dream books

[goatschool]

did anyone's family consult these things?

i had two families while i was growing up, and both had them, so i got used to thinking they were common and i also seem to remember them being all the rage in stores for a while.

but back before decent bookchains, there was waldens, so, yeah.

but anyhow these were the things that were set up like a dictionary, etc, but for dreams. not only would it interpret what post-awake themes meant, but somehow they assigned a number to each entry so that you might win money on your dreams, too.

big w/ my italian familia. big. but only w/ them???

 

[minxnim]

my grandmother had two of them.
i always thought it was a dominican thing? maybe it's just 'crazy family' thing.

 

[goatschool]

probably.

my great aunt (father's side) kept one by her bedside for quick reference.

in fact, i think my grandmother still does.

 

[minxnim]

they're pretty neat. like horoscope/tarot neat tho you know?

 

[goatschool]

furthermore, my father's side of the family (more sicilian) knew of a "number of the dead", that you didn't need a book to reference. it was just there. i want to say it was 369, but that's probably wrong. but you played that number if you dreamt of a dead relative.

then there was the train number. it was a rumor that floated around the small town that my dad grew up in (a town built around a railroad yard and a paper mill), that any marked instance of a train in the news, you take note of the "train number", and you play it. and it is guaranteed to come out.

i'm thinking this probably makes no sense to europeans, asians, or mexicans.

 

[goatschool]

i do think they're neat. and to interpret them in a tarot-sort of way is weirder, right? because you don't get emotional entanglement with tarot cards, or at least, in most cases you wouldn't.

 

[minxnim]

well i definitely think it'd be better to interpret them in a tarot card way (dreams) than to do it in a freudian psychoanalysis sense because it just seems more fun, but maybe it's not supposed to be fun?

 

[goatschool]

that's the thing, i don't know! i vaguely remember the definitions were pretty soft so i would say the tone set by the books was suburb-friendly. i suppose just like astrology and whatnot.

i would like to look at one, again, because i want to see where the writer(s) are getting their influence from. i wonder if any jung/froodian stuff filtered in. oR if it's strictly gypsum.

 

[xfer]

hah, no, but i do have a little pocket dreambook i keep by my bed NOW.

your wop superstitions are a source of amusement to me. ho, ho, ho.

 

[xfer]

incindentally why aren't there a glut of millionaire Italian families who hit the lottery consistently from train-playing?

 

[goatschool]

the mattress store in mechanicville, NY does not carry boxsprings, to answer your second question.

 

[minxnim]

i imagine many of the influences are occult in nature?
also: alex: saying wop is NOT OK. my dad will be at your house waiting for you tonight with a special friend.

 

[xfer]

i heard the awesomest racial slur the other day which describes my little cousin lucas and my friend jenna and basically a million other people i know:

WOPOLACK

 

[xfer]

italian and polish seem to go together like salt and pepper. like tomato and basil. like peanut butter and bacon.

 

[goatschool]

ex-GF was italian/polish and i liked that combo

 

[goatschool]

actually, no. i liked her. her grandparents made polish food and it was kind of smelly.

 

[xfer]

i can't argue with the smelliness of polish food thing.

 

[goatschool]

i imagine many of the influences are occult in nature?

i hope so.

 

[mindspell]

Most of eastern european cuisine is pretty bleh. Anyone ready for a goulash?

 

[xfer]

f u