Thanks, healingme4me. I definitely think there's a relationship between the slide and control because in this sliding competition I'm out of control most of the time. Also, in the dream I'm not using chopsticks for their intended purpose, which is to manipulate food. Instead I'm using them to identify myself with and as an object to send down the chute or slide.

The sliding game is actually a sports competition because it has rules and referees and requires physical skill. It's also a kind of "play," just as I "play" trombone.

I'll just make one analytical observation. There are four kinds of play in this dream:

• Playing a sports game and competition on a wooden slide (note that trombones have a "slide")
• Playing trombone in a solo manner purely for the love and enjoyment of it.
• Playing trombone along with an electronic device.
• Playing trombone to wake people up.

The "play" that goes the best in the dream is doing pure music for its own sake with no audience. That's when I'm functioning well and enjoying myself. In the sports on the other hand I'm at risk for injury and can't control my sliding well. In playing with an electronic device I can't get it to work. In playing to wake people up, my lips are tired.