Dream CVII

I was on an enormous cruise ship, bigger than a city block. I was in the bookstore, walking through the DVD section. I walked further toward a section full of merchandise for sale, which was right next to one of the bars aboard ship.

At the bar, some Soviet submarine commanders were having a drink. On various tables nearby were old merchandise, such as baseball caps that said "Sub" and "Commander" on them. They looked like "last chance" items--items that would be thrown away if not sold soon. Some of the lettering was badly faded.

I met a friend, who was looking for DVDs. I mentioned that I had just been in that section, and took her there, but the whole area had changed--now it was all recordable CDs and DVDs and protective cases. We walked further into the store in search of movies. Ahead of us, we could hear a band playing.

I saw a marquee that said it was the Galafinakis - Sallis Band, and they were doing a cover version of a song neither of us liked. She couldn't place the song, so I softly sang, "probably think you're cooler than me," and she said, "Oh yeah...I hate that song." We walked back through the store and sat at the bar.

On a bar stool next to the Soviets sat Alan Harper, nursing a drink. He looked angry and miserable, and kept stealing little mad glances at the Soviets. I leaned over and whispered into his ear, "Why don't we challenge them to a submarine race," and he seemed interested in the idea.

I walked over to the table and picked up several of the hats, and looked around for a cashier. The bartender noticed me and said, "Hey, are you going to pay for those?" and I mentioned that I couldn't see a cashier. He pointed over to an area. I still couldn't see a cashier, but started to walk in that direction.

I never could find a cashier, so I headed back to the bar. Alan Harper and the Soviet commander were trying to shoulder each other off their respective bar stools. They were talking about the race.

"We have the experience," the Soviet commander said.

I leaned over and held up the hats. "Yeah," I said, "but we have the hats."