Let Dreams Be Dreams

So, interesting dream last night, and all these college essays are reminding me how much I enjoy creative writing…

 

I found myself in a mystical land. The grass is extremely pretty. There is a castle sitting on a cliff by the shoreline. Very happy place, Disney like. A tree near the castle has branches spread out like a hammock and in that hammock lays a statue. I walk towards the castle, of course I’m a disembodied mass as this dream occurs in the third person, unlike some books we know, and I see that this statue is made out of chocolate and is actually the mascot for Burger King.

“The King” lays in a seductive pose. Head propped up on one arm, other arm hanging loosely by his hip. His legs are open, the feet are touching, both knees are bent, but the leg on top is upright, forming a triangle-shape with his legs. Out of nowhere I am transported into the ocean abroad and I am on a ship. There is a couple, Bell(a) and the Beast. But of course the rose is no longer an issue so now the Beast has changed his name to Edward. They are deeply in love with each other and are sailing along to form a kingdom of their own. They see the castle and head for shore.

Right when they anchor in, The King poofs out of nowhere with his queen and three children and challenges Edward and Bell to a challenge, or rather just Bell, if he wins, he keeps Bell as his maid, if Bell wins, she can leave with Edward. But there’s a catch, the whole time Edward is restrained to the one cabin on the ship.

Yeah my dreams are a bit trippy, so I missed all the competitions and perhaps the most vivid part of my dream is Bell’s trek back to the ship. For some reason it is a beautiful day out as the end of all Disney movies are, but the dock to the ship is SUPER windy and it’s ridiculously hard to Bell to make her way. I’m pretty sure during this part, five hours of real life time passed, but who knows. But Bell is struggling her way to meet back with Edward, but Edward has no idea what’s going on, he’s just sitting in his little Captain’s lodge sullenly hoping that Bell(a) wins the competition. Of course Bell is screaming for Edward, but her voice is blown away with the wind.

Finally Bell(a) and Edward are reunited and they hug. The feeling of love permeated the atmosphere so much and my disembodied third person felt engaged. The hug so tight, so lasting, then…. “OHHHH, it’s been a hard day’s night, and I been workin’ like a doogg, it’s been a hard day’s night, I should be sleeping like a loggg.”

And I wake up, the feeling of love, now empty, but the song still playing in my head.

'When I'm home, feeling you holding me tight, TIGHT, YEAH'

- The Beatles

 

Yet Another College Creative Prompt

Although it may appear to the contrary, we do know that people have a life beyond what they do to get into college. Tell us about an experience you have had outside of your formal classroom and extracurricular activities that was just plain fun and why.

 

            I awoke from my car-ride slumber to see the bright blue sky looming overhead. The two-hour car ride to Ogunquit, Maine was finally over. The anticipation of the fun-filled day ahead of me manifested itself as I stepped out of the car, stretched my limbs and let out a gleeful shout. I grabbed my stuff out of the trunk as the other three other cars in our group pulled into the parking lot. I could see the joy in all of their eyes as they piled against the windows to look at the stunning blue sky and the crowded shoreline.

            I smiled and waved at my friends as the minivans drove by, but then I kicked my flip-flops off, ripped my T-shirt off, and ran towards the beach, sprinting top speed, screaming the whole time. To my dismay, the notorious stories of the Ogunquit beach’s icy waters had slipped my mind, and as I took my first steps into the water, the shock hit me hard and I lost my breath and froze in place.

Unfortunately, in my excitement, I did not hear or see my friend Chris running directly behind me the whole way. As I splashed into the frigid water and stopped suddenly from shock, Chris was unable to stop himself in time and ran straight into me knocking me face-first into the freezing liquid beneath forcing out another scream. Chris behind me laughingly apologized and helped me to my feet and I walked as quickly as my frozen feet would carry me back to dry land. I quickly took out my towel and wiped the liquid nitrogen off my body and put my T-shirt back on as I attempted to warm up.

The whole group had watched my embarrassing, unintentional ice water dive from the parking lot. So as I walked back towards them to pick a meeting space on the beach, everyone was laughing at my clumsy antics. But I knew everyone was laughing in good fun and I could not help but laugh along with them as I told them what had happened. Of course my interpretation was sure to include my highly dramatized thought process and whatever else I felt made the story funnier.

Though my plunge into the water was painful, I felt that my sacrifice had been penguin-like. Just as penguins hit their companions into the ocean to test for potential danger, I was the scapegoat to see if the waters were safe. Since I had come back out alive, the waters were deemed predator-free. As people inched towards the water for the rest of the day, they did not make the same mistake I did, and they slowly waded their way deeper into the water.

As the day progressed, I spent more time sun-bathing on the beach with my friends as we dug holes and built sand castles. I was reluctant to head into the water as my first experience was slightly scarring, but the gigantic waves, the excruciating heat, and above all the urgings of my friends compelled me towards the scary sea. Nearing the water, my heart began racing as I thought of the hypothermic conditions. But as I started riding the waves with my friends, the various competitions we created on the spot blocked most nerve endings in my extremities. With my friends around it was almost impossible to remember my drastic first entry.

Although my to accidental water test was the most exciting event, the other memories I hold from that beach are not lost. Every moment I spent on that beach will always hold a special place in my memory because I went with my church youth group. We are a close-knit group, and everything we do together is always fun. Whether it be going to the beach or just mindlessly watching television, being around the people that I love trumps everything.

Tufts "Optional" Creative Essay

Yes yes, LYF retreat post was promised. But I guess I lied.

So seeing as how I had to write a creative essay while applying to college. I'll post it here as well.

"Tufts develops leaders who will address the intellectual and social challenges of the new century. Since critical thinking, creativity, practicality and wisdom are four elements of successful leadership, the following topics offer you an opportunity to illustrate these various characteristics. We invite you to choose one and prepare an essay of 250-400 words. (And it really is optional!)"

Yeah mos def. Optional college essay, freaking liars. But I enjoy creative writing, so whatever.

"7. Use one of the following topics to create a short story:

a. The Spam Filter"

            Filper’s eyes quickly opened as he peered into the vast openness in front of him. Nothing in sight. The day slowly dragged on and his eyes began to droop, but he still vigilantly stood his post. As the hour neared seven in the PM, he took a shot of his notorious coffee and coke mixture. The time had come, where his post as the spam filter would be put to the test. Seven was the hour of the highest traffic of spam. Filper was fashioned by the greatest spam filter programmer ever. He could filter ten thousand emails per second and read one million words per minute, but speed was not of the essence in his job. The quality of his filtration out weighed anything.

One spam e-mail into the sacred inbox could have devastating effects. That naïve e-mail user could possess a lazy finger and click on every incoming message without reading the subject, “FREE ROLEX WATCHES!!!$@#$^&!!SCAM!!!!”  After opening the offending

e-mail, he would realize that it was not from his boss Joe, though it was from Joe123@spam.com, and see that it was spam. And of course everyone hates spam, the e-mail type at least, so he would marvel at the “stupidity” of those spammers who placed a link to stop the spam in clear sight. Unaware of the fact that the link was actually a switch to the endless torrents of relentless spam, he would click to “stop” future contact link. In doing so, he would open the flood gates of spam hell.

            This hypothetical situation kept Filper on his toes whenever spam rush hour neared. In fact, Filper almost worked himself into a spam-lust as he imagined all the filtration he was to be doing. The satisfaction of directing those terrible e-mails into the deep, dark folder labeled “Junk Mail” could not be matched by any other activity. Being a spam filter is what Filper was born to do, it was his calling. He poured his attention to the fields ahead of him again and when the first sight of an enemy appeared, his filtering began, his test of endurance. As his skill was put to the test, his user logged on and this spurred Filper on even greater, his leader was watching him at his best. Then, as if in slow motion, his king clicked on the junk mail folder opened the first email and clicked the “unsubscribe” button…

Word Count: 403

Enjoy!