the gondola and the maze

i was riding a gondola down over a mountain with my mom and sister. we were high, high up in the mountains. everything we could see was gray- we were completely surrounded by fog, and here and there the craggy sides and tops of mountains showed through. the gondola was heading down and started going faster and faster like a roller coaster until we were in free fall. i started screaming. when we got to the end, the gondola hit a stop in the cable and swung up so high i thought i'd fall out of my seat. when we swung back down, an attendant grabbed us by our shoulders and clipped us back on the line, like clothing hung to dry. the cables went up as quickly and steeply as they came down. my mother and sister were clipped securely into harnesses, but i only had a little handle to hang from. i gripped it with white knuckles. suddenly, my cable branched away from my mom and sister. the cable stretched out in front of me, but it was slack and flailing. i couldnt tell what direction i was falling in, everything was fog and stone around me with peaks pointing every way. i spiraled down, screaming.
finally, i came to the end of the line, and was thrust into a hole bored into the side of a mountain. it was dark. something small scurried by. i felt my way back to the opening. it was a little cave with lots of small holes covered by iron grates covered with images of rabbits. i figured thats what must have run by in the dark. the rope which had brought be here was coiled sloppily in the corner, a flashlight tied at the end. i took the flashlight. i saw that i was in an ice cave. the flashlight lit everything suprisingly well, or else the cave was lit by some internal light. i saw little holes along the walls but when i tried to reach or crawl into them invisible flames blocked my path. eventually i came down into a kitchen. the floors and walls and appliances all looked old, and the bodies of rabbits were everywhere in various stages of being cooked. i couldnt tell if they were being cooked by humans or other rabbits, or whether those others were aware of my presence. the whole scene creeped me out. i went out through the hall, which was just as dusty and creepy as the kitchen. it was lined with cabinets on one side and doors on the other. under a chair, i saw a cat hiding. i flicked at it with my handkerchief, and it came out. it looked animatronic at first but began to look more real. i asked it a question. it couldnt talk but answered somehow and i understood it. it led me into another room- a living room filled with items like a flea market. i sifted through them and found things to take- small things like blouses and shampoo, and stuffed them into my backpack. when that was full i found another mini backpack, crocheted from black yarn, and filled it, too. i was nervous that i was being watched and would somehow be punished for taking the things but i took them anyway. there were other people wandering around by then too. i was trying to text my mom to tell her that i was ok. i didnt have any service but was able to communicate telepathically with eric. i told him to tell mom where i was. i couldnt tell if i was almost out of the labyrinth or only at the beginning.

the moon

i was on the moon. it was a civilized moon. it was tropically warm and drizzly, and it was always dark. i was riding in the backseat of my mom's car, watching the scenery go by in twilight. i was going to a school dance. i waited inside of the school gymnasium with my mom and aunt mia, sitting in metal folding chairs. a line of orange cones separated the chairs from the dance floor, which required tickets. mom and mia said they werent going. someone approached and said i'd been chosen to participate in an experiment, to fly to earth in a satellite. i accepted. i felt bad for abandoning my friends at the dance but i grabbed my backpack and a shoebox full of dry ice, which apparently i'd had all along, and went to join the satellite crew. 

i crossed a swinging bridge with the other volunteers, carrying my shoebox, to the boarding platform. i was a little afraid. i wondered what part of the trip was an experiment. 

the satellite's interior was hexagonal, with pods on each wall for each of the participants. there were large windows, too. i was told to get into my pod, and the lid came down and sealed around me. i worried that i should have peed first. they said that the trip would take 6 months, and that we'd be spending it in a suspended sleep state, but that halfway there we would wake up to experience 0 gravity. i guess i fell asleep then. 

next, we were deep in space. i opened my pod. the satellite's interior had been painted with a special paint that made it transparent, so it looked like we were just floating out in space. we were weightless. i looked out and saw the earth and started to cry. i couldnt understand how the earth could be there without me, while i was out all alone. 

the whales

We were all running from a battle with a rival gang. down through the alleyways, trying to lose our pursuers. we were downtown and came up head on with a chinese new year parade. we ducked down another side street and kept running. emerald and i got away from the others. it was dark, we were running down a path of paved grass along the river. the moonlight was bright. i figured nobody had followed us that ar and decided to sit and look at the river. upstream i could see little ripply shapes, coming closer. as they came nearer i could see that they were dolphins- lots of them. then i heard some people coming toward us down the path. it was the group of drunks i saw out the window before i fell asleep. afraid they might be coming for us, i watched them go by. just drunk, i decided- not a threat. when they had passed i turned back to the river. the dolphins had passed, as well. i was angry to have missed them but then i saw something else in the water. bigger shapes, moving slower. whales. they came up to the bank, and i put my hands down and pet their backs. their skin was covered in scars and graffiti like a carved up tree trunk, signed with peoples names. someone next to me reached down with a big orange marker. i yelled and knocked it into the water. then the whales started coming onto the shore, out of the water, where they slowly turned into tan and white spotted cows. they were surrounded by a soft glow. the cows gathered down n a clearing at the end of the path. next to the herd was a group of people in robes dancing and chanting in a circle. it was light now and we were in a finely manicured park carpeted with plush grass and encircled by large topiaries and shining silver gates. there were beautifully dressed people everywhere. i realized they were having a wedding.