The Comics Lecture (Night of 07/02/2018)

Dave's comics. Night-time. In a differenr location. In the back-room. For some reason I want a new copy of Charles Burn's 'Black Hole' - not sure why. I am glad to see a new copy of it. I flick through it and see that there are extra chapters - prose written by a guest contributior including photographs. The extra chapters are all about adolescence and growing up - how close the book was to his own teenage years. I fear the book will be too expensive. I look at the price - £31 has been crossed out and replaced with £19:99 - I can afford that. I am pleased.
Outside. Looking back at Dave's Comics. Looking at the two lighted rooms upstairs where all the back copies are.
I can see a shelf of fantasy books.
At some lecture hall. The lecture is hall to do with comics and graphic novels. The desks are like pews as if we are in a church. The feeling if plants around the side - windows looking open ontio courtyards. Luke is sitting some pews back. He hasn't been in for a while. With glee I tell him how the lecturer has been shaking his head at the mention of Luke's name, as if he is displeased with him. Luke tightens his lips. I think I have gone too far. Why do I want Luke to be worried about his place on these lectures anyway.
Someone is standing in front of my seat. Will I be able to see anything?
Before I sit down the lecturer takes me aside and tells me how enjoyable my participation in these classes has been. I am pleased and stutter out some inane reply, about how comics and graphic novels should be taken seriously as literature.
Walking up Preston Road with other people. A girl calls my name from the other side of the road. At first I do not hear her. She is a younger, slightly punky girl in a leather jacket. She comes over. 'Wendy?' I say. I have got her name right. She is pleased. She tells me that she is 'not allowed to make tea any more' in the place that she is staying in, the inference being that this will be due to something she has done. She is in some kind of care facility. I imagine that I should invite her along for a cup of tea but am unsure.

Work Campus (Night of 30/01/2018)

I am at work / college - it is difficult to decide which. I am there with people I work with now, but the feel of the place is more like a university / college campus.
Wood-panelled walls, dark brown and quietly opulent. The impressions of leaves from great plants on stairways and landings.
I am looking for the toilets. Walking up and down stairs. I pass by a man sat lounging on some leather sofa. Where are the toilets? I found them before... I think I have found them, but then realize they say 'staff only'. Then I look across the room - the feel of a reception in an old hotel - and see that they are across there.
Relieved.
Back in the main room with work people. Everyone is finishing for the day. We are going out for post-work drinks to celebrate something.
Walking up a small hill in town. Justine is here - but Justine is also Sarah as well (typical dream logic!). I think how strange it is that I am going out drinking with Justine after not seeing her for 25 years.
There is something about her attitude towards me which makes me sad and regretful.
People are talking about my T-shirt - a print of one of my own drawings. I am explaining how it is 'just a transfer' and will fade over time. I point out an area that is grey that in the original drawing was white. Someone mistakes this for blue.
I am disappointed in this.
Ben is wearing one of m T-shirts - a piece I did in colour - it seems very Hallowe'en orientated - pumpkins in a line on a graph perhaps - something that may be used by a horror punk band. I point out something on his T-shirt, and realize that my hand is close to his crotch. This unnerves me as he is in a relationship with Sarah.

Having To Turn Back (Night of 28/01/2018)

Grey countryside - the feeling of an estuary, or some lonely coastal region on the edge of a town. Walking along. Stood on a bridge, or some kind of walkway across a rusty iron-fenced in pathway. The pathway is we wet with a puddle, but I am confident that the puddle is not deep. I go to walk in it and discover that the puddle is a lot deeper than I thought. The way is impassable. A companion I am with points out that the 'RSPB' have blocked up the walls - and the holes in the 'wall' - the iron fences - are plugged up with snails. My companion is horrified - not at the use of snails - but the fact that the walls are plugged up at all. I realize that I wouldn't have been able to continue along the walkway anyway as the submerged path is barred by a huge iron barrier. On the other side, the water is even deeper.
***
I am back in Forres taking a walk. I decide to take a short cut through Cluny woods - the edge of the 'black woods' of playground legend. I happily set off up the hill. I When I am inside the trees, I notice that it is getting - blue evening sky behind the trees. The hill gets steeper, and it gets darker. I realize I will have to turn back. I can see hardly anything. I descend the hill, which seems to have got even steeper. White branches, as if lit by some ground light stand pale against the blackness of the sky.

Ickenham After Dark (Night of 26/01/2018)

It is early evening - full-dark, but the light that deep blue of first-night. I am walking along the road into Ickenham. I wish to but a Diet Coke, Suddenly there is movement. and I am accosted by two teenagers, one taller, the other wiry, full of unpredictable movements and danger. I put up my elbow as protection and jump away, startled.
"Hey! What's that all about!" he says, mimicking my protective movements.
His companion doesn't say anything, just looks over and smiles.
An air of impending violence hangs over this meeting. I am about to be attacked. I knew it was a mistake to go to Ickenham after dark.
There are further altercations. I think I make it to the newsagent - I even think I manage to buy my can of Diet Coke. I hurry down the road - Long Lane - and hear the shouts of the teenager behind me. I want this so much to be over... (As an aside, I don't know why they didn't follow me - perhaps these dream-teenagers wanted something in the newsagent too?)
I hurry down the road, wishing to lose them as quickly as I can. I don't want them to follow me. It was stupid of me to come to Ickenham at night to buy Diet Cokes,
It is day now.
I am walking between two buildings that feel to be on the edges of a park,. There are a lot of people about, It feels like a summers day.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Sarah walking along. I have not seen her for a while, so feel slightly uncomfortable and pretend I have not seen her. I have my headphones on though cannot remember if I had any music on or not.
Sarah sees me and comes up to me. It is nice to see Sarah. We agree to a walk through the park, but we both need the toilet first. Fortunately one of the buildings next to us is a giant public toilet. The large interior is full of people walking and pissing. There is an overwhelming air of green-ness about the building - a deep green that reeks with piss and that public toilet air of not-niceness. Sarah goes up the stairs to the 'ladies section' and I stay on the ground floor. I start pissing into one of the troughs and then notice that Sarah's friend Fiona is stood next to me. She is doing something with the wall. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, I still say hello to her. She looks slightly awkward herself and continues whatever she was doing - messing about with something on the wall.
I finish pissing and go out to meet Sarah - somehow I take the wrong exit and end up on the street that leads back to Ickenham. Then - oh no! - I see that wiry teenager walking along. He wants a piss too. I do not want him to see me. I walk back round the building to the way I had come in. I shall wait for Sarah here, but where is she? What entrance - or exit - will she be waiting for me at? I am concerned and troubled. Why is she taking so long? Maybe I should ring her to see where she is?
***
A number of people in my room - a feeling of purple. Someone is taking photographs of us, hurrying us into order. It is important that I am stood next to Karen. Afterwards I am sticking something to the wall - some kind of tablet. It is a promo for a band - perhaps Laibach - certainly some kind of totalitarian industrial unit. I am pleased with this. The tablet will play their latest video which is very inspiring. I wonder why I have not thought of this before.
***
Watching the film 'Cannibal Apocalypse'. It has been years - decades!- since I watches this film so have no real memories of it about. Thought I am watching the film, I am also in the film too. One of the cannibals stood on a railway bridge looking down. Summery waste ground. A feeling of apprehension as the tension mounts up.

Worcester Wuss (Night of 25/01/2018)

Walking back from Stanmer Woods - the long path from the village to the entrance. I decide to walk on the other side of the fence that lines the path. I realize I cannot go any further as my way is barred by thorny bushes. I can either climb back over the fence to the path - but I think the fence is barbed wire... or I can go down the muddy and treacherous slope under the thorny bushes. The person I am with, a middle aged man unknown to me in waking life, says that if I climb back over the fence onto the path then I will have failed and be known as a 'Worcester Wuss'.
***
In a newsagent at night. I have Joe's two staffies, Eva and Arlo. I realize that Joe has gone and left me with both dogs. How am I meant to look after both of them?
***
There is some kind of insect - a repulsive parasite that looks like a cross between an elongated slug and a black snake. This creature is on a table. Nick decided to put the creature on my neck. I am furious with him. Walking through dark streets at night. Bus-stops. Night-time. Swearing. Graham looking up. Perhaps I will lose it totally. Perhaps I will murder Nick.

The River Rises (Night of 22/01/2018)

Down by a river I sued to know. Grey day. I try to get to the edge of the river to see a huge oipe that used to be there, vanishing into the earth, all those intimations of subterranean passageways. The river has risen though, covering the pipe and the embankment. The embankment is slippy and muddy - a treacherous ground. Looking down the muddy embankment to the river, to see where the water has risen to.

Out-Of-Control Taxi (Night of 21/01/2018)

Walking down a hill in a busy city - reminiscent of Malta. A taxi speeds past me - I know that it is in 'freefall' - it is some kind of student prank. The taxi careers out of control, running down pedestrians. At least one is killed. I see it speed through a crossroads at the bottom of the hill and up the other side. I later find out that the girl who was in the taxi is being charged with manslaughter.
***
At work. The call centre now seems to be in some kind of shop environment. People are gathered around a counter. Something to do with a cursed coin which makes people perform badly at their job. Chris J has the coin, He looks frazzled and unwell, as if he has been awake for days.

The Unsafe Door (Night of 20/01/2018)

Zombie attacks are now common and an everyday thing. I am in a house that I share with others. To my utter, utter horror, I realize that the door to the street cannot be locked. I try every permutation of bolt, key and deadlock, but no... The door can be easily opened by even the lightest of touches.
Images of two of tho of the dead in a room. Fighting them. The dead are strong, and quicker than expected.

Photographs Of Negligible Hauntings (Night of 19/01/2018)

University campus buildings, white daylight, springtime. A woman - also a student (I presume I'm a student too) shows me a series of photographs on her mobile phone / digital camera that allegedly provide proof that there is a haunting in the area of university that she studies in. I have the feeling that she is an art student and is showing me pictures of her studio. The photographs (also videos?) show objects moving - a giant stapler on the edge of a table. I notice that none of these objects is seen fully in the photographs - someone could be moving them off camera as it were. I am eager to show other people these photos to see what they think (Jason?).
***
I am on a telephone date with a woman I have not met. This is the first time we have talked. At the end of the conversation, I realize that the woman has not really asked me anything. I immediately apologize for talking to much. She says that she is 'much happier remaining single'. I have been rejected.
***
Some debate and discussion on buying rounds. I have bought a round. Now it is Jason's turn. David chips in saying that I owe him a whiskey. I am momentarily taken aback, but then I explain to him that the buying of whiskies is not part of round buying. I do not have to buy another round already. I am relieved.

Craige's Essays (Night of 18/01/2018)

Two people walking up a set of stairs. Possible the old stairs from Abbotsfield Comprehensive. People discussing old school friend Craige's essays. Was he a natural academic, they ask? The general consensus is that he wasn't, but his essays were okay anyway. The fact that he was a priest somehow added value to the essays, even if they weren't written by a natural academic.
***
In a room with a woman with dark hair. We sit on the floor, There is a computer screen near us. I take off my glasses and pretend I can see less than I can. The screen is full of 'x's and other symbols. I made some spurious comment about how they seem like ants to me. I am not sure if we are going to kiss or not. I cannot tell whether she is attracted to me or not. I cannot tell whether or not I can be bothered with the whole process of trying to kiss her.

The Girl In The Mirror Is Me (Night of 17/01/2017)

I am in the bathroom. I have done something with the towel, or my hair. I am not sure what but it gives the impression - in the mirror - that I have long black hair. I look at my reflection. It is that of a woman. I smile at myself. Is this what I would look like had I been born a girl?
***
The CEO of the company I work for is a woman in her fifties. We get on well - it is a small company. In a kitchen with her. We share a seat as there is not enough room. She puts her arm around me, and I do the same to her. I feel slightly uncomfortable about this. Is she just being friendly or is it a precursor to something else? Later on she says that I must come around to dinner as she has a couple of friends who come from 'Uxbridge University' (I think that they are professors, and the feeling I get from the dream is that she is too). These professors like talking about 1983, and she knows that I am interested in this area of history as well.
***
A city street at night. With one or two others. Walking along a curved pavement under some scaffolding. I am carrying something heavy with me - a rubbish bag which is made out of plastic with a long tube. I drop the bag, and water gushes out of the tube. A man walks along the pavement, but is warned to go the other way because of the bag I have dropped. I try to pick the bag up. It is unwieldy and heavy. I will probably have to leave it on the ground.
***
Talking with an attractive woman who works in a shop / on a stall. Sunlit streets. I see her again later. I don't know whether or not I should talk to her again. I decide to ignore her.

The Mattress Stepping Stones (Night of 16/01/2018)

I am on holiday - or at least on some day trip to the countryside. I am with someone else - I can't remember who now. A corner of a field, under the shade of trees. A small river runs along the side of the field. I go to investigate the corner of the field, and see that there is a small pathway across the water. The pathway is made of small squares of some interlocking soft material, like miniature mattresses, actually floating in the water. This in no way heeds the rivers progress. Am I able to get across? I nudge one of the mattresses which sinks below the surface as I do so. No. I would end up in the water if I did. I am unsure how deep the water is. Perhaps if I ran quickly across? My companion warns me not to, that this would be dangerous.
***
It is important that Flash - the border collie - gets to go on holiday. He has worked well and deserves it. It is important that he knows he is important. Outside by a van. A number of other people about, presumably Louise his owner?
***
A small office occupied by three people, one of them being the character 'Keith' from The Office. Keith is annoying someone else in the office, something to do with an overhead projector.
***
(possibly connected to the above dream)
I am in a pub - possibly with Joe and Andrew - they go outside (for a cigarette?) and I decide to move floors. I go downstairs and sit down by a table in which I know one of the party. Is this my drink on the table next to me? Or is it this one? I am unsure. Am I meant to be sitting here? I have a vague feeling that I have annoyed the woman at the table by being here. My ale looks fizzy. Should it be like that? What if I am drinking someone else's drink? I text my friends to let them know I have changed floors for 'a change of scene'.

Joe Bird's House Is Haunted! (Night of 15/01/2018)

In Worcester at night. Walking o er the bridge with other people. Darkness.
Joe Bird's house is haunted. It is not clear what by. I am engaged in making a documentary about the house. I am filming two people walking down a long corridor, reminiscent of a hospital. I assume this is Joe's house (though considering how Joe's waking house is a two bedroom terraced house I can't quite marry the two up...)
I film the couple, a young man and woman, from above a door, in a rickety platform of boxes and something soft, actually above the doorway. The woman is intimately connected with the hauntings. Later on I pull this ginger haired woman into a room. I know the man - presumably her boyfriend is not pleased with me. I tell the woman of a documentary that was once made about Romany Gypsies, and how the film-maker was allowed into the world because he had a connection with someone which was a way into their world (this point is more than a bit hazy now). I tell her that I am her 'in' into this world, in tones of encouragement which suggest that she should make the most of this opportunity.
Back at Joe Bird's house. I am alone. His house more or less resembles his waking life house - except that it now has a back stairway - a spiral twisting thing running through the many floors...(so maybe not quite like his waking house after all). I am running down the stairs - the house is heavy with a feeling of presence - something cold, and if not malevolent, then certainly something which has engendered a sense of panic. I must get out. I cannot believe Joe lives here alone. I run down the stairs and race out relieved into the night.

Alleyway Leading To Frays River (Night of 09/01/2018)

A hotel. Somehow connected to a job I am working in. I am here with... Emily? Unsure. I do not want to be in this hotel. I feel that we are not meant to be here and may well get into trouble. Some kind of sex toy in the room. Leaving the room, coming back again on my own, realizing that we are allowed to be here after all. The hotel is room no 26. Getting off the lift at the wrong floor - walking across the open plan floor, but only finding room numbers up to 17. Back in the hotel room again. Wishing I had made more opportunity of the time on my own. The room starts to fill up with people.
***
Walking along a back alley, passing by some kids. The kids are rough and start messing about. I hurry by. "Look at that four-eyed run!" one of the kids shouts "Everybody who wears glasses runs like that!". I hurry on and do not run. I do not wished to be attacked in this suddenly threatening alleyway made by fences, the backs of gardens, garages... The ground of the alleyway is dirty and muddy.
Ahead of me there is some kind of barrier - planks of wood barring my way. I hope this is not a dead end.
Somehow I am able to traverse this barrier. I am now walking along the side of a river through edgeland countryside. It is getting darker, the skies heavy with rain. There may be someone ahead of me, walking the same direction I am. I am unsure if I want to continue this path which I know is Frays River in Uxbridge. I am glad when I come across a little footbridge which leads me back into a housing estate on the outskirts of town.
***
On a huge escalator travelling up the hill to Brighton station. The escalator / moving walkway is outisde. It is a warm sunny day. I am looking over the side of the escalator walkway at a kind of churned up building site / waste ground by the side of the station. It has been like this for a long time, and in the sun looks quite relaxing. Near to the escalator is a toy car, half buried in the earth. This makes me think nostalgically of childhood.
The train station itself seems more reminiscent of a coach station. People are getting off coaches everywhere. I am with a a friend - a young goth woman - red hair. She is mildly, but amusingly, annoyed with something to do with the coaches, some lukewarm hold-up or another.

Fire Drill Bookshop (Night of 05/01/2017)

I am working (possibly on a college course?) in Harrow. There is a fire-alarm. It is unclear whether or not it is a drill or a real fire. I am in a rush but decide that I must take my bag with me - even though I am aware that we are told to leave any possessions behind in the case of a fire. Once outside Id ecide that I might as well take this opportunity to visit a bookshop in the town centre. The bookshop is located at the end of a darkened and empty arcade, and is called something like 'Mole's Books' - referring to the fact that moles are nocturnal creatures existing in the dark - much like the bookshop.  I am unsure if the bookshop is open, but when I approach the window, I am relieved to see people walking about the bookshelves in the dim light of yellow bulbs. I enter the bookshop but am immediately concerned that my presence will be missed back at college, Surely they will take the register, and discover that I am missing - they will think I am in the building. I am afraid that I will get into trouble and immediately start working out whether I can return before my presence will be misssed.

A Film Version Of 'It' (Night of 03/01/2018)

I am settling down to watch the new film of Stephen king's novel 'It'. I have an excellent idea for a drawing. I shall watch the film, then condense everything into a giant comic strip across two A1 pieces of paper.
The film starts off slow - lots of shots of the main characters in a kind of overgrown wasteland. I am being drawn into the film. I am intrigued to see what the character of psychopathic bully Henry Bowers will be like. Who will play him?
Gradually, the character of It - that evil who lurks in the sewers - is introduced. It - or 'Pennywise' (in the book a clown, but here the clown is an distinct kind of cartoon character in the vein of Donald Duck or The New Schmoo perhaps - but more abstract. It is concerned with the placing of a ring... It is unclear where this ring is meant to go - in a certain part of the sewer - or even in the body of one of his minions or servants - also an abstract cartoon animal figure.
I am puzzling how to turn this all into two 8 panel drawings. Is it a good idea? Will I be able to do it? Will it just be the main characters hanging about in a tangled wasteland?
I notice with some interest that Bill, one of the main characters, looks alarmingly like me when I was a kid. I never thought Bill would look like me. In fact, he looks just like me.
Fascinating.