team
- The Ambassador Guild – involved in translation, international relations and promotion
- The Teacher's Guild – for development of educational materials, lessons and techniques
- The Technical Guild – tech development, maintenance and implementation of improvements and changes for the forum and websites
- The Creator's Guild – handling all creative aspects of look, layout, web design, writing, multi-media, music, etc.
The guild system is still in its infancy, open to change and refinement, and membership is voluntary. The most important aspect of the Guild system is the shift of responsibility away from what was the Admin team. What Mortal Mist is and what it becomes is truly up to you. As long as we agree on the mission and adhere to it, we will never wander far from the most efficient path to our destiny.
If the ideas emerging in the Guild forums are any indicator of where we are going, Mortal Mist is destined for its own unique and quiet greatness. I'm very excited to be part of what is going on.
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Lucid Technique QuizHow many Lucid Dreaming techniques do you know by acronym?
These acronyms include some widely known and well established techniques along with experimental techniques that have been or are being developed right here in The Mist. If you are reading this from inside the Newsletter Archive forum, hovering over the acronym will reveal the answer. See how many you know – and consider looking further into those techniques you weren't aware of! All can be found in the front page tutorials, Techniques forum and Technique Development forum.
CALDCWILDDEILDDILDFILDINRALDMILDPDPILDRILDTAWILDTILDVILDWBTBWILDWOILD–
Community and System Notes- A new system for managing the website front pages from within the forum has been developed by mu and is just about ready for deployment. It will be applied first in restoring our Featured Lucid Dream Of The Month
- A comprehensive and challenging workshop on Lucid Task Remembrance, presented by DrTechnical, was just completed. If you missed it, you can still work through the archive here: http://mortalmist.com/forum/index.php/board,54.0.html
- The new Guild System is developing. Guild membership (aside from Aegis) is entirely voluntary and non-exclusive. http://mortalmist.com/forum/index.php/board,52.0.html
- The Admin Team is now under the Aegis Guild, responsible primarily for system function and security
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January Featured ChallengesBasic: Go Skiing. Describe where you were and how you got there as well as what you did to complete the task. A cookie to anyone who wakes up because they smashed into a tree.
Intermediate: Bring a snowman to life. You must be successful in your attempt. Post your attempts here, successful or not, so that we may enjoy the chronicles of Frosty the Snowman. A cookie to anyone whose snowman doesn't look like a three scoop ice cream cone.
Advanced: Go on a quest to meet Father Winter. Extra credit goes to anyone who comes back with Father Winter's real name (no Googling allowed,; you won't find anything. Ask him yourself).
For the daring who wish to do all three tasks at once: try skiing down a mountain with your animated snowman to find his house.
Post results in the corresponding threads in the
Featured Monthly Challenges forum.
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January Meeting PlaceThe Planet Pandora from the movie,
"Avatar"If you visit the Planet Pandora in a lucid it earns a silver award. If you find another dreamer there or talk to another dreamer while visiting Pandora it counts as full credit and earns a gold award. Dreaming about going to Pandora earns a bronze award.
Post results in the
Monthly Meeting Place forum.
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Final Thoughts2009 was a challenging and sometimes devastating year for many of us here in The Mist and beyond. It is ironic that we humans take such comfort in things remaining the same, yet we recognize that change is the hallmark of life. The changes of 2009 often came fast and hard.
While we cannot stop changes, we can choose how we meet them. Each decision we make, large and small, is a choice in direction that can have a significant impact on where life leads us. With an ultimate destination as final and unchanging as death, it is important to make the most of the journey. Whether we find ourselves hacking through dense wilderness or cruising paved freeway, this moment and this place in our journey is all we have to work with.
Our dreams have a profound impact on our perception of where we are and how we make our choices. Developing the ability to dream lucidly and wield control over those dreams is a magical experience of astonishing proportions, though only a tiny sliver of the general population is even aware of the possibility. In our exploration and promotion of Lucid Dreaming, we are true pioneers. Before us is uncharted territory as vast as the universe, and as deep and mysterious as our own minds and spirits.
Dream on, fellow Mortals. Perhaps I'll see you there.
Until next time,
pj
