Of Beets and Other Listening Devices

"It has never been my object to record my dreams, just to realize them." ~ Man Ray

This morning when I woke, the dream I'd been dreaming was fresh in my mind. Some of the dreams I have are complete stories, others are fragments, scenes or simply images. Unlike artist Man Ray, it was indeed my object to record my dreams. To realize them, I am not so sure.

I'd developed the habit of keeping a dream journal when I was in junior high school. For six years I wrote hundreds of pages of detail. When it started I felt my night life, or subconscious imagination, was far more interesting than my mundane suburban existence.

The habit eventually dissipated when I went to college. Occasionally, however, as a young artist I would paint a scene from a dream. I remember one painting I'd done, maybe four by six feet, of two boys in swimsuits looking at a floating mattress. An image from a dream.

This morning I woke with a dream scene involving president elect Obama. The image was of a steak being served in the White House. On the plate was what appeared to be a slice of beet. In actuality, it was a listening device developed by the CIA or some other organization that deals with secret things like listening devices, etc. They were especially proud of this one, because it was so real that if you ate it, it could be chewed and eaten just like a beet. No evidence left behind.

They had several other such devices they were working on, all of them food items. A slice of cucumber, a slice of tomato. The tomato slice was totally juicy looking.

Honestly, I don't know what any of it means, but upon waking it was fun to ponder. What are you pondering today? Does it have anything to do with eating your vegetables?

Have a great day. And keep dreaming. It's one of the most original things any of us can do.

PHOTO CAPTION: A plate of eggs, bread and jalapeno is actually more than it appears. Which is the listening device? (click images to enlarge)