Maps

Sheesh, as an environmentalist, I guess I should be recycling everything including that damn bug I had a couple of months back. See, this is part of the hazard of working in a small office of any sort. I get sick--bug gets passed onto boss. Boss, being Mr. Stress-Puppy-The-Success-Of-The-Firm-Rests-On-Me-And-Me-Alone, gets sick. Instead of resting like he should, Boss just keeps working and working and his immune system breaks down, allowing bug to bring in some of his friends, like Lung Infection, Sinus Infection and other assorted illnesses. Since Boss is always at work, so are the new bugs. And hence right now, my sinuses are so swollen (well, they feel like it anyways) they're pressing up against my eyeballs.

I guess this is a roundabout way of saying I've had some really intense and fucked up dreams these last three days. And since my life is a bit in stasis right now (though I am getting some cool ass business cards made, whoo hoo!), I've got nuthin' to give but my dreams.

Thursday Night/Friday Morning

I'm back in the South. It's one of the rare Southern spring mornings where the air is crisp and warm and there's no hint of the humidity that will overwhelm the days in the upcoming months. I'm traveling in the back seat of a van with my girlfriend back to the airport. We're passing by the lake district. There are folks on the water, in boats or swimming, at this early hour. My girlfriend, a pretty brunette with dark brown eyes, squeezes my hand, smiles, and says, "My dad used to wake me up early in the morning so we could watch the sun rise and see the people in the lake." We pass by this beautiful two story modern house in the middle of the lake. "Hmmm, I wonder why those people built that there?" I ask, thinking it's rather cool to have a house on the lake. My girlfriend looks over to me and says, "I don't know." We watch the lake for the rest of the trip.

Friday Night/Saturday Morning

It's past midnight and something horrific is going to happen. I'm detached. It's as if I'm watching a movie. I can't move. I'm watching a restaurant across the street. All is pitch black except for the yellow light from the restaurant. A family is having a celebration. There are little kids laughing. The adults are enjoying the glow of each other's company. I want to tell them to leave, but I can't. I know what's going to happen. I can't close my eyes. See, there's this insane woman. And she's about to unleash her psychosis right now. She walks into the restaurant and she starts shooting. She kills the children. She kills the parents of the children who are frozen with shock and grief. She has locked the doors so no one can get out. She kills the adults who are trying to escape. She hasn't seen me yet. I'm detached.

Saturday Night/Sunday Morning

I'm one of the good guys, the elite of the elite, the rescue force and I have to make sure everyone gets off the ship before the Cylons arrive. Me and my wisecracking sidekick are shepherding the passengers off the ship, keeping the humor up and thus keeping the rising panic down. As I'm getting the last of passengers to the escape pods, I see her. Time literally stops. She has dark brown eyes, black hair so dark it's almost blue that frames her round face. She is the one I'm supposed to be with for the rest of my life.

Time starts again when wisecracking sidekick says, "Dude, ask her out." I tell him that we have more important things to do, like getting the civilians off the ship and then fighting the cylons. Plus, asking her out would break the air of calm but good-humored professionalism that we're trying to vibe. Wisecracking sidekick says,"Man, you're really going to regret that."

We get to our fighter ships, and sudddenly it's two years later. Turns out my sidekick died in battle and I was in suspended animation. I'm a hero to the good guys, the elite of the elite, the rescue force. But to my family, who didn't approve of my career, I'm dead. I've been dead to them even before the battle. Wisecracking Sidekick had left me a message before he died, letting me know where to find the woman who made time stop. If I don't find her, if I don't speak to her, I know I'll regret it.

I find her home. When I see her again, I know she's the one I'm supposed to be with. My heart sinks when she doesn't recognize me. Then I hear, "Marty, what are you doing here?" My father is there, as well as my extended family. "I'm here to speak to her," I tell him. I look over at her. "You don't remember me, do you?" She shakes her head. But she smiles at me. "You're wasting your time, Marty," my father says angrily. "She's been promised to your cousin Danny." I can't believe what I'm hearing. I can't believe that my family is actually following an outdated tradition. I can't believe that they're doing this even though I risked my life to save her, and yet my cousin is ending up with her. "You know this is wrong," I say to my father. "Yeah, I do, but that's the way it is. Leave," he says. I see bodyguards heading toward me. As I walk away, I look back. She doesn't take her eyes off me.