When I get to the ticket counter to check in, the gate attendant tells me that the flight is oversold. She checks my reservation and tells me that because I used frequent flyer miles to purchase the ticket, I will be bumped off the flight in favor of paying customers. At this point I notice that my ticket is to Atlanta, and I really want to go to D.C. I ask her what sort of compensation they will provide if I am bumped, and if they will arrange for me to get to D.C. instead. I think that this could work out well for me, as I obviously made a mistake in booking my travel.

I go down a flight of stairs at the airport to go back outside and meet my dad. Walking down the stairs, I pass by Maya Angelou and her entourage. I realize that they are on the flight to Atlanta.

I get into the back seat of my dad’s minivan because my mother is in the front seat. They both drive me home so I can pick up my suitcase.

I’m having lunch in the cafeteria with an asian woman. Her boyfriend is a strapping Minnesota blonde. He proposes to her with a ring of small pale blue stones. I’m really happy for them but she’s not happy about the proposal. I take the ring and put it on my own finger. I’m wearing my wedding band and another ring that is a larger diamond. I experiment with how they should be positioned on my finger and decide that the new ring looks best on the inside, even though I should technically wear my wedding band on the inside, closest to my heart.

I find an ancient manual typewriter that prints in an elaborate cursive script. I want to use it to communicate with Jai. I think that if I can type what I want to say to him, he will listen.

Jai and I are driving in a car around campus, looking for a place to park. I ask him what is wrong and why I haven’t heard from him in so long. He gives me a number of lame excuses and I don’t really accept any of them. I finally tell him that I think what he did was wrong and I’m really hurt, and I think I deserve an apology. After a while he yells at me and says that no apology is forthcoming. I get really angry and get out of the car, slam the door, and storm off.

I have to walk around to find a way to get home. I see a sign directing me to the “Steppe” stop on the New Jersey PATH train.

I am staying in a dorm that is not unlike a hotel, with a large grand lobby and security that checks your ID before you get to the elevators. I go back to my room and I fear I have lost my keys. I go to the college bookstore and start looking around for them. I am reorganizing the book bags and backpacks when a salesclerk comes over to help me. I tell her I am looking for my keys.

I get a small knife for my keychain. It is just like the Cryovac penknives my father used to have, but it’s only about an inch long. I get it because they will let me take it through airport security.

I run into the young dean at the bookstore and he takes me back to my dorm in his car. He’s not quite sure where to go and he makes a wrong turn. We drive down a residential street with tiny houses on it. They are shaped like normal houses with shutters and a roof, but they appear to be only one small room. He says he doesn’t understand why students would live in a dorm room when they could have their own home.

I tell him I keep a blog on the internet where I write down all my dreams. He seems surprised and interested so I give him the address.

Then I’m in a bookstore in St. Paul with my mother and Harry. I have a feeling like this is the place I was trying to remember earlier.

I’m driving in a car with a native american man as my chauffeur. All of  a sudden a truck explodes in another lane and a million shards of metal come streaming towards us, and I duck.

I go to my 20th high school reunion. I greet people I know and give everyone hugs. The reunion is held outside in a grassy area with picnic tables, but there are also indoor spots where you can buy things.

I say hello to Steve L. and we walk around and talk to each other. We stop and say hello to Sherri and I give her a hug, but then keep walking. I am drinking a vodka soda. Steve and I go inside for a bit but then decide to go back out because he wants to introduce me to his wife.

I leave my drink behind and then realize it too late. When I decide I want to purchase another drink I realize I have also left my purse behind. I tell Steve that I will catch up to him and his wife later, and he walks off across the grass to meet her.

I go back in to where I left my purse and look for it. Inside I meet a handicapped couple who are misshapen and deformed. I hug them hello too, even though I don’t recognize them.

I am nervous about biking through the city and especially about riding in traffic. But after a while I get the hang of it and am able to get through the traffic. It’s a beautiful fall day and it is exhilarating to move so quickly down the streets on my own power.

I meet Vincent for lunch at a little cafe. I encourage him to eat something but he seems uneasy, like he needs to get out of there. He says he has to get back to his kids.

The family reunion is taking place in a conference center and I walk down a number of hallways to find it. My uncle Fred says he saw my mother downtown recently and she had a booger on her shirt. Fred and Eleanor seem to believe that it came from my father, as he was prodigious in this department.

I go to the hotel (on the bicycle) and sit down to write a letter. I want to write a letter to Hopkins High School asking for some help with an environmental issue in Russia. I hope that they will read the letter and remember me. I choose a piece of hotel stationery and start to write, but I don’t get very far before realizing that I should type the letter instead of handwriting it. I go to take another sheet of stationery and I realize that all the pages are different. Some are at least 50 years old, and some are brightly colored, like origami papers. I choose the most professional looking paper and feed it into an ancient manual typewriter.

I want to buy a Diet Coke. Despite the fact that there are lots of stacks of Diet Coke everywhere I can’t seem to buy one. I don’t have the proper coupon and they’re not cold.

I’m driving with a woman and Jonathan. Jonathan is talking about his new girlfriend. I’m very angry and I tell him I don’t need to hear about her.

I describe something called "Minder Living."

I take his documents and start cutting the edges in a paper cutter.

Above the snacks there is a big signboard. It’s like an old-fashioned chalkboard, with two long legs connecting a large area for notices. I accidentally bump the sign but I catch it before it falls over. I try to steady the sign but I can’t do it. The signboard doesn’t have any horizontal supports on the legs, so I am trying to balance the whole thing on the vertical bars of wood, which aren’t very wide. When I look up at the board, I realize that the sign itself isn’t solid. The board is rippling with movement, so as I am trying to steady the bottom, the top is still in motion, almost like a flag. A gruff older man comes over and shows me that I have to push a small button at the bottom of one of the legs to make the sign steady itself. The button is like a tiny metal pushbutton, not much bigger than a pencil lead. Once that button is pushed the sign becomes rigid and I can balance it on the legs. The man says that steadying that sign is something I’ll need to be able to do on my own if I want to keep working there.

I’m waiting with four friends by the elevator. One of them is getting married to Suzanne Vega. The elevator isn’t working so we discuss some alternate routes. We’re trying to make our way through the space, but there’s a sense that it’s dangerous. One of the boys I’m with falls down a hole, and I think he’s dead.

I’m driving around in a van with a couple of people. We’re talking about negotiating a contract. There is one section that we keep reviewing over and over that doesn’t make sense. It has something to do with candy bars and french fries. The driver pulls into a parking lot and I tell her to try and hide the van where we won’t be seen. I think that if we can wait for other people to leave, then we’ll be able to figure out what the contract says.

While I am looking for the dogs I set my laptop down on a hot grill. The bottom gets singed and there is a brown burned spot on it. The computer still works but the screen is all messed up, the colors are weird and it doesn’t refresh properly. I wonder if I can bring it back and say that the battery is bad.

I am relieved to find the dogs and I gather them and my laptop up. I am supposed to go with my family, Helen, and Alison to see a woman give a talk on psychology. I get everyone into a big minivan. We are supposed to stop and pick up Alison but we don’t. When Helen asks me where she is, I say I forgot because I was too caught up with the whole lost dog/burned laptop crisis.

We get to the facility where the speech is taking place. The woman is giving it twice. It’s not a very good talk, she’s not a good presenter and she’s not very good with her computer. I then go and visit with a man and my mother and John. My laptop seems to be working again.

The two girls I am supposed to work with are mean to me and I don’t like them. I have a sinking feeling when I find out I’m supposed to work with them.

The instructions for the essay test are given to me on an ornate, old-style vase of flowers. The vase has writing on it ad there are a number of misspelled words. I think the vase might be a gift from my father.

To answer one of the sections on the test I need to go back to my home. One of the girls I’m supposed to be working with says she’ll give me a ride there. When she drops me off she waves and says she’ll be right back, but I know she’s abandoning me and I’m screwed because I can’t get back to school.

As I’m stranded I think about whether I can walk and decide it will take too long. So I take a van back to campus with a bunch of other students. I keep looking at my watch and I realize I don’t have enough time to finish my essays, and I’m really anxious.

There’s a guy I’m afraid to run into sitting next to me in the van, but when I look more closely at him, he turns into a cute guy I’d like to meet.

Then I’m riding the bus with Scott and trying to explain to him how the bus route goes. I can see it on a map and we’re actually driving it.

I’m trying to make plans with Mike S. via text message to see an upcoming show. I tell him the names of the bands and the dates.

Marcelo hops off the bus and disappears, but he leaves his bag so I assume he’s coming back. Elliott gets on the bus and I talk with him for a while. I am working up the nerve to ask him to lend me money so I can pay the driver. The fare meter keeps going up and it’s already at $77.00. I’m trying to figure out how much is reasonable to give him, I think $60.00 seems about right.

Marcelo comes back and we get off the bus and go to a restaurant. We’re looking at the menu but we’re also trying to decide if we want to buy the restaurant. I’m looking for food that doesnt have wheat in it, but most of the desserts do. I settle on a dessert that is like a spicy Mexican pigs-in-blankets with a hot sausage.

He’s saved, and everyone wants to hear the story. I try to call him but I repeatedly dial the wrong number, which is frustrating because I have him on speed-dial.

I’m going to have dinner with Joe. We’re driving and we’re not quite sure where we’re going. We realize we’ve made a wrong turn, and so we try to go back, cutting across two lanes of traffic.

I’m in a setting that’s like a campus. There’s a spot by a lake, or on a hill, where I’m sitting with two friends, one might be a boyfriend. Someone dies, and there’s a commotion. Ron comforts me and I feel grateful yet guilty that I’ve treated him poorly.

I’m in LA. I need to get around and so I have to drive. Susie is there to help me. Driving is like a video game. I’m sweating and there are lots of obstacles in the road (like a camel and a whole caravan.) Even though I can’t drive very well, I get where I need to go. Part of the problem might be that I’m not sure whether to drive on the right or the left side of the road. There’s also a problem where my hearing aid doesn’t fit properly.

I’m in a parking lot for a mall. I’m trying to find Yun Woo. When I find him he talks about his father being rich, having an empire. We go to play video games. The game is a driving game, but it’s a low-res black and white graphics game, done in an old Macintosh style. The game is shaped like a parking meter. I practice using the game controls.

I want to get a baseball signed by a favorite player. The player tells me that it’s his favorite ball. It’s all lumpy and I try to take the leather off.

I’m driving around and trying to find a place to park, but I can’t drive very well. I’m in an old car with the shifter on the steering column. I’m driving towards my grandmother’s house. The road to her house is a much bigger freeway and I’m having trouble driving and turning around.

There’s a kind of geek chic Chinese guy who has a crush on me. He gives me an MS-Word document that is actually an application. It doesn’t work very well, when I click on things they move around and break the page. I’m annoyed at him for giving it to me.

He’s driving me around, we’re going to see a movie. I’m carrying a baby girl under my coat. The guy is a little weirded out by that. When I get out of the car I forget for a second that I have the baby. I’m afraid I’ll drop her but I don’t.

I’m with Paula and Steve. They are going to see the movie too. We talk about the Chinese guy.

Paula says my jeans are too short and I’m horrified. Turns out they’re not, they’re just folded up. I start hemming a skirt with tape. It’s white and red and flounced, and I’m trying to make the hem even. We have to leave.