I Met the Poet Norma Cole

However, this was in a dream I just had.

At the beginning, she was not there. At least, I don't think so. Groups of us had to decide which way to go to get the highest ground as the waters rose in a predicted flood. I knew where the highest ground was and ended up with a group that agreed with me, but we had to go down low to get there and cross through forest.

(Gloss: This sounds like a cheesy retelling of The Poseidon Adventure.)

This was a forest I know in real life so it was easy to find my way.

We did make it to the high ground just in time, but many others must have perished in the biblical proportions flood.

It was raining while I was asleep. Maybe that had something to do with this dream.

After the flood, we all sadly looked at these suburban houses left standing empty, often with televisions on and doors left wide open.

We were closing up houses and checking on pets and I remember I came across a yard sale laid out for the next day. In the dream, it was Saturday and I remember thinking, "How did they know it would not rain overnight?". At first, this seems to make no sense, because you'd think it would have to rain for the flood to occur, but I guess that's not true. The flood could have been caused by spring melt or previous conditions.

(Gloss: Here is where a therapist would go into sexual analysis most likely.)

I got drawn into some of the antique books she had for sale and sat down and began reading them.

(Gloss: How did you know it was a woman selling these wares? You had just come across the house in the dream and found it abandoned.)

In the dream, the books were completely written and I remember reading for some time.

(Gloss: What a strange locution you used there to describe the books: "The books were completely written." When are books not completely written?)

Later I was this Bauhaus style university interviewing the poet Norma Cole, but informally.

I've never met her though I like her poetry and her translation work.

I don't think I've seen more than one or two photos of her in my life and they were probably small and grainy so I doubt she looked realistically herself.

(Gloss: Maybe the words you use to describe the dream are more important than the dream itself: "...so I doubt she looked realistically herself.")

Then I was supposed to help some young woman with an assignment in her writing class and the young woman and I ended up talking about other stuff instead and it was nice.

(Gloss: You suspect you have found a similar and you are digging here.)

Norma Cole stood at this podium the whole time in another part of the university (but we could see her through plate glass) like a restaurant hostess or something.

(Gloss: This is your ambivalence towards the idea of artistic enterprise. The surveillance aspects of existence which you so distrust still.)

I don't really remember what questions I asked Norma Cole or what her responses were.

This was a pretty straightforward dream.

It felt pretty much like real life.

(Gloss: This is because it is real life. Dreams don't discriminate against realities. You do.)

Even the flood part.