As with many of us, my imagination and the Muse have been with me since childhood. I had THE NIGHTMARE THEATER. When I was six, my fear of the dark made bedtime a horrid experience. I decided that my dreams were like movies, so I imagined a theater where I could watch my dreams. It was modeled after the Fair Oaks theater in Arroyo Grande, built in 1947 and is still in operation. I sat in the middle and would wait until my dreams appeared on the screen. At first, it was lonely. Then I decided to have someone watch with me. I thought if one of my nightmare creatures watched with me, it wouldnt attack. My first effort was a skeleton. Very frightening. The skeleton rattled down the aisle shuffled across the seats and pushed the squeaky seat down next to me and sat. I was afraid, but offered him some popcorn. He accepted and I laughed when the popcorn went right through and onto the seat. He shrugged and watched the dream with me. He didnt talk, just rattled his teeth. That was very disquieting so I asked him to stop. For two nights we watched the dreams. On the third night, I invited Dracula. He refused to sit next to the skeleton and sat on the other side. He was very tall and spoke in his heavy accent. He wouldnt sit on his amazing red and black silk cape, but draped it over one shoulder onto his lap. He was very proper and gentlemanly. Always rose when women creatures joined us. He told me this is what gentlemen do and I never forgot that lesson. No popcorn for him. I was intimidated at first, but he enjoyed the dreams and we talked about his life and why he enjoyed drinking blood. I began to enjoy going to bed. Next to arrive was the Wolfman. He was very frightening but when he started to look at me as the next snack, Dracula intervened. Im not sure what he said, but after that, the Wolfman was my protector. Before long, my Nightmare Theater was filled. Frankensteins monster had to sit behind me because he was so tall. Aliens, monsters, demons and all sorts of creatures not only came to watch the dreams with me, but wanted to sit next to me. They all wanted to become my friend. Sometimes there would be arguments which would delay the dreams. The blob was a problem because it kept getting the floor sticky and people stepped on it. The Gill-man from Creature of the Black Lagoon got the seats wet. The Mummy left old bandage bits and sand on everything. Various aliens took several seats. Giant creatures periodically lifted the roof off so they could watch. I started watching horror movies just to add to my theater group. The birds from the Alfred Hitchcock movie nested along the curtains and also ate spilled popcorn. All were welcome. Usually, no one started trouble because, hey, the place was filled with the most vicious creatures on Earth, and in some cases, the Universe. Before the lights dimmed, the din of conversation would be very loud. The lights never went totally dark. This way I could watch my new fearsome friends. Sometimes there were fights, but the offenders were either eaten, torn apart (to appear intact the next night, thus missing that evenings dreams) or simply thrown out until they got the message. Before the dreams came up, I had discussions with many of the creatures. It was very educational and therapeutic for them. Maybe me too. Id laugh with beasts who had blood dripping from their jaws and claws, listen to silly jokes from aliens, sometimes sit on Frankensteins lap and feel very secure. Friend good! Id watch a horror movie with friends and point at a creature and say, hes a friend of mine! Or Id tell them about a story or joke the demon or alien told. Alas, my friends started questioning my sanity at an early age. Bedtime became an event I looked forward to and after getting my goodnights from mom and dad, Id rush and leap under the covers. Id close my eyes, bring forth The Nightmare Theater and sometimes before everyone and everything was seated, Id fall asleep. The mind is an amazing thing. Im so fortunate and thankful that mine is so active.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Sep 2014 05:13:10 +0000
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