My old jacket

1/18/2026|By Phrenaubulax

I was in front of a super hip thrift store with some friends I do not not recognize IRL. It was daytime and sunny and there was a cafe out front we were at. I noticed this old plaid jacket that looked like my old jacket when I was a homeless IVDA 24 years ago. It was so ugly and looked like a couch; beige plaid and thick dark brown fuzzy collar. I put it on and could tell immediately it was my old jacket. I put my hands in the hole ridden pockets where I used to keep my needles and dope. It gave me a flashback. I looked at myself in the mirror and I could see who I was back then. My hair a long punk rock mess standing on end. I turned around, hunched over, looked in the mirror and could see how the sleeve was separated from the coat. I laughed and told my friends the coat gave me the heebie jeebies and that I couldn’t believe this place was selling it. I looked at the price tag and it said $6 and I thought “that’s about right.” I didn’t wat it though and put it back. Adjacent dream: I was in another cafe sort of courtyard. There was an older homeless woman that sat down at a table. She had a yellow rain coat on and was clearly mentally unstable and responding to internal stimuli. She was excited to find a half smoked cigarette or maybe she had a nasty pack of squares. I went to a nearby convenience store and bought her a pack of cigarettes and gave them to her. She was delighted. The dream now shifted to where I felt homeless and was on the street. I didn’t have any money but then remembered I had a credit card I could survive on until things went back to normal. It became night time out and began raining. I walked by and into a restaurant with a bowling alley. There was someone with an adorable little girl. I went on outside and there was gamelan music and an Indonesian festival. I walked into this park from behind the stage the gamelan and players were on and was so excited to see them playing live as I came around. It seemed magical but I still felt homeless. I had a three ring binder that was a camera and geometric shapes appeared on it. I didn’t really know how to use it. A young woman with a camera approached me, very friendly, she knew me, she had a camera and I was a little embarrassed fumbling with my crazy contraption. I went on and it was now daylight. The Indonesian festival continued with vendor that had all kinds of exotic spices, food, and clothes. I found a green loose fitting blouse for my wife and imagined her in it. I thought, “this is her.” I tried to find the price tag but it was on a string and in a satchel that was hard to get to. A young attractive Indonesian woman came by and I got embarrassed and put it back. Somewhere else in this long dream I was at a water park. It was sunny out. I was at first alone, then a young woman and coworker of my wife’s (who I don’t actually know) found me and took me to where she was. Everything was bright and colorful and I but on some sort of thing I’d never wear. Also another dream where my wife and I walked into a big lounge / bar. It was crowded and we were both headed to the bathroom but I saw a couple leaving a table and decided to take it and then wait for her to come out. I then found myself sitting with these big biker types and their wives. They were trying to intimidate me jokingly about just plopping down amidst them but I wasn’t scared and joked back at them. Then I saw a better place to sit and left them.

AI Generated Interpretation

Thank you for sharing such a rich and vivid dream. Dreams like this often weave together memories, emotions, and symbolic images to explore personal history, current feelings, and future hopes. Let’s gently consider some of the symbolic themes and emotional undertones that arise from your dream narrative. **The Old Jacket and Past Identity** Your encounter with the old plaid jacket—tattered, heavy, and closely tied to a difficult chapter of your life—holds strong symbolism. Clothing in dreams often represents how we present ourselves or how we are shaped by our experiences. This jacket, with its worn pockets and distinct style, appears as a metaphor for a former self that you once inhabited—complete with its struggles and marks of hardship. Seeing yourself in the mirror wearing it might reflect a moment of reflection or reconciliation with who you were then versus who you are now. The laughter and mild discomfort you express toward the jacket could indicate an awareness of how far you’ve come, even as remnants of that past still linger in your memory. **Homelessness and Survival** The presence of homelessness and moments of uncertainty recur throughout your dream, which might symbolize feelings of vulnerability or displacement, whether literal or internal. The credit card you remember having suggests a resource or inner resilience that you can rely on during unsettled times. This theme could also point toward transitional phases in life, where stability feels uncertain but the hope of security or renewal remains. **Acts of Kindness and Connection** Your gesture of buying cigarettes for the older woman reflects empathy and compassion. This action suggests a recognition of shared humanity and a desire to nurture or care for aspects of yourself or others who might be struggling. It accentuates warmth and social connectedness, even amidst scenes of hardship or isolation. **Festivals, Music, and Cultural Symbolism** The Indonesian festival, with its music, vibrant colors, spices, and textiles, radiates a sense of celebration, vitality, and cultural richness. Such imagery might symbolize a yearning for joy, discovery, or a connection to deeper or more exotic aspects of life. The interaction with the young women—feeling shy or awkward—could reflect dynamics of self-confidence, acceptance, or exploring new roles and relationships. The geometric shapes on your unusual camera device may hint at creativity, perception, and a personal quest for understanding or capturing life’s patterns, even if the method feels unfamiliar or tentative. **Social Interactions and Belonging** The moments among coworkers, your wife, and the biker group carry undertones of social navigation. Sitting among the bikers and responding to their teasing without fear suggests a growing sense of self-assurance and the ability to engage with different groups comfortably. The decision to find a better place to sit illustrates agency, choice, and perhaps the desire for harmony rather than confrontation. **Overall Emotional Tone and Themes** Your dream touches on transformation—bridging the past with your current self, acknowledging hardships while engaging with moments of joy, kindness, and cultural immersion. The fluctuating times of day and settings, from sunny cafés to night rain, reflect the varied emotions and states of consciousness that weave through your life experience. A subtle undercurrent of hope and renewal runs alongside memories of difficulty and identity exploration. --- In sum, this dream presents a rich tapestry of self-reflection, resilience, and the human desire for connection and belonging. It invites you to honor your past, embrace the vibrant possibilities around you, and recognize the inner resources you carry as you navigate life’s complex journey.