Strange and disturbing dream woke me at 4:30 am. Dreamed about a girl who, wanting to make a point, poured kerosene on her own hands and lit a match to them. It was so real. I could still hear her screaming as I woke up.
When you think about a dream, sometimes it can be assigned a reason for being.
I just realized this morning that I was so much more disturbed than I'd thought about the recent news story of the astronaut who drove from Houston to Orlando with intent to kidnap and/or murder her romantic rival. She drove the 900 miles (1,448 km) straight, in a diaper - like the ones astronauts wear on takeoff and landing - so she wouldn't have to stop the car. Her rival called police and now she's incarcerated. This accomplished woman is one of the few who have made it into space. She is married with 3 children. In one foul swoop she has destroyed her own life as she knows it. Just like the woman in my dreams did. All over the US people are watching their TV sets and talking about how crazy this woman is. She may never be able to earn others' respect again. Her children are probably going through hell right now: they've gone from being proud of their astronaut mother to being teased about her mental demise. Her husband is now aware that she'd been having an affair. NASA has suspended her flight status (probably indefinitely) and as soon as it isn't being watched by the media and proving it "takes care of its own," she will most probably be fired. Every single one of her friends and acquaintances knows that she's gone off the deep end and why. I grew up in Houston. Clear Lake, TX - where the Houston-based astronauts live - is a close-knit community; everyone knows everyone else and for her family to stay there would be devastating. I just can't get over how someone who has been through the rigorous mental tests that NASA puts its people through could suddenly snap like this.