Had a strange dream?

The significance of dreams varies across cultures, yet the desire to talk about them — whether it be out of curiosity, concern, amusement, or simply the search for meaning — is universal.
                                                   

It’s no surprise then that online dream-sharing communities sprang to life as soon as technology allowed, first appearing in the late 1980s in the form of regional Bulletin Board services before evolving into their current incarnations. Now, those looking to articulate their nocturnal visions can sign on to stand-alone social media platforms and message boards as well as pre-existing platforms like Reddit, Google groups, and Facebook to interact with other dreamers.

The board has over 40,000 subscribers, so the odds are in a poster’s favor that someone will have had a similar dream. The downside of having a forum of this size is that not everyone’s there to lend an empathetic ear. DeBord notes that some users are just there for their own entertainment while others perpetuate unfounded assertions, such as that dreams all come true.

One of the most popular forums is DreamsCloud, a social media platform devoted to dream sharing and interpretation. Available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, the website has received over $7 million in investor funding and has over 450,000 active participants, according to Jean-Marc Emden, the platform’s CEO. The platform enables them to post dreams with cover photos, discuss, and rate them based on their emotional response.

The most common dreams tend to be about sex, cheating, death, flying or falling, being naked in public, not being able to find a classroom, snakes, and being chased or chasing someone. Popular posts can rack up tens of thousands of views, which also indicates the importance of good storytelling in dream discussion.

The site’s users are eager to turn to others to gain understanding of their dreams, whether they’re searching for theories, a narrative to latch onto, or even reassurance that they’re not experiencing anything out of the norm. “When talking about dreams, every opinion is important, you don’t have to be a dream expert or a psychoanalyst,” DreamsCloud user Bruno Dante in an email.

Iradukunda says Miss Rwanda crown a dream come true

It is still sinking in. She woke up four times in the wee hours of Sunday morning thinking it was a dream.
                                               

“But it isn’t a dream. I can’t believe that I am Miss Rwanda. Dreams do come true,” said an ecstatic Lillian Iradukunda in an interview with The New Times.

18-year-old Iradukunda, who hails from Kimironko Sector, Gasabo District but represented Western Province in the beauty pageant, weighs 57kg, and is 1.70 metres tall, was crowned Miss Rwanda 2018 on Saturday night. She replaced Elsa Iradukunda, who won the coveted crown last year.

Despite this moment being her childhood dream, Iradukunda didn’t expect to win the crown. She, as she describes herself, was one of the most bashful and soft spoken girls of the 20 who were competing for the crown.

Iradukunda almost didn’t even make it to the six girls chosen to represent her province. She earned her spot on the second run in the pre-selection on probation.

Iradukunda completed Senior Six last year at APADE Kicukiro and her dream is to be a tour operator. Asked why, she says, “Because I love tourism. I will study tourism and become an investor in the sector.”

Her project is to promote cultural tourism, but she says that she will not limit herself.

“I know the other 19 girls had awesome projects too. I want to work with all the people around me to develop my country.

Iradukunda was crowned ‘Rwanda’s fairest’ in a colourful finale held at the iconic Kigali Convention Centre auditorium.

She faced stiff competition from 19 other girls who spent 14 days in a boot camp at Golden Tulip La Palisse Hotel in Nyamata.

But, she says, Shanittah Umunyana and Natacha Ursule Irebe who were crowned first and second runner up, respectively, were a force to reckon with.

Jacksonville’s dream season ends

It’s the eighth Super Bowl appearance for Brady and coach Bill Belichick, who have won five times — including last year’s 34-28 overtime rally against the Atlanta Falcons.
                                                 

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Give ’em a hand: Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are heading back to the Super Bowl.

Brady shook off a hand injury and threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Danny Amendola with 2:48 remaining , rallying the Patriots to a 24-20 comeback victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC championship Sunday.

Brady, wearing a black bandage on his right hand after hurting it during practice earlier in the week, showed no signs of being hampered.

And, with the game — and possibly the season — on the line, the Patriots star came up big again.

Brady finished 26 of 38 for 290 yards and two touchdowns for the Patriots (15-3), who’ll play the winner of Sunday night’s game between Minnesota and Philadelphia in Minneapolis on Feb. 4.

It’s the eighth Super Bowl appearance for Brady and coach Bill Belichick, who have won five times — including last year’s 34-28 overtime rally against the Atlanta Falcons.

Brady came out for warmups without a glove on his hand, and he came out throwing. He completed his first six passes — including a 20-yarder to Amendola on fourth-and-1 from the Jaguars 30 — for 57 yards to march the Patriots down the field. The drive stalled when Brady was sacked by Dante Fowler Jr., and New England settled for Stephen Gostkowski’s 31-yard field goal.

A wide-open Marcedes Lewis gave the Jaguars a 7-3 lead 45 seconds into the second quarter with a 4-yard touchdown catch from Blake Bortles, who was 5 for 5 for 66 yards on an impressive and efficient seven-play, 76-yard drive.

The Jaguars made some big mistakes that hurt them just before halftime. Bortles completed a 12-yard pass to Lewis on third-and-7 from the Patriots 44, but Jacksonville was called for delay of game — after New England called a timeout.

That wiped out a first down, and Bortles was sacked by Adam Butler on the next play to force a punt.

Take a Risk to Live Your Photographic Dream

As the year draws to a close, I'd like to share a personal story of my own journey. While everyone's story is different, I hope that you are able to find some lessons in both my wins and losses that will help you to push forward and make the coming year even better than the last.
                                             

There I was. Sitting nervously behind a cheaply constructed metal table, I inhaled deeply, terrified of the sound of the convention hall doors swinging open. Anxiously, I awaited the chorus of footsteps. Knowing that I would soon be called upon to play the part of traveling salesman. I knew I would be expected to have all the right words to say. The only problem? Up until that very moment, I had yet to find even the foggiest clue as to what those “right words” would be.

I knew it would be a risk. This whole adventure would go by that description. Only three days earlier, I had taken an even bigger gamble, tossing my cushy and comfortable day job of the past twelve years for the uncertain life of a freelance photographer. I had some idea of what to expect. I was neither new to photography nor to the idea of being an independent artist. Having spent the bulk of my twenties as a screenwriter and director, I was more than familiar with the idea of following my dreams and the joys and disappointments which would accompany such a pursuit.

Slowly, but surely, things turned around. A rebirth of my physical health coincided with the discovery of a new tool which would provide me with a reason to return to life. My new best friend, and lightweight Nikon D200 with a cheap but versatile kit zoom lens gave me both the motivation and the permission to step out into the world. It allowed me to again see people and possibilities. The images the camera and I created reawakened the artist in me so long buried by endless fruitless pitch meetings and polite rejections from heads of development. And while those early days behind the lens were notably devoid of financial ambition, the sudden and unexpected positive response I was getting from my new art form had allowed me to breathe again.

As the years passed, my skills developed as did my ambition. I cycled through a vast cornucopia of clients and visual styles. I tried on aesthetic approaches the way most people try on clothes at the department store and eventually found one that fit.

Dream and disaster playoff scenarios for each Power 5 league

The College Football Playoff selection committee will reveal its fourth of six rankings today (7 p.m. ET/ESPN and ESPN App), and it should be strikingly similar -- if not exactly the same -- at the top. As we head into the final week of the regular season, though, there are numerous scenarios looming that have the potential to create some major headaches for the committee in two weeks.
                                           

Dream: No. 2 Clemson and No. 3 Miami are both in. It isn't far-fetched, considering that the selection committee thinks they're two of the top four teams right now. The most plausible way for this to happen would be for undefeated Miami to lose a close game to the Tigers in the ACC championship game, but it doesn't stop there. Two additional scenarios would further legitimize this: Ohio State wins the Big Ten with two or three losses, and/or the Big 12 produces a two-loss champ in either TCU or Oklahoma. What we can assume now: The SEC champ is in. The ACC champ is in. A one-loss Oklahoma is in. An undefeated Wisconsin is in. In order to make room for a second ACC team, the Big 12 and the Big Ten need to stumble. A one-loss Miami would certainly be easier for the committee to justify over a two-loss Ohio State or two-loss Big 12 champ. According to FiveThirtyEight projections, if both Clemson and Miami win this week, the title game winner will be a virtual lock while the loser will still have at least a 1-in-4 chance.

Disaster: Clemson loses to South Carolina but wins the ACC. The committee has already forgiven Clemson's bad loss to Syracuse, which continues to look worse each week. Would it forgive a second loss to an unranked team? The Gamecocks are at least a respectable 8-3 and bowl-bound, unlike 4-7 Syracuse, but would an ACC title be enough to keep Clemson in the top four? If this happened, would the committee consider ignoring the head-to-head result and ranking Miami above Clemson? The committee uses conference championship games and head-to-head results as tiebreakers when it deems résumés and teams comparable. But in this scenario, it's easy to argue that Miami and Clemson would no longer be comparable because of the Tigers' second loss.

Pride defender chasing NZ dream

WESTERN Pride defender Hayden Mchenery is hoping to boost his international chances with a temporary move to New Zealand top-tier side Hawkes Bay United.
                                     

Mchenery elected to cross the Tasman after coming close to selection for New Zealand's FIFA U20 World Cup Finals squad back in May.

Despite missing selection, the 20-year old rebounded by securing a PlayStation® 4 NPL Queensland Championship medal win with Pride and a place in the competition's Team of the Year.

Mchenery moves to the Napier-based United after scoring three goals in 45 appearances for Pride over the last three seasons, punctuated by a six-month stint at Brisbane Roar.

He will be joining a Hawkes Bay side which made the New Zealand Championship finals last season and are managed by ex-Everton striker Brett Angell.

Pride coach Graham Harvey said the time was right for Mchenery to chase his dreams of playing for New Zealand.

Mchenery is expected to return to Pride in time for next season, though Harvey said this would be reviewed.

Harvey added Pride would not stand in the way if Mchenery's New Zealand stint lead to an opportunity at higher level.

The Pride gaffer has already challenged Joe Duckworth and Jesse Rigby to work hard next season and make the final step to professional football.

Mchenery, Duckworth and Rigby are among 12 senior players who elected to return to Pride's Championship-winning squad next season, with another 5 promoted from the youth teams.

The squad reports for pre-season in early November minus Mchenery and departing Englishman Sam Fitzgerald.

Harvey said he had no issues with Mchenery missing the bulk of Pride's pre-season.