A New Gadget?

It was a new gadget. I had no idea who invented it. There I was, using it to distract Joseph as I fed him his meal. So, what was "it"?

"It" was a placemat. The kind that people put on their dining table to add a touch of class when hosting a dinner at home. What was unique about this particular "gadget" placemat?

It had pictures of little children on it, about five or six happy faces. So? What's the big deal? Get this, whenever Joseph started fussing, or refused his food, I just need to "activate" the placemat by touching on any of those smiling faces, and voila~ that face instantly scrunched up and let out a wailing cry! Got Joseph's attention real good, and while he's absorbed staring at this noisy placemat, I quickly spooned some more food into his mouth.

Sounds bizarre? I thought so too, especially after waking from this crazy dream just this morning! As I kept laying there, still half-drowsy, I wondered again why can't I just sleep through the night without dreaming? The truth of the matter is, I can't even remember when was the last time I slept through the night soundly, and dreamless.

I ever asked William, does he dream every night? He thought awhile and said, no. He doesn't usually dream while he slept. Only occasionally. I did ask a few friends the same question, and I got the same answer. Everyone seemed to only dream once in a while, except me.

I don't mind the dreams, only at times, they leave me feeling quite exhausted when I get up the next day. In those dreams where you are being chased by someone or something, you try so hard to run very fast. You exert all your strength to propel yourself forward and yet you only managed to move a couple of inches. I felt drained even while still in my dream running away from unknown danger, so you can imagine the state I'm in when I finally awaken.

Other equally stressful dreams were the ones in which I either drove a car or swam. In reality, I don't drive and I can't swim! So whenever these recurring dreams "recur", I could only feel panic and distress, as I tried to imagine how a car should be driven on the road, or how I can stay afloat in water.

Enough about dreams (or should I call them nightmares?). This morning as I mopped my kitchen floor, loud music wafted in through my open window. No, it wasn't my neighbours blaring their hi-fi set, it was the band playing for a funeral wake held downstairs. Usually I just turned a deaf ear to their robotic style of moving from one song to another. But this band played with a difference (sounds cheesy, I know!), in the middle of a goldie oldie tune, they did a drum solo! Wow, I don't mean to be irreverent, but have they thought of auditioning for the "Superband" contest? They'll probably think, "Superband" audition? Only in my dreams!!