Saturday, June 24, 2006

We're back in New York at a small downtown restaurant. I peruse the menu's few options, not really finding anything I like. Service is slow and we finally get our waitress's attention. We order our food and I ask to make a substitution on one of the items. She leaves and we never see her again. I flag down another waiter and he's also a bit indifferent. Our food comes and my salad has a lot of sand in it (though I don't really feel it). I flag down an older, skinny waiter and ask if I can send the salad back for a few fresh pieces of washed greens. He looks at me and says no. I'm flabbergasted and ask him why. He says that they don't really do substitutions and that the menu is carefully put together, etc. I calmly ask him for the check and to see the owner. He tells us to follow him and we head to the back of the restaurant.

He opens a door in the floor and goes down. We follow and have to swing down some strange stairs. I make sure Susannah is following before we head on. As we walk, the waiter tells me that the chef & owners are very particular about the dining experience. I tell him that we understand and I am in fact a bit of a food snob myself. I explain that the customer should still be able to get what he wants, even if it doesn't agree with the restaurant's ideas. I tell him that I don't stop people from ordering sweet & sour pork.

We head into a slum-like basement several levels below ground. There are a number of people, all restaurant employees, sleeping in cots. I tell the waiter that I'd heard about places like this but never seen one. He points me to where the owner is and we leave him at his bed. I look through the cracks in the door of a large warehouse and see people I think are the owners. I begin preparing my complaint but suddenly realize I have to use the bathroom. I head back to the street and look for a restroom.

I'm back in my old house using the bathroom. The toilet has deep urine stains and I'm spraying them off with my pee. I suddenly realize that the new owners have already taken possession and I wonder why they're not here.

Later...

I'm in a large department store and I've lost sight of Sofia. I start running around, looking at anyone with a baby. The store starts to clear out and I still can't find her. I desperately wander the streets, not sure what to do. Finally, I see someone carrying a baby up some stairs into an apartment. I follow them into a dining room where a family is having dinner. Sofia is at the table and run and snatch her up. I berate the older couple at the table for kidnapping her. Susannah is also there and I ask her how long she's been there. She says half an hour. I yell at her for not calling me, for letting me wander the streets thinking the worst. As I storm out, I take a picture of the name plaque on the door so I can lead police here later. Even though the couple seemed kind of pitiful, I'm fully planning to prosecute them.

Saturday, June 17, 2006

I'm standing by a Chinese food stall near an outdoor market. My mom is there hanging out as people come for their takeout. It's mostly porridge with eggs & bok choy. I ask my mom if this is San Francisco and she says it is but from a few years ago. I tell her I'm going to get lunch & she suggests I get it here.

I wander off to some other booths & see paintings & artwork featuring crabs. I'm tempted to get something for my kitchen but don't buy anything.

I'm now in a large grovery store. As I wander the aisles, I overhear two employees talking about something.

Later...

I'm talking with someone about an escape attempt. It involves handcuffs and some chains. I fiddle with it for a bit & then ask the guy for the cuffs. I cuff myself and then quickly free myself using a little metal rod. He is very surprised and dissappointed, "Well, there goes this money." he says, showing me a check for $1500 from someone. I tell him he has that money but just won't get the money for the guy not being able to escape.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

I'm sitting at a huge poker table with more than 10 players. I'm to the right of the dealer & left of the small blind. The dealer starts to deal counter clockwise and misses me. I protest & he deals to me, inadvertantly flashing me 2 cards, the ace & king of clubs. He takes the ace of clubs & gives me the king. I look down & see my other card is a ten of diamonds. I muck in first position. I suddenly realize that he dealt in the wrong direction.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

I'm hanging out with a bunch of people in the lobby of a hotel (or school). I jokingly say, "Ok, the tournament is $20." Several people start pulling money out of their pockets and I realize people might want to actually play poker. I head down to the basement to scout a space where we can play without being harrassed. In the basement there are a series of interconnected storage/utility rooms, all of which are big enough for poker tables. I go back up and tell everyone to come down.

Once gathered downstairs, the group is huge (maybe about 100). They're all seated at long tables and I stand up on a chair to address them. "I'm only going to speak loudly now but we should keep it quiet for the game so we don't get discovered by the principal. I don't know what kind of trouble we can get into but I don't want any of you to be punished."

People start standing up and asking questions. Some of the questions are about the format of the game, others are unrelated. I have trouble hearing some of the questions due to the size of the room. A woman stands up to ask a question or make a statement and gets a bit of applause. She's obviously an assertive (and attractive) lesbian and some other women are drawn to her.

I begin walking the room to divide everyone into groups of 8 per table. The tables are covered with food and I move them carefully, trying not to spill the food.

Later, a woman asks me why they keep blinding her out when she makes no action at the table. I explain that even if you're away from the table, the game goes on and your blinds keep getting taken. She says, "Is this why even hardcore smokers don't take smoke breaks?"

I go downstairs & see that the game is on break. I look around to see how many players are left and suddenly realize I was never given a seat at the game. I tell someone that I don't think I can run a game this big. I also realize that I should gather email addresses for my own hoem game before everyone leaves.

Saturday, June 03, 2006

I'm riding in a large van where we have to drive standing up. It's essentially a boxcar with a few controls. Ssannah's driving with a small wired device for steering and pedals in the floor. She's barely keeping us on the road and we don't know where we're going. I'm yelling at her to pay attention.

We end up in a hotel somewhere in British Columbia (or Washington DC) and can't figure out how to get home. I'm with a crew of people who helped me pull off a heist. Some of them are Africans and some are Japanese. I try to look at a pull-down map to figure out where we are. I suddenly realize we can put in the address of the hotel and Mapquest directions home. I look for something with the hotel logo on it and find something that says CCC-C.

I'm now scrambling to find a pen & paper to write down my dream. I find a notebook but the pages are already filled. I find something else and start scribbling notes.

Now we're in New York City trying to get home. All of our loot has spilled onto the street. I'm trying to get it all boxed up before the police show up. I'm trying to reassemble a large box but can't seem to do it. I end up just throwing everything back into the van. The loot is mostly Robeez shoes and some of my own stuff (some Legos, our stroller, an umbrella). We get back in the van just as some police cruisers arrive. We stage an accident and point the police towards the decoy as we make out getaway. We start driving but I'm confused about how to get back to Brooklyn from here. The passenger is Ving Rhames and he's discussing with me about where we're supposed to meet up and how we're going to divvy up the loot.

Thursday, June 01, 2006

I'm leaving a group of people and heading toward a open gate. Ray Hunt is with me and we think for a second that we can't get out. As we walk out, he makes a comment about my luck. I say, "I know. Sometimes I'll do poorly at poker and then make money on a stupid bet of some kind." Ray Hunt is now Marilyn Oliva and she says she won't be going any further with me. We say our goodbyes and I start walking downhill into Chinatown. Almost immediately I run into Karin Berquist. She's dressed in an unflattering checked shirt. She's excited to see me and says that she wants to take me out sometime for that dinner she owes me. She suggests the restaurant that used to be Notorious B.I.G.'s office. I ask her if it's dim sum and she's says no. She seems like she's in a hurry and we start walking together. She has a couple of yam-like vegetables in her hand and she hands them to a friend of hers we run into. We all continue walking through the throngs of people. There are is a tourist couple in front of us and the woman has an enormous backpack. I rest my arm on it and she turns around, annoyed. "Sorry," I say sarcastically, "I was just resting my arm on it."