Our Other Trip North

September 10th, 2005

Last night I dreamt that my sister and I went on a trip to a part of the country so remote there was no electricity. We were staying with relatives: a family with so many children we couldn’t count them. Many of them were dressed like the Pilgrims of Plymouth Rock. There were several feet of snow on the ground. We arrived at the house to find that the adults had set tables out on the front porch and were cooking the dinner meal at an outdoor kitchen (well, fireplace) on the side of the house. Cold as we were, we headed inside. The children gathered around the small indoor-kitchen table to talk to us. We knew we were sort of being rude by ignoring the dinner setup outside that had been prepared for us, but we were too cold to go out there. Then the children led us upstairs to see their toys. My sister and one of the younger girls went out of the room, while I became interested in a very strange toy: a cardboard house with a slot on top for coins. The children explained that with the right combination of coins, the toy house would produce a prize, although they had never been able to “win.” I started inserting coins, and after a while, I had the right combination. The cardboard house sprung legs and ran over to a corner of the room, where it spat out a prize at me from its underside. The prize was a slinky red and black nightgown. Just then, my sister and the young girl returned. They were dressed in matching, trendy, provocative outfits—little skirts and tank tops—and they showed themselves off to us and then took off to go outside to try and meet some people. The other children and I went and told the parents. We all went out into a side yard of the house, where I took pictures with my camera, and my grandparents took pictures with theirs. One picture I worked hard to get a good shot of was of one of the little children on the swingset with Santa Claus. Then we heard a very loud sound, and a strange aircraft appeared in the sky. The wilderness family was terrified, but I explained that it was a rescue helicopter and started shouting for them to get under things so the rush of air from the blades wouldn’t knock them over. We all ran for cover, and the helicopter dropped my sister and the little girl in the snowy yard. Then Steve and I were driving up the road from the wilderness house. We found the nearest town, which was barely a town and also had no electricity. Steve kept finding little Barbie doll shoes everywhere and putting them in his pocket. We saw a very strange animal in a pen—a furry sort of llama/camel/buffalo thing. We met some cowboys and talked to them about the rough farming life and about farm subsidies. We went to the library, which only had one shelf of books and a silent, glaring librarian. Then we were packing up our things, and in place of a sleeping bag, Steve had brought a big comforter, and we had a hard time rolling it up. Someone’s surf board was in the back seat of our car, which was frustrating, since we were trying to fit everything in to leave. We really wanted to get out of that town. As we were getting ready to get in the car, Steve emptied his pocket of the Barbie shoes, but I squatted down and picked them all up to take with me.

2 Responses to “Our Other Trip North”

  1. cindy Says:

    This is classic: Steve kept finding little Barbie doll shoes everywhere and putting them in his pocket.
    I can’t tell you why but it just is. Woo Hoo! That’s a HOOT!

  2. ma Says:

    Think back – what did you have to eat before you went to bed?
    My brain always sends me on some wild adventure if I eat
    chocolate just before I go to sleep.

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