Nightmares and Marriage Proposals?

"Rule number one- don't propose to a girl on a bus. Rule number two- don't tell her it's because of a bad dream." -June Carter (Cash) to Johnny Cash, quoted from Walk the Line

Dexter's Darkness

Here is an exerpt from the first book in the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay (yes, this is the same character who inspired the Dexter from the Showtime series, although the novels came first and are quite different in various ways). This is a scene from the first book in the series (ironically?) called Darkly Dreaming Dexter, in which Dexter catches himself having dreamed:

Hello, dear boy, so good to have you back. But where on earth have you been?

That, of course, was the question. I have spent most of my life untroubled by dreams, and for that matter, hallucinations. No visions of the Apocalypse for me; no troubling Jungian icons burbling up from my subconscious, no mysterious recurring images drifting through the history of my unconsciousness. Nothing ever goes bump in Dexter's night. When I go to sleep, all of me sleeps.

So what had just happened? Why were these pictures appearing to me?

Who will take my dreams away?

-Marianne Faithfull

Dedication from The Passage

The dedication from Justin Cronin's 2010 novel, The Passage, is simple. It reads "For my children. No bad dreams."

Martha's Dream, from The Proposition

An amateur video accompanying the song, "Martha's Dream," by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis which is from The Proposition, a film set in the Australian outback which was also written by Nick Cave. The video features stills of the Australian outback and other images related to the setting of the movie. 

See below the video for the transcription of the erie dream Martha describes to her husband, Morris that gives the song not only its title, but also, its mood.

"There's something I want to tell you. I've been having a dream, most nights. I've kept it from you, but I don't suppose it matters now... I'm in a room, it's our bedroom I think. I'm searching for something and then suddenly I feel a presence in the room, and I stand up, and I turn around, and there in the doorway is Eliza Hopkins, and she looks frightful. Her...her dress is all creased and torn, and covered in blood and her face, too. All... battered and bruised, and splashed with blood."

"Martha-"

"But listen to this. In her arms, she's holding something. I can't see what it is. It's covered by her hair. And then she walks towards me, very slowly, and... she hands me a tiny bundle... And I look down, and I see it, it's a baby. A newborn. And this baby, oh it's a beautiful baby, Morris. And it, it opens its eyes, and then I feel a pressure on my hand and I look down and I see that the baby has taken hold of my finger and it's squeezing it tight in its tiny fist... and then I wake up.

"But after I wake it's the strangest thing. I can still feel, I can still feel the pressure of that dream baby's hand. What do you think of that?"

Sian's Nightmares

It was true that ever since the accident in Bosnia, Sian's dreams had treated her pretty roughly. For years on end she'd had her 'standard-issue' nightmare- the one in which she was chased through dark alleyways by a malevolent car. But at least in that dream she'd always wake up just before she fell beneath the wells, whisked to the safety of the waking world, still flailing under the tangled sheets and blankets of her bed. Ever since she'd moved to Whitby, however, her dreams had lost what little good taste they'd once had, and now Sian was lucky if she got out of them alive. -The Hundred and Ninety-Nine Steps, Michel Faber

from The Book of Lost Things

David was certain that he had been dreaming, although he could not quite recall the substance of the dream. Of one thing he was sure: the dream had not been a pleasant one, but all that remained was a lingering feeling of unease and a tingling on the palm of his right hand, as though it had been stroked with poison ivy. There was the same sensation on the side of his face, and he could not shake off the feeling that something unpleasant had touched him while he was lost to the world. -The Book of Lost Things, John Connolly

The Book of Lost Things is very enjoyable:s dark, exciting, full of fantasy. John Connolly writes in a style that is easily absorbed, engrossing; it reads quick and is entertaining throughout. David, the main character, is a young boy surrounded by adult things: the depressing reality of war (World War I), and the mourning supreme the loss of his mother to a Cancer. When he accidentally discovers an alternate world, he starts an adventure which is terrifying and forces him to grow up much faster than a boy should. 

In this world his courage and strength, and in the end, his morals, are repeatedly tested. His travels take him all over, meeting various characters; some friends, some foes, including a few from famous fairy tales, but many are new faces. He is seeking the king, and his infamous Book of Lost Things, which is said to hold magical powers, as well as the way back to David's true home-- however, he must avoid The Crooked Man, the trickster, a creepy character with unspeakable evil powers. The book is a success with an ending that is abrupt, somewhat emotional, and unpredictable. 

The Book of Lost Things has its own internet presence; it's clever and fun- check it out here!

Dreams for Sale

Stalls had been set up all throughout the shop, next to, or even on, counters that, during the day, had sold perfume, or watches, or amber, or silk scarves. Everybody was buying. Everybody was selling. Richard listened to the market cries as he began to wander through the crowds. "Lovely fresh dreams. First-class nightmares. We got 'em. Get yer lovely nightmares here."


-Neverwhere, Neil Gaiman

Five Day Reminder (for issue #3)

FIVE DAYS LEFT TO SUBMIT

( to issue #3; the upcoming issue ) 

of  T h i s  E n d l e s s  P r e s e n t 

D R E A M z i n e - - - - - - - - - - -

send them in while there's still time! 

Keane's "Bad Dream"

 Enjoy a wisteria-loaded power pop ballad about dreams, the kind nobody wants to have.

Joseph Heller on Dreams

"I want to keep my dreams, even bad ones, because without them, I might have nothing all night long." 

-Joseph Heller

Pee-Wee's Nightmare

So obviously not all dreams are pleasant. Take it from Pee-Wee Herman.