Hatch in Your Dreams

This email was waiting for me in my inbox this morning from and old college friend Nate:

So, I recently started some new medication that has me sleeping much deeper than normal, dreaming much more, and having much more vivid recollection of my dreams. Last night, Hatch made an appearance. Through some unlikely combination of factors, Hatch and I ended up at the same Middle/Jr. High school, waiting for our kids to return from some field trip. I first noticed Hatch, when I realized that he was lighting up a Winston in the library adjacent to the lobby area in which I was standing/waiting. At first I couldn't believe it, until I realized that the library WAS a designated smoking area for the school, and everyone else in there was smoking, too. For the record, Hatch appeared to be a svelte 175-180lbs in my dream. We ended up sitting there talking for a while, and then while one of the mothers there wasn't looking, Hatch stole a big bag of chocolate-covered peanuts out of one of the compartments of her baby stroller. I didn't think anything of this, and we continued to talk as Hatch snacked on his newly-stolen deliciousness. Eventually, a commotion ensued behind us, as the mother realized that her peanuts had gone missing. She immediately pegged us as the culprits, at which point I declared that I had no idea what she was talking about, and Hatch stuffed the remainder of the peanuts under a sofa cushion. Investigations began, and soon the peanuts were found in close proximity to Hatch, and the chase was on. It was like the first 20 mins or so of The Fugitive, except that it was Hatch in his spelunking gear, hauling ass through the woods, with an army of flashlight-wielding middle school moms and bloodhounds on his trail. I have no idea what eventually happened, because the sound of Karen's hair dryer coming on woke me up. Hope you made it to freedom, buddy. And I hope that you did some sort of "reach to the heavens through the rain" moment a la The Shawshank Redemption when you got there.

-Nate