I have begun to notice that in the subtle world, in my dreams, whenever I am talking to someone, I've stopped bothering to move my lips and try to make sounds.  I just communicate by thought.  Has anyone else noticed anything similar?

The person with whom I am talking always seems to understand and conversely, I "hear" them quite clearly, even though often times they don't use their mouths to talk either. 

The few times I become consciously aware in my dreams I usually start jumping high.  I find it fun.  if I'm even MORE consious, I'll suspend in mid air, or fly around a bit.

Lately I've wondered: how far can I go?  How high can I go?  William Buhlman says I can go to outer space, to other planets.  He's been there.  I'm beginning to believe that, if I get more serious about this whole thing, I too might possibly travel very very far away...

Over the past 2 months I’ve been working on consistently practicing some of the exercises I’ve read about in some of the books referenced by this site. The goal, of course, is having a fully conscious out of body experience when I lay down at night.

Suddenly, over the course of these last 2 months, I’ve had 5 “dreams” where I become fully aware that I am dreaming and that I am flying -or- having become conscious, I decide that I would like to fly, and I somehow begin doing so.

I’ve noticed a pattern that includes awareness, flying, and then the “vibrational state” that several authors referenced on this site say is an immediate precursor to an out of body experience. They say that the “vibrational state” is our experience of the subtle body’s vibration rate becoming out of phase with the physical body’s vibration rate. The next step is total dissociation and a “stepping out” (or floating out) of the subtle body from the physical.

Daily life (work, kids, etc.) certainly presents many challenges to the practice, but having flown more in the past 2 months than I have in the past 10 years is very exciting and satisfying. Each time has been an exhilarating learning experience.

I have a love/hate relationship with coffee.  

During the times that I am drinking it, I feel like I'm going really fast and getting a lot done.  My mind jumps from thing to thing and I make a bit of progress on one thing before moving on to something else -it's rapid multitasking.

At the same time, my dream life is all over the place.  I can easily have 4, 5, or more different sequences that have no logical transition or connection between them.  I just jump from one scenario into something entirely different with no notice ore forewarning at all.  It can get so random and chaotic that I don't even bother trying to remember -much less document- the experiences, since they seem to be so much noise and nonsense.  Sometimes it can be fun, but it can be exhausting trying to keep up.

At the time of this writing, it has been almost 2 weeks since my last cup of coffee.  I've gotten through the headaches and the overwhelming desire to fall asleep at my desk. Things are starting to change.  

Today at work I had one of the calmest days in recent memory.  I stayed focused on (only) 3 things all day long and completed 2.5 of them.  The best part was that I didn't feel anything pulling my attention away from what I was doing with that powerful (yet false) sense of urgency that I've grown accustomed to.  

In the Subtle World -in my dreams- things are becoming more steady as well.  The dream sequences have become longer and I've had clearer and more relaxed vision and more cognition.  I've been able to focus and think about what I was doing and what I was saying to people.  With the increases sense of presence and awareness, recall of my experiences has been easier as well.

Overall I am experiencing a vast improvement in both my waking and sleeping lives.  A poised and steady mind makes a world of difference in the quality of life.  

Disclaimer: During this same time, I have also added approximately 30 minutes of extra meditation time per day, so I cannot claim that caffeine elimination in itself is the cause of all these benefits... but it doubtlessly is a contributing factor.

I just got back from a week long vacation where meditation was a key part of the proceedings. There was hiking, beautiful scenery, and very few vehicles around. Cell phone service was non-existent, although my friends and I were able to keep in touch using a new off-grid technology that allows text messages without using cellular data. Using this technology along with GPS. we could keep tabs on each other’s location and plans without being in close proximity. This allowed for some decent “alone time” for checking out my surroundings and for meditation, as well as the ability to meet up, say for a meal. 

After listening to some inspiring words from a close friend whose main drive is to help others to meditate well, I sat down to meditate and discovered a few things. 

I have the power to place myself in a state of mind where nothing can touch me unless I want it to. This is an amazing realization. I can fill my mind and heart with love and joy and dwell there for long periods of time. To be able to shut out all thoughts of things that distract me from immediate happiness - talk about taking a break! And to able to do this while taking in some of the most beautiful things nature has to offer - ocean beaches, trees, wildlife… Take it from a guy who spends most of his time in a big city, it was magnificent. 

I guess what I’m trying to say is that for me, it was a true taste of freedom. Freedom to be surrounded by beauty and permeated with joy for as long as I could make that happen each day. I think I can safely say that that one week's vacation had the affect of two. I feel rested, full of energy, and although tomorrow is Monday I am not fearful or sad that I have to go back to work. I am calm, confident that I will meet whatever challenges come my way with all the resources I have available. 

A few days ago it was the 4th of July - Independence Day here in the U.S..  I truly wish my fellow countrymen and women could taste even a small bit of the freedom I experienced last week. This kind of freedom is a real power that has the ability to do great things for so many people who are bogged down with the struggle to pay bills, raise families, and live in an age when politics are a grim sideshow and the future can appear rather bleak. Even in the midst of all this, people can still decide to pursue true happiness and freedom. 

And so for your most recent birthday, I wish this for you, America. May you remember, realize, and embody the reasons for which you were founded.