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An episode about resting, resisting and not growing up.
A weekly podcast of fiction written and read by Jason Geary.
Welcome to episode 55 of the Dictionary of Moments podcast. My name is Jason Geary. I'm your host, author, and reader. Settle in. Let's read some stories.
Theme Somg:Pretty eyes, so I believe look
Jason Geary:Welcome to the podcast. My, humble apologies for the podcast being a day late or so. I have moved to a new studio. That's right. I am downstairs, in my house now.
Jason Geary:I have cleaned out a whole room, with the help of my family, and we have turned it into an office slash spare bedroom. And I am recording on new equipment as well, that is to say a new PC. So I've been trying to get my head around moving from Mac back to PC and getting onto some good, digital audio workstations. So I'm recording into some new software today. I hope it sounds just as good to you, because this is it, baby.
Jason Geary:So it's a very exciting time. New equipment, new vista, new sounds in the background. So we'll see how we go. Well, hey. I've got some fantastic news.
Jason Geary:The Heartstring Project, whose music you hear all the way through this podcast, are just about to release a new album. In fact, today, just today on the seventeenth of the tenth twenty twenty, they have released their first single from their new album. So do look them up on Spotify, Apple Music, or your other music streaming services. There is a link to those things in the show notes of this podcast. Please support them as they have been generous enough to donate their music to me, and I have played the heck out of it, ever since.
Jason Geary:So, I am, more than happy to recommend their work. They're beautiful people, and they make beautiful music. So do go and check it out on Spotify with a brand new album, whole album dropping soon. I can't wait. Well, let's get into these stories.
Jason Geary:Meadow. Noun. A piece of grassland, especially
Theme Somg:one used for hay. Meadow.
Jason Geary:I look up at the deep blue sky and I fall backwards. The soft grass breaks my fall and supports me. The grass that I didn't crush falling back towers above me, framing the blue sky above. The wind blows gently, moving the tall grass at
Theme Somg:the edge of the frame. I listen to the subtle hiss of the wind through the grass. My back itches as I settle in. Resting my head, I look straight up. I feel like I'm the only person on earth.
Theme Somg:I trace the sky and claim it as my own. I hear the grass near my head rustle as my dog returns with her ball in her mouth. She drops it next to me and flops, crushing more grass, allowing me to claim more sky. Good, doc. We lay breathing deeply, invisible to the rest of the world.
Theme Somg:I sigh. My dog knows what that means, and she settles in for a park nap. I breathe deep, exhale,
Jason Geary:and allow my mind to drift. I send it out to play in the deep blue above.
Theme Somg:I feel the earth below, the air brushing my skin, and the warmth of the sun. A perfect recipe for escape. My mind obliges, and I surrender an hour of my day to well-being.
Jason Geary:Version. Noun. A particular form of something differing in certain respects from the earlier form or other forms of
Theme Somg:the same type of thing. Version.
Jason Geary:The woman standing at the booth was captivating. He couldn't tell if she was an android or not. Frankly, he didn't care if she was natural or synthetic. Her maker deserved praise. She smiled a kind smile at him and motioned for him to come inside the booth.
Jason Geary:He felt his stomach twist with nerves and fell forward towards her.
Theme Somg:He knew she was playing him. She had
Jason Geary:to be selling something. The only reason a woman this beautiful would be speaking to him is if she was getting paid. Hey, can I make your dreams come true? She offered as he approached. I bet you could.
Jason Geary:For how much? He offered back. I'm a representative of DayStays. Our services start at as little as 5,000 credits a month. 5 thousand credits a month was almost enough to buy yourself out of the slums.
Jason Geary:Almost. Yep. They got their pricing perfect. So day stays? What is it?
Jason Geary:He expected her to launch into some sort of companion spiel. Half of the tech innovations at this expo boil down to sexual services. He'd already been offered three free trials at the expo today. Still, he didn't fancy trying a sexual product with a sheer curtain between him and the rest of the expo. There was no telling what they would do with his ejaculate once he was done.
Jason Geary:Most of the services were offering free sexual gratification if they could collect your DNA in the process. If you're getting a product for free, then you were the product. I'm not interested in sex, as lovely as you are. Oh, no, mister, she scanned his barcode, Dietrich. I'm not programmed for sexual gratification.
Jason Geary:Yeah. There. She was an android. Makes sense. She was too perfect.
Jason Geary:I'm programmed as a guide. Day Stays is a new product on the market. It literally helps you live your dreams one day at a time. It makes the subconscious conscious.
Theme Somg:His curiosity was peaked.
Jason Geary:Live my dreams? How? Well, you simply need to be fitted with one of our proprietary headwear, the halo. She produced a glowing blue ring with several attachments and a tiny power cord, which was to be inserted into his internal power dock at the base of his cranium. She held it up for him to investigate.
Jason Geary:He took the halo and mused at the build quality, which felt premium. She continued as he weighed the product in his hands. You simply place the halo over your head in the night before you sleep, and it will go to work. It monitors your dreams and, as you wake, keeps those subconscious brainwaves active. So as you go about your day, you can continue your dream state into your everyday.
Jason Geary:We have two modes, augmented, which allows you to merge your dream state with whatever you would need to do that day or the preferred daydream mode, where unlike your normal dreams, you have complete conscious control over how you interact with your dream. If you can dream it, you can do it. How many times have you woken from a dream wishing you could go back? Now you can. What about nightmares?
Jason Geary:I'm not sure I wanna live inside one of those. She laughed. No. No one does. That's what the halo monitors, fear and adrenaline.
Jason Geary:If either spike the experience is stopped and you are asked if you want to continue, if those parameters change too much, you will be asked again. Built in safety for all of our customers. He thought about his dreams. There were some he'd like
Theme Somg:to live forever. Others, not so much. Can you make sure I dream nice things? She leaned in close. Well,
Jason Geary:not officially sanctioned by the company, but there are substances that can help with that goal. These substances are not officially endorsed by us, but we have tried it, and it works well, Very well. Now this made sense. Flux was a drug that let you dream what you wanted. This was a machine to extend your high.
Jason Geary:He'd lost friends to Flux.
Theme Somg:No thanks. Are you sure you could dream about me? She winked at him. He chided himself for coming over in
Jason Geary:the first place. He reminded himself of another saying as he walked away, only a player can get played.
Theme Somg:Boy. Noun. A male child or youth. Boy.
Jason Geary:He still lives in me. His voice is loud. He wants to play. He wants to show off. He wants to be loud.
Jason Geary:He doesn't wanna grow up. No matter how many times I tell him to grow up, he won't. No matter how many times others expect something of him, he won't deliver. The boy has got other worries. The boy has a short attention span and too much influence on adult me.
Jason Geary:I try to put him in his place. People tell me to be a man. I am by definition a man, middle aged one at that. But boy doesn't see my age. Boy sees possibility, and boy sees rules to break.
Jason Geary:Boy plays it getting away with it even though there are no longer any rules stopping him. I know I can shut boy in his room when I need to. I could send him away, grow myself up,
Theme Somg:but I don't want to. I don't want to. I don't want to. I like boy. I'll keep him close.
Theme Somg:Boy will never grow up. Never. I won't let him. Boy, you're safe with this man.
Jason Geary:Well, there you have it. Three stories for you this week recorded in a brand new software that's
Theme Somg:very
Jason Geary:colorful to look at, and not that that matters to you. But, it does bring me some pleasure. Thank you again for listening in this week. Apologies for the slight delay. I will be, back again next week.
Jason Geary:Three brand new stories for you again, and, thank you so much for tuning in. For those of you who don't know, I wrote a book recently. You can buy it on the Internet. Pay what you feel. Pay what you can.
Jason Geary:If you are a Patreon subscriber to this, podcast, you get that book free, as a part of your subscription, as well. So, if any patrons have not received that book, I did send an email out with a link, for you, but, let me know and I'll fix you up with that. That is also in the show notes of this podcast. Thanks so much for tuning in this week, and I will be back with more stories
Theme Somg:for you next week. Cheers. Pretty eyes, so I'll look