Barnes and Noble, dream-style

Two nights ago, I dreamt that I ran into one of my past coworkers in a Barnes and Noble store.  (No, I will not say which coworker, and from which job).  We stood around and talked for several moments, and then we parted ways.


That was really it.  We did not talk about anything important, and there was nothing vaguely eventful to recount.


However, what was interesting was the setting.  That particular Barnes and Noble is a reoccurring image, and has been featured in many of my dreams.  Whenever I go to a bookstore in my dream--whether it be a Barnes and Noble, a college bookstore, or a used bookstore--it always looks the same.


And it looks nothing like any bookstore I have been in.  


To begin with, I never see the front, so I don't know what it looks like from the outside.  To get inside, you go down a  narrowing flight of steps to a huge doorway.  Once inside, the carpet is tan and the walls are a light burgundy--almost pink.  There are dark shelves lining the walls, organized neatly on the floor--all filled to the brim with books.  Not just new shiny books, straight from the publisher, but used books and vintage treasures.  If there is any book that you'd ever be interested in finding, it would be there.


This particular store is also multiple stories high.  Science Fiction and Fantasy are always found on the second floor; coffee table books are available right as you walk in; the sciences are on the top floor, where there is also an observation telescope.  There are fluffy chairs and sofas everywhere; tables are there, too, inviting you to sit and write.  The basement is the childrens' section, where there is a giant play area filled with legos and dress-up clothes.


Whenever I am there, it always feels like a realm of possibilities.  In fact, in my dream from two days ago, I was finding myself annoyed that my former coworker did not appreciate the bookstore as much as  I did (it was eventually what made us part ways--they walked in and immediately decided to leave).


And so, that apparently is my dream bookstore.  It is one of the few reoccurring places that show up in my dreams, and I find it fascinating that it is like nothing I have ever seen in the waking world.