I dreamed that Jen and I were on vacation in San Diego. We were at the beach and having a fun time. After a little while, Jen started walking around and talking to people she didn't know (which is unusual for her). Most of the people she spoke with were people who were playing volleyball. Once she had talked to everyone she wanted to, she told me it was time to move to another beach.
When we arrived at the next beach, Jen continued talking to strangers. This time I followed her around to hear what she was talking about. I discovered that she was the head coach and also a player on a local high school volleyball team and she was out recruiting people to play on her team. It seemed unusual to me that a high school team would allow the coach to play, but it seemed even more unusual to me that it would allow the coach to recruit out-of-state individuals (most of whom were clearly not high school aged). I asked Jen about it and she just said that she wanted her team to compete for the national championship, so she needed the best players available.
This continued for a while and we visited four or five beaches before Jen decided that she had finished her recruiting and told me that we needed to head back up into town. We walked a little ways up the street and then Jen got a phone call. I couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, but I was able to gleen some information by listening to Jen's side.
Shaquille O'Neal had (in my dream) not graduated from high school or earned his GED. This somehow gave him a few years of eligibility to play high school volleyball. Jen had recruited Shaq to play on her team and had even bought him a $40,000 car as an incentive (which I believe is a clear violation of the rules). The person on the other end of the phone was trying to convince Jen that her tactics were not only underhanded, but also illegal. Jen responded by stating that, "I intend to win the national championship and I'm going to do whatever it takes!"
At this point I decided that Jen might be on the phone for a while and I needed to use the restroom. I saw a dollar store across the street and headed over there to see if they had one. As I was crossing the street, I saw a police officer walking down the middle of the road wearing a shirt that had "Media Circus Police" written across it in large 70's style block lettering. I wasn't really sure what to make of that - was it supposed to be funny or serious? I decided to err on the side of caution and avoid the officer's attention.
Next to the dollar store was an electronics store with several TVs in the window. I could see a breaking news story about Shaquille O'Neal. He had been out partying with a bunch of friends in a new $40,000 car that had been given to him by an unknown recruiter and had been in an accident. Fortunately nobody had been severely injured, but the police were on the lookout for anyone with information about the circumstances that led to the accident.
I quickly ducked inside the dollar store. The cashier informed me that they did not have a public restroom, but that they did have some really attractive reading glasses. I insisted that I did not yet need reading glasses, but she guided me over to the reading glass display anyway and showed me a pair of bright orange glasses that she insisted would look really good on me. I tried them on to be polite and looked at myself in the small mirror. I admitted that they certainly would attract attention, but I have never been very good at telling what looks good or what is fashionable. She insisted that they were and that everyone would soon want to own a pair just like them.
I again told her that even though I thought that they might indeed be really cool, I still did not yet need reading glasses. Maybe I would buy them in a few years. She told me that if I bought them now that she would throw in a gallon of 2% milk at half price! I did not really need milk either, but that seemed like too good of a deal to pass up. A new pair of bright orange reading glasses and a gallon of milk for only $1.50 (+tax)! How could I resist?
As I left the dollar store with bright orange reading glasses on my face, I opened my jug of milk and started drinking. I looked down the street to make sure it was clear before crossing and I saw another police officer. This one was carrying an empty water bottle that had been found in the car. The police suspected that it had the DNA of the recruiter on it and this officer was walking down the street and asking people if they knew the whereabouts of a Jennifer Lambert. They had a few questions.
I hurried across the street but as I drank from my milk jug, the milk became chunkier and chunkier. It was really gross but I couldn't stop taking swigs. I was trying to avoid attention but soon I was sputtering and spitting out chunks of milk in the middle of the street. The officer noticed me and headed straight over. "Sir, I would like to ask you a few questions!"
I didn't want to lie and be arrested as an accessory, but I also did not want to turn Jen in. Fortunately I couldn't speak because of the milk chunks. I gestured to the officer that I couldn't speak and she asked me a yes or no question so I could respond with just a nod. "Do you know the whereabouts of <incoherently mumbled name>?" I put my hand up to my ear to signify that I couldn't clearly hear the question. She repeated, "Do you know the whereabouts of <incoherently mumbled name>?"
I reasoned with myself that I had tried my best to understand what was being said and I decided that since I didn't for sure know the name of the person the officer was looking for that I could at least somewhat honestly answer "No".
I shook my head. The officer moved on. I still felt a little guilty. I soon after woke up and I never discovered if Jen's team was successful in their bid for a national volleyball title. But with Jen's determination I think they had a pretty good chance.
Dreamed on 3/22/2020
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