Monday, January 28, 2008

From the sketchbook... Fractals of Consciousness

Back in my acid dayz, I was stuck on a reality model based on what I called "Fractals of Consciousness". In this model, everything existed as part of a large super complex fractal pattern. It made a great deal of sense to me back then. Now, the idea seems so abstract that I barely comprehend my own writings on the subject. Looking back, I think what I was trying to articulate was the way the brain works (encoding signals and making connections). I drew the picture above. In some way, this depicts an explorer amongst a small energy sub-set of these fractals of concussions. I know it sounds crazy. But, sometimes, I think that "insanity" isn't necessarily wrong simply for being based on a different reality model. After all, the map (brain) is not necessarily the territory.

Dream - The Stars Said You'd be a Dreamer

My co-workers and I had missed the last train from Paris to Rueil Malmaison so we took a taxi. Upon arrival at our hotel, I saw my mother. She invited me into a back room, just off the lobby. This room resembled my mother's sun room at her own home. In the room was a small glass topped table with 3 chairs. I sat down in the empty chair across from a man and a woman who were in their mid 50's. The man had dark black hair and the woman had reddish brown hair.

My mother said to me, "D___, I'd like you to meet my sister." I was a bit confused and then realized that she meant that they were very close friends.

The lady said to me, "I'll be that you don't remember us." I recognized them as Lauren and Kay, friends of my parents when I was very young. I don't think I'd seen either of them since I was five years old. I said, "you are Lauren and Kay... Kate."

She corrected me, "Kate". Then she said, "Your mother sent me an e-mail the other day with a link to your son's blog. I noticed that the name in your e-mail address was neuronaut. This is why I wanted to meet you. I always knew you would be a dreamer. It was written in the stars when you were born. You see..." She then proceeded to explain the position of various stars and consolations at the time I was born. I don't really buy astrology and didn't really listen to what she was saying.

I interrupted her, "excuse me for not following all of this. I've had a long crazy trip today and am a little bit spacey."

She said, "I understand completely."

I asked, "how are your two children? As I recall you have a girl my age and a boy a little younger."

She corrected, "we have three children. Here is the newest addition to the family." And, she pointed at a small puppy in baby clothes being cuddled by Lauren next to her.


Comments: I am kicking myself for not picking up better on the queues. Almost the entire dream was a discussion about dreaming yet I never realized that I was asleep! If I had only realized that I was in a dream state, this could have become an intense lucid experience where I could have asked Lauren and Kay some serious questions about the dreaming mind!!!!

Friday, January 25, 2008

The Last Taboo

The last taboo is religion... I wanted to share this video that I happened upon.

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Interconnectedness

This morning, in Paris, I was sitting in a hotel lobby reading a book. The book is "Mr. Vertigo" by Paul Auster. In it, he was talking about the Buffalo Bill Show (late 19th century to early 20th century). He also was talking about a coincidental link between the plot of the main story coinciding with the airplane "Spirit of St. Louis" that crossed the Atlantic in a single flight that took 32 hours. Soon after, I found myself in a natural history museum where they had a display with old pictures of the Buffalo Bill Show. Then, later, on the subway, I saw a billboard containing a picture of the airplane "Spirit of St. Louis." What’s the chance of these seemingly random encounters? Don't you just love synchronicities?

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Friday, January 4, 2008

From the sketchbook...


Here is an interesting character... It's not an original layout... I was simply bored and happened to have a penguin button laying in front of me from which I copied...

Thursday, January 3, 2008

From the sketchbook...


3 Steps to Interpreting Dreams as Joseph did...

I am currently re-reading "The Earth will Shake" by Robert Anton Wilson. The following excerpt is probably the best and most simple instructions on how to learn to interpret dreams that I have seen...

From Maria Maldonado's Journal:

Mother Ursula told me that anyone could learn to interpret dreams, just as Joseph did in the Bible. She says the whole art is in three steps: first, one must learn to remember one's dreams; second, by meditating on them, one can eventually understand them; and third, with this knowledge mastered, one can begin to interpret the dreams of others.

To remember one's dreams, Mother Ursula says, it is necessary to keep foolscap by one's bed and write down all that one remembers of the night's dreams the very first thing upon waking. She says that if one does this every day, one remembers more every day.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Mind Puzzle Chain Mails

I recently received an interesting forwarded e-mail with various mind games.... Some samples follow below. I think that these successfully demonstrate how our minds can trick us. How many details and alternate views do we gloss over in our daily lives?

Count every " F " in the following text:



FINI SHED FILES ARE THE RE
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI
FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...



HOW MANY ?

THERE ARE 6 -- no joke.

READ IT AGAIN ! The reasoning behind is further down. The brain cannot process "OF".

The following are a few pictures that were included. Each picture contains two words. I'm uncertain of the source of these pictures nor copyright status...

Dream Recall

I have about 6 years of dreams written in a journal dating from 1992 to 1998. During the time that I was recording these, my recall was so keen that I typically remembered 4 dreams per night. When I read these journal entries today, they trigger memories of the dreams that are much more crisp and clear than memories from daytime events during the same time period. During these years, I learned to lucid dream. I'll write more about lucid dreaming in a future post.

In 1998, I began working a job that required me to wake early by alarm clock. The shock of an alarm clock made recall a bit more difficult than if I had awaken naturally. At this time, I also found myself living in a new town where I knew almost nobody. As a result, a mild depression set in. I was also struggling with many personal issues common to early adulthood.

At that time, I felt a need to let my subconscious mind work on its own without my meddling. For this reason, I really laid off of the soul searching for a while. I let myself get lost in life and stopped most dream work. Somehow, I felt that this was the right thing to do. I understand that this is dead opposite of what most mystics and shamans would have recommended. But, it seemed right at the time.

In the meantime, I did record dreams but usually only if they seemed extremely unusual and important. Now, in 2008, I am taking a renewed interest in how my mind works as well as the general relationship between mind and physical world.

My dream recall is no longer all that great. I remember now perhaps 4 dreams a week rather than 4 dreams each night. I've started meditating again upon occasion, but not on a regular schedule. Also, I am about to embark on a winter of working in Europe. Being in a different culture is a fantastic was to put your own version of reality into perspective. As such, I think that this coming year may be very interesting from a neuronautic standpoint.

From the Canvas... Depression

Self Portrait of Inner Self from the late 1990's.

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

From the sketchbook...

These little guys used to show up in my dreams quite often (mid 1990's). I suppose they are similar to gargoyles. They weren't scary but were mischievious. And, if you caught one, they were kind'a like puddy and hard to hold onto. One of my many teachers at the time had warned me to never touch them... not sure why...