05 April 2002 - 20:05

Dr. John Lilly said that. Actually, John Lilly said that Lizzie said that, repeating a human in the lab. But he thought she might actually have said "This is a trick."

Lizzie was a dolphin. His dolphin number 9. That particular utterance was her last recorded, as she died the next morning.

While much of John Lilly's work strikes me as plainly absurd, if not actually harmful, I like that quote. I think it's very poignant.

Last night I had deepwater dreams, vivid and fluid. Gillian[01] took me and her daughter Dalia to an underground grotto with a wide deep pool. The three of us swam and swam under the water. For some reason we took off our clothes first--we didn't have bathing suits, and I think there was some issue about contaminating the water. It was really cinematic--just three people and very blue fluid water. Quiet.

Then I dreamed that we started driving up to GulfWorld (in Panama City, home to several dolphins). It was a Friday night and after dark. I asked her if we could pick up Wheel and she said of course, so we stopped at a gas station and I dug up 35 cents (I'd left my wallet at home and didn't have my calling card) and called Wheel to make sure it was okay, which it was.

I had a different dream where Wheel was heir to a small watery planet with only one city. From the windows of our estate I thought I saw dolphins down in the bay, but they turned out to be sea lions. I watched them while I argued planet politics with someone.

[01] - "Gillian Baskin" is my much-beloved undergraduate advisor. Great scientist, great person. I think she might be one of my soulmates, but I don't know what she thinks. Yes, it's a pseudonym--a fictional reference.