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June 29, 2009

...And yet we keep playing it.

Let’s talk about LOST!   ...And Yet We Keep Playing It.






The puzzle game.

Could we be involved in a “Cyber Drama”?  Sure, why not?    I sure as hell know we’re participating in one long con.   Maybe there’s a fine line between a long con and a magic trick; or maybe we’re involved in a little of both.


Let’s be honest here, we have witnessed some great feats of magic with LOST.  The writers have spun an incredible story using misdirection and deception.   It’s as if they are following the basic rules of being a magician.  We have been watching this story unfold for five seasons and I can’t believe that there are still so many varied theories out there. It seems that we all can’t agree on a singular concept as of yet, and I find this fascinating.  How else would that still be the case unless we were being bamboozled?  Are we just the observer here or are we a victim of the con.

You know how high in esteem I hold this creative team of LOST, so please don’t take my angle on this post as negative in any way shape or form, because in reality it is just the opposite. I honor their brilliance.  There has never been anything like this experience before and we all know it.

I’m sure you’re asking, "Why is Karen bringing up magic and cons again?"  Because I must, it’s that simple. In the writer’s genius, I believe they very, very cleverly are performing their magic in the perfect situation.  Their magic has twisted our minds in confusion and amazement, and they’ve made it look so damn easy that we’re not even seeing the “con” of it all.   After all, to quote Jack’s grandpa Ray, “But what will I do without my magic shows?” lol
 First let me acknowledge a few things that I do believe are going on:
First and foremost the island residents are very deeply emotionally lost and are trying to find themselves.   The story is showing us this in a metaphoric fashion.  I believe their growth is evolving under the guise of this adventure.
I believe things are being experienced in their consciousness/mind while they are in an altered state, sleep state or at least the sleep state has something to do with this all.
They’re never out of the confines of the “Island”.
Since the very beginning events we’ve seen seem out of order.
We constantly see at least two versions of items/props, scenes and dialog.
We’ve seen much of the same clothes shirts and shirt patterns repeat themselves on island and off island.
Perception and perspective. Things/words/titles have two meanings.  Things and events are blurred together.
I believe once someone finds what they are looking for, or even may be at risk of unseating a leader, they are removed from the playing field. In other words they move on.
It's all in the details, and they’re wrong!

Keep in mind these are only a few of the many, many layers that make up the whole of this story. We will tackle other layers over the hiatus.

I know I’m going out on a huge limb here, but I am just going to tackle a few thoughts on the story thus far.  I really took some shit this season for bringing some of my “outside the box” thoughts to the table.  Don’t get me wrong, there are many of you who were open minded to some of the observations I addressed, and you know I truly appreciate that.  I still don’t know if my way of detective work is the right way to solve the puzzle, and I’m always the first to say I could be wrong about everything, but there are reasons I entertain other options to the story.  I’m not just pulling shit out of the air as some would like to think I am.
I mean… if a magician never reveals the secret, why would the writers {who by the way work very hard to tell us NOTHING} lead us to believe certain things when they are working very hard to keep the “reveal” until later……………They’re not pulling the rabbit out of the hat just yet.

Lost has shown us a changing four toed statue, a smoke monster, walking dead, people who die over and over, Others and "Hostiles" who wear makeup and fake beards, things being faked, decoy villages, travel by freaky illusion submarine, drink spiked OJ and sleep for "however long", time travel, astral projection, teleportation, replication, supernatural happenings, two dudes who appear to have been around for forever, ghosts, and Vincent the wonder dog.  Yet I’m considered crazy with trying to rationalize just a few of those fantastical things.  I’m just curious why my possible alternative viewpoints are so much more ridiculous than what we’ve seen.  I must keep in mind at all times that there is a con going on, so why would I think certain things we see are the whole truth.

I’ve been asked where I “conjured up” the concept of the Castaway's being in some sort of “sleep state”.  That one comes from many clues right in front of our eyes.  We began the journey with Jack waking up.  We see them all in various “wake up” situations, we hear people being told to “wake up”, we’ve seen them be confused about either dreaming or hallucinating visions or experiences, so many things seems to revolve around sleeping and the need to "wake up".  I’ve also been able to note the “sleeping” motif out of  a few of the classic books and movies that are prominently hinted within the LOST story.
An important bit of insight I will share with you comes from a manual called The Psychedelic Experience, where Richard Alpert, Timothy Leary and Ralph Metzner used the Tibetan Book of the Dead as a guide along with psychedelic drugs to test and teach subjects to free their minds and experience altered states of higher consciousness. One of the goals was to "let go of ego/self". There are so many parallels to the LOST story with that manual.

Alice in Wonderland: Alice’s experiences of falling down the rabbit hole and her adventures there are being lived out via a dream.
Another example is the movie and the book, The Wizard of Oz/The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Again, Dorothy has a wonderful adventure trying to find her way home while she is in an unconscious state. Another book that hints to this is A Separate Reality, where one of the concepts is about dream states and reaching higher consciousness.
Another direction I will bring up later comes from one of my favorite books, The Invention of Morel; a story about a fugitive who hides out on a deserted island.  I know many people felt that is the reason that book was shown to us, and it very well may be. I looked at what the book was about; the actual invention created by Mr. Morel.  He created a series of projectors that turned on with the wind and tides. These projectors projected images of people, items, and scenes that seemed so real within the physical environment, that the fugitive couldn’t tell these people and things were not real. With that I think it’s fair to inquire about this very thing in the LOST story.
On to the matter at hand… What the hell is going on here?  I think that we’ve been so preoccupied watching the part of the illusion the writers are directing us to look toward that they’ve been able to conceal crucial information by throwing broad generalizations at us in order to keep us from focusing in on the truth. They stay one step ahead of us by purposely keeping us engaged with things like mythology, statues, hieroglyphs, time travel, space, etc.

These layers are very cool and I love them tremendously. But I will not ignore what else we witness; Juliet’s ex Edmund being hit by a bus after she mentions such an event should happen, Ana Lucia shows up to Hurley while he’s on the run with sleeping Sayid, major hints to things being faked, the set altitude gage on the aircraft carrying the Oceanic 6 back “home” displays all zeros, changing roles, and the at least two versions of things and details that are wrong. With those types of illusionary bits going on, and there are many, many more than that going on, what could explain such things; more on that in a minute.

I’ll begin with a term used in the show… the “real world”.  When this term is referenced it forces me to acknowledge that they are indeed in an “unreal world”.  So where are they? I know I’ve gone on and on for years questioning what/who is “real” and what/who is “not real”, so let’s start with the possibility of their location.  If we take purgatory off the table and if we put the worm hole, another planet, and parallel universe on the side just for the next few minutes, what other possibilities could we explore?
We need to start with what we know:
* We have “planes” that make constant returns to an “Island”.
* There is a “way” to go back and forth to this special place.
* "This place" gives people the chance to learn, grow, reflect, and start over.
* Oh, and by the way, they are not strangers to the “Island”; they’ve had to have been there more than once.
Are they on an “Island” or is it an illusion of an island? Are they in a bloody snow globe or a metaphor for a bloody snow globe? Could they not even be on an island and are in some sort of Panopticon type of facility?   Maybe they are in a building far far away.
Yes, that’s what I said, 'cause I'm crazy like that!  But I do have a few "locations" rattling around in my head.

I have examined the following ideas based solely on the clue words that have presented themselves over and over since day one.  Yep, those very words and phrases I obsessively bold type in my notes.
Through this adventure of storytelling the goal of the Castaways' experience seems to be “Enlightenment”.   The adventure seems to be playing a part in their rehabilitation; so that may be considered a form of therapy in a sense. {We have  constant clues to crazy, insane, certifiable, Schizophrenia, auditory hallucinations, depression, addiction, post-traumatic stress disorder, catatonia, insomnia, Clonozapam, and Santa Rosa.  {More on this contributing factor in another post.}  Who knows, maybe they are the original test subjects and or patients to this experience.  They are being educated, tested and yes, they are being observed.  The challenges and quests they are faced with may be helping them find what they’ve lost…themselves.

Are they wired to a computer or some other device that sends a simulated environment and/or information to their brains while they are sleeping?  Don’t laugh! It could happen. Let me explain…

I often wonder if the “Island residents” are in a “Merged Reality".  I have felt much if not all of their experience is happening in their minds/conscious level.  Maybe they are physically running around an island but things are merged with elements of their minds being manipulated with the use of drugs/hallucinogens, sleep, dreams, hypnosis, illusions, mnemonics, manipulation, magic tricks, mind tricks, projected images, holograms, simulated and/or virtual environments, and the use of a script is involved in this adventure game.  The “Islanders” seem to be detached from the real world and truly submerged into this "fantasy island".
After all an altered state of consciousness is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking beta wave state.
Let’s explore this option further. Remember these are only an alternative approach to the possibilities.

* Mixed reality: (Augmented reality) refers to the merging of real and virtual worlds to produce new environments and visualizations where physical and digital objects co-exist and interact in real time. A mix of reality, augmented reality, augmented virtuality and virtual reality.
* Magic: is the art of entertaining audiences by performing illusions and tricks. {Smoke and Mirrors.}
* Pepper's ghost: is an illusionary technique. Using a plate glass and special lighting techniques, it can make objects seem to appear or disappear, or make one object seem to "morph" into another.
* Musion Eyeliner: Using high definition video projection or LED screens to allow moving images to appear within a live stage setting.
* Holography: is a technique that allows the light scattered from an object to be recorded and later reconstructed so that it appears as if the object is in the same position relative to the recording medium as it was when recorded. The image changes as the position and orientation of the viewing system changes in exactly the same way as if the object were still present, thus making the recorded image (hologram) appears three dimensional.
* Tomography: is imaging by sections or sectioning.  A device used in tomography is called a tomograph, while the image produced is a Tomogram.  The method is used in medicine, archeology, biology, geophysics, oceanography, material science, astrophysics and other sciences. {X-rays, CAT scans, MRI}
* A house of mirrors or hall of mirrors: is a traditional attraction at carnivals and amusement parks. The basic concept behind a house of mirrors is to be a maze-like puzzle.  In addition to the maze, participants are also given mirrors as obstacles, and glass panes to parts of the maze they cannot yet get to. In fiction, battles sometimes take place within a hall of mirrors. This is a great way to symbolically show the trickery potential of a villain.
* The Invention of Morel.

Important Note: We have witnessed ALL of the following in the story.  There is no doubt that when Eko was having his experiences in the Cost of Living we can see he is in an REM sleep state. We’ve seen Claire see herself from outside her body and we’ve noted when Jack can’t call Colleen’s time of death because there is no clock, and we’ve seen time on clocks change. Also artwork appear backwards, misspelled words on posters, and so many more hints to these types of things. 


* Lucid Dreaming: Is a dream in which the sleeper is aware that she/he is dreaming. When the dreamer is lucid, he or she can actively participate in and often manipulate the imaginary experiences in the dream environment.  Lucid dreams can be extremely real and vivid depending on a person's level of self awareness during the lucid dream.
A lucid dream can begin in one of three ways.  A dream-initiated lucid dream(DILD) starts as a normal dream, and the dreamer eventually concludes that he or she is dreaming, while a wake-initiated lucid dream (WILD) occurs when the dreamer goes from a normal waking state directly into a dream state with no apparent lapse in consciousness.  A mnemonic initiated lucid dream (MILD) can happen when the dreamer intentionally affirms him/herself that they will become lucid that night.
In lucid dreams things are wrong. Signs are misspelled, there is no sense of time, and items in a room are in the wrong spot or backwards.  
Powerlessness — There is a sensational loss of bodily strength.  This can mean being unable to move entirely, simply that you are unable to run away from something you otherwise would. This can also include a loss of senses, such as severely limited vision or hearing.  
Context — The place or situation in the dream is strange and includes fictional characters or places. Form — The dreamer, another character, or an object changes shape, is oddly formed, or transforms. This may include the presence of unusual clothing or hair, or a third person view of the dreamer.  Time- The dreamer looks at a clock or watch, looks away, and then looks back, and the time could have changed, unintelligible symbols appear on the watch face or even the watch can be gone all together.  
Fingers — The dreamer seems to have an abnormal number of fingers (e.g. more than 5 on a hand). Action — The dreamer, another dream character, or a thing does something unusual or impossible in waking life, such as flying, jumping or running great distances, walking through walls, teleporting/changing the dream setting, or noticing photographs in a magazine or newspaper becoming three-dimensional with full movement.
* An out of body experience: is an experience that typically involves a sensation of floating outside of one's body.
* Autoscopy: refers to an experience in which a person, while believing him or herself to be awake, sees his or her body and the world from a location outside his or her physical body.
* Heautoscopy: is a term used in psychiatry and neurology for the reduplicative hallucination of "seeing one's own body at a distance".   It can occur as a symptom in schizophrenia and epilepsy.
During REM sleep the body is theoretically paralyzed by the brain in order to prevent the movements which occur in the dream from causing the physical body to move, and wake itself up.  However, it is possible for this mechanism to be triggered before, during, or after normal sleep.  This can lead to a state where a person is lying in his or her bed and they feel paralyzed. Hypnagogic hallucination may occur in this state, especially auditory ones.

On to the other topic that seems to get people annoyed with me; the game layer. Of course I always keep close at hand that this ingredient could be perceived as a metaphor, but in many ways it is shown to us literally. I often use the game or even the video game/rpg/larp "concepts" as a means to explain certain things we see, so that the LOST viewer can have something to easily relate it to.   

We know in an adventure game/video game the player assumes the role of protagonist in an interactive story that is driven by exploration and puzzle solving and can also contain physical challenges such as missions and combat.  If we are dealing with a simulated environment, it seems to be weaving elements of mythology, complete with a monster, religion, music, famous literature, philosophy, science fiction, astrology, astronomy, and magic.  These would be all the things “people” know, love and can relate to in real life, therefore giving us the things that make up the background environment of the adventure or even possibly showing us different levels.  Does that make any of that less important to the story? Absolutely not!

LOST shows us clues to a script, back stories, stages, backdrops, sets, costumes, decoy buildings, caves, tunnels, barracks, weapons, items, health, sick, death, changing roles, reset, and even reanimation of a character.  I mean, come on, we’ve even seen Jack return to the "Island" and have to start from the same exact starting position he did before (or again).

These concepts are basically like playing role playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons, but now let’s add a bit of simulation into the mix.   There are times in real life when simulations are used for various purposes:  Scenario analysis, training, analysis, or prediction or in the case of our Castaways, for their eye opening wakeup call or of course, for the benefit of (what they believe) “saving the world”.

In their conscious mind/altered state while in a merged reality or simulated environment, they are learning to find themselves and enlightenment under the guise of a game.  In a simulated environment we could easily explain ageless people who are advisor's and guides, the same person who shows up in other roles with a different identity, {Randy Nations, ticket agents, Priests, etc.} the same props, similar scripted dialog, leaving the playing field via a portal, etc.

The stories in RPG’s usually involve a group of characters who join forces in order to accomplish missions or a “quest”.  Along the way the adventurers face challenges and enemies (such as monsters, science fiction and classic mythology).  I can see examples of this happening on the “Island.”

I did extensive research on how simulated reality, virtual reality, video games and board games are created and specifically how role playing games are written and structured.  I'd like to probe the following information and see how it may possibly connect to our story.

You can read through the researched items or jump down to pick up after all that from  "Here are a few additional thoughts."





Health is a game mechanic used in computer and video games to give value to characters, enemies, NPC’s, and related objects.  This value can either be numerical, semi-numerical as in hit/health points, or arbitrary as in a life bar.  Included in this idea is vulnerability.
Example: We’ve seen Castaway's get shot and blown up and end up fine, specifically Locke.  He has been thrown out of an 8 story window, shot by Ben, shot by Ethan, fell down the well, was imploded in the Swan Hatch, car accident, and yet he comes back just like Super Mario in the video game.  He seems to have acquired enough "health" or “vulnerability” points.

A kill quest sends the character out to kill either a specific number of named creatures, or a specific non-player character or NPC.  These types of quests often require the character to bring back proof of their work, such as animal fangs for a creature kill quest, or the head of an NPC. Can include going to a destination and then killing in that area.
Example: Locke killing Anthony Cooper,  Ben killing Jeremy Bentham, they both brought back their “kills”.

Delivery quest, also known as a FedEx quest or fetch-carry quest. This involves the character being sent to deliver an item from one location to another.  Sometimes the character may need to collect the item first instead of being handed the item to deliver when starting the quest.  These quests are made challenging by asking the character to journey through unfamiliar or dangerous terrain, sometimes while facing a time limit.
Example: A Hydrogen bomb, a casket, a dead body, a guitar case, a gold watch, Aaron. And don’t forget about the “timed” mission to render the gas inert at The Tempest.

Gather quests, also known as collection quests, require a character to collect a number of items. These can either be gathered from a location or environment, or require the character to kill creatures in order to collect the required items.   The quest may also require the character to collect a number of different items, for example to assemble a device.
Example: We've seen the Castaways have to gather items such as: hairbrush, guns, Haliburton case, medicine, guitar case, toy airplane, batteries, etc.. But it seems that the hairbrush was never found. As far as assembling a device, that seems to fit the retrieval of the hydrogen bomb and Sayid re-rigging it and even the assembling of radios and transceivers.

♟ The final quest type is the Escort quest.  This type of quest is a combination of slaying monsters to maintain the well-being of a non-player character all while exploring an area alongside that NPC.  A typical escort quest would involve protecting a character as he or she moves through a monster-infested area.  A majority of the time the quest will demand of the player to slay multiple monsters to ensure the safety of the NPC. Escort quests can be beneficial, in forcing the player's focus to a particular area in order to play out a scene or reveal a section of the plot. They can also be used to funnel a character from one location to another, leading the player along a route or path. However, problems with this type of quest can occur if the artificial intelligence controlling the NPC causes them to behave in unexpected or unmanageable ways.
Example: We have seen many characters having to be “protected”. And we've seen "escorting" and "funneling" of characters.

A quest chain is a group of quests that are completed in sequence. Completion of each quest is a prerequisite to beginning the next quest in the chain. Quests usually increase in difficulty as a player progresses through the chain. The quests typically reveal a single plot line in stages that explain the reason for the quests.  Quest chains can also start with opening or breadcrumb quests, in order to encourage characters to journey to a new area, where further elements of the quest chain are revealed. Through mechanisms like these, the setting of a particular location is explained to the player, with the plot or storyline being disclosed as the character progresses.
Example: The next level. I can’t help but recall Boone in the vision from Further Instructions beckoning John up to the next level.  The Castaway’s have been “led” to other areas for missions/quests; the Dark Territory, Black Rock, the barracks, etc..

Simulated reality: Reality could be simulated—perhaps by computer simulation-to a degree indistinguishable from "true" reality. It could contain conscious minds which may or may not know that they are living inside a simulation. This is different from the current, technologically achievable concept of virtual reality.   Virtual reality is easily distinguished from the experience of "true" reality; participants are never in doubt about the nature of what they experience. Simulated reality, by contrast, would be hard or impossible to distinguish from "true" reality.

Types of simulation:
Brain-computer interface: In a brain-computer interface simulation, each participant enters from outside, directly connecting their brain to the simulation computer. The computer transfers sensory data to them and reads their desires and actions back; in this manner they interact with the simulated world and receive feedback from it. The participant may even receive adjustment in order to temporarily forget that they are inside a virtual realm (e.g. "passing through the veil").

Simulation-brain communications: If one were to effectively communicate with the brain, a code or sequence must be created/discovered to send information between the part of our brain that hears and talks.
Example: Could 4-8-15-16-23-42 be such a code or are these numbers really only about the Valenzetti equation?

Virtual people- In a virtual-people simulation, every inhabitant is a native of the simulated world. They do not have a "real" body in the external reality. Rather, each is a fully simulated entity, possessing an appropriate level of consciousness that is implemented using the simulation's own logic (i.e. using its own physics). As such, they could be downloaded from one simulation to another, or even archived and resurrected at a later date. It is also possible that a simulated entity could be moved out of the simulation entirely by means of mind transfer into a synthetic body. Another way of getting an inhabitant of the virtual reality out of its simulation would be to "clone" the entity, by taking a sample of its virtual DNA and create a real-world counterpart from that model. The result would not bring the "mind" of the entity out of its simulation, but its body would be born in the real world.
This category subdivides into two further types.
Virtual people-virtual world, in which an external reality is simulated separately to the artificial consciousnesses.
Solipsistic simulation in which consciousness is simulated and the "world" participants perceive exists only within their minds.
An emigration simulation, the participant enters the simulation from the outer reality, as in the brain-computer interface simulation, but to a much greater degree. On entry, the participant uses mind transfer to temporarily relocate their mental processing into a virtual-person.
An intermingled simulation supports both types of consciousness: "players" from the outer reality who are visiting (as a brain-computer interface simulation) or emigrating, and virtual-people who are natives of the simulation and hence lack any physical body in the outer reality.
A dream could be considered a type of simulation capable of fooling someone who is asleep.

Time:
Subjective time: A brain computer interface simulated reality may be required to progress at a rate that is near real time; that is, time within it may be required to pass at approximately the same rate as the outer reality which contains it.  This might be the case because the players are interacting with the simulation using brains which still reside in the outer reality.  Therefore, if the simulation were to run faster or slower, those brains could notice because they were not contained within it. It is possible that time passes slower or quicker for brains in a dream state (i.e., in a brain-computer interface trance); however, the point is that they still function at a finite, biological speed, and the simulation must track with them.  Unless those interacting with the simulation are augmented and capable of processing information at the same rate as the simulation itself.

A simulated reality need not run in real time. The inhabitants of a simulated universe would have no way of knowing that one day of subjective time actually required much longer to calculate in their host computer, or vice-versa.
Example: There are many times we see the Castaways have no sense of time. Time seems to be a major screwed up component in everything we see.   We also gets hints to "timer" and "time limit", "time's up", etc.

Software bugs- An interesting question is whether knowledge of bugs or loopholes in a sufficiently powerful simulation are instantly erased the minute they are observed since presumably all thoughts and experiences in a simulated world could be carefully monitored and altered. In fact, any simulation significantly determined to protect its existence could erase any proof that it was a simulation whenever it arose, provided it had the enormous capacity necessary to do so. To take this argument to an even greater extreme, a sufficiently powerful simulation could make its inhabitants think that erasing proof of its existence is difficult. This would mean that the computer actually has an easy time of erasing glitches, but we all think that changing reality requires great power.
Example: Many times you’ve heard me say, “Glitch in the Matrix” or a “Bug in the System”. Couldn’t that cause the “time” and “levels” to glitch and skip… not time travel.  There is no doubt we witnessed Jack in a hurried mission to "erase" the past.  As far as additional "glitches", we've witnessed "on Island events" and "off Island events" out of order.   How about when we saw John dream that Horace was chopping a tree down and that footage looped, could that count as a glitch or just a dream, or both?

Remorting (aka rebirth, ascending or reincarnating) is a technique within some role-playing games, notably MUDs, whereby once the player character reaches a specified level limit the player can elect to start over with a weaker version of his or her character. The term's origins are unclear but are thought to distinguish re-mortals (reborn characters) from mortals (normal characters) and immortals (game administrators).
Example: John Locke, Charlie and Jin. (To name a few). How about Mikhail?

Power-leveling is the process of sustained, fast leveling in CRPGs. Many role-players disdain the practice, believing that this attempt to "beat" a game misses the point of role-playing.
Example: There are levels, stages, codes, rules and cheats. There’s even an escape hatch. Are they all “getting the point” to this adventure or are some just on mission to get to the end? Jack perhaps? Hmmmm. Have any used the ESCAPE HATCH?

Magic points are units of magical power that are used in many role playing, computer role playing and similar games as an expendable resource that is needed to pay for magic spells.
Example: The Magic box. Lol. How could magic points be accumulated?

Non-player characters or "bots". Some of the people in a simulated reality may be automatons, philosophical zombies, or bots added to the simulation to make it more realistic or interesting or challenging. Indeed, it is conceivable that every person other than oneself is a bot.
Example: This would mean even though we see Charlie's experiences on the island, the people who he is interacting with would be physical image clones of the other people who are actually on “the island”. In other words, the only constant in each person’s experience is themselves.
Could Non-Character bots be people like Richard, Dr. Arzt, Danielle, Mikhail, Ethan, Horace, Amy and Lenny?  How about the many hats we’ve seen Pierre Cheng wear? {Yes, I know…Miles’ dad, but come on, Cheng has many identities} But is he acting in each Dharma video or cloned?

Here’s a few additional thoughts:

Guides- Richard, Abaddon, Danielle, and of course Christian. Or is it possible that they’ve all taken turns as the “Guide”.
Leader- There is only one leader at a time. Of course there is - if it’s a game.
Backwards dialog- We’ve heard voices speak and the words come out backwards. Couldn't this be an issue with bugs in the computer, projected images and audio, or the simulation?













With the possibilities I mentioned is it conceivable that the whispers are the voices of the people outside of the experience.  Imagine that you are in a half awake half sleep state but you can still hear the voices of family down the hall or a song that’s clicked on the radio’s alarm, only you believe those things are in your dream. In reality they have become part of your dream state but it’s the audio that has bled into your sleeping mind from the part of your brain that is half awake and hearing those sounds.

All this brings us back to “Guys, where are we?”  If and only if the story contains elements of simulation, where could this experience be originating from?  If they are on a real island then the location is kept secret for obvious reasons.
If the “island” experience is happening exclusively in the mind is it an option to suggest that maybe these people aren’t even in the same room, maybe even in different parts of the world brought together by technology.   I ask because of things like Kate saying “We’re on the same plane, Jack. Doesn’t mean we’re together.”
Are they connected by the “mind” but physically and maybe even geographically are apart?  Are they on a ship?  Could they be in a hospital, institution or a prison?  Maybe they’re in their own living rooms. The reason I say this is because when Ajira airways became part of our vocabulary, it was interesting to read everything on their website. It could read as if those trips and destinations are part of a virtual experience or something like that.   Here take a look: (Click to enlarge or go to Ajira)
Even the postcards abc.com gave us a few months ago are very telling.




















I still have many questions and comments to note. Here’s just a couple:
☯ How come Jack the alcoholic addict didn’t need alcohol or drugs while on the "Island" but people like Desmond and Charlie did?
☯ God loves you as he “LOVED” Jacob.  Why is Jacob no longer loved?
☯ Richard says that he's this way because of Jacob.  Well, what if Richard was designed by Jacob? What if Jacob and Mr. X are a few of the creators of this "Island" experience? I’m just asking!
☯ The spiral/cone symbol of The Orchid has been labeled as the time travel spiral but the spiral/cone is also a symbol of the form of human development.  With that info and knowing the metaphor angle, couldn’t that just a symbol for their “evolution” and not time travel?  There is more than few explanations for the spiral/cone symbol.  For me its the interesting "center" of The Orchid logo that gives me a bit more info.
☯ I still find it interesting that John Locke the “Boxman” seems to always end up in a box.
☯ The Dharma Initiative translates to the "start of the eight fold path". That brings us to "Enlightenment".

After all everything is connected. We watch LOST and participate in it by studying every frame, put puzzles with no pictures on the boxes together, play ARG's/ORG’s, book flights on phantom airlines, watch Missing Pieces mobisodes, gather our friends to play the LOST board game, collect trading cards, purchase action figures, own our own Dharma jumpsuits, wait in line for Apollo Bars, and flew through the video game Via Domus. Although the powers that be say all those outside elements are not “canon”, I call fucking shenanigans! Are some things a front, hiding one thing from another?  The con goes on! If everything is connected, THEN EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED.

A couple of my thoughts as we look forward to season six…
☯ Perspective and Perception is playing a huge part here. “Careful observation is the only key to true and complete awareness.
☯ I don’t think Jacob and Mr. X are the sole puppet masters, I think we will see an “outside” party involved here.
☯ I still believe things and people are not what you think.
☯ I do believe there really only can be one person in the lead at a time.
☯ We began this story with Jack and I think we may end this story with Jack.

Even with all the research here and possible connections, I’ll ask if it means anything or are we right back to it all being about them having been sucked in to a worm hole, alternate or parallel universe or stuck in the purgatory level of life and death. Are we still mystified between what are real clues and what are fun bits and pieces to send us on a wild goose chase?  I honestly don’t know. But one thing I do know about LOSTthere’s always a twist.

Damon, Carlton and the posse have created something that will always be remembered and I know they will leave us wanting more. I can only hope they have a few more aces up their sleeves. When all is said and done we will all have lived through an amazing journey ourselves. After all...we were all part of the plan too.

It really doesn't matter what I've written here or over the past few years.  It doesn't matter if certain clues played a part in all of this. It doesn't matter how much research we all put in to connecting the dots. It doesn't matter whose opinion was right or wrong or better or worse.It doesn't even matter how the Castaway's journey is happening. What does matter is "why" it is happening. What does matter is LOST is a metaphor for these "lost in every way" people. I believe when each has their eye opening moment of enlightenment, their awakening, to seeing who they truly are, to learn to love, trust and forgive themselves, and let go, then they will be able to move forward.   Each will finally be free. This is one thing I can be sure of.

With that said, in closing I’ll leave you with my metaphoric constant, the Castaways' are on a walkabout, it's just on this “Island”.

Love to all who are "Lost"™

Check out Damon and Carlton's DSA week 7 visit with us.


Disclaimer: I never claim to know everything about the show and my thoughts by no means make me right! The things I share here are my views and/or opinions. I don't claim to catch every single detail either! You all know I hate spoilers! And I stand clear of reading certain sites as to not take me off my own course of research. The one thing I don't need to do here is rehash all of the obvious clues from an episode; we all know what they are. Understood? Let the fun begin! I'll only note things that I know come up as clues later, but need to be noted when they first show up and things I find that will be of importance.

June 23, 2009

The ODI LostCast "Investigates" The Incident. Part 2.

Hi Losties,

Thanks to all of you that have waited patiently for this second part of the finale podcast.
And thanks to those of you that sent in messages, posted comments or Tweeted wondering where it was!?


The initial plan was to break this part of the podcast in to two shorter versions, but since we had taken so long to get it out to you guys I decided to just make it one Super-Sized Podcast of over 3 hours of LOST goodness!!

The podcast, covers the Sun/Jin Wedding, Jacob meeting Ilana, and all the great scenes in the 2007 time line.

As requested by several of you asking to have chapters allowing you to be able to skip back and forth through the podcast, hopefully by the next podcast we will be able to have that as a new feature.
That next podcast will most likely be a Season 5 Recap/Highlights podcast with our good friend DarkUFO joining us. Also we will update you all on Comic Con happenings and plans.
So if you have any questions, please post comments or feel free to email them in to The ODI.


The podcast was posted on iTunes late last night, but for those of you that could not access it there, below is an audio player with a download link.

Hope you all enjoy!!

NOTE: If you still have not listened to Part 1, you can find it here:


ODI LOSTcast 44 - S5 Finale Recap Part 1

ODI LOSTcast 44 - Episode 5x16-17 Recap Part 2


Click Here to Download this Podcast | Click Here for all ODI LOST Podcasts | Subscribe on iTunes | Podcast XML Feed

June 21, 2009

Abandoned.

Let’s talk about LOST! Abandoned.
(Click the pics!)



Night on the beach:
Shannon pours thirsty Vincent some water into an orange lunch box.  She tells the dog to drink and kisses him on the head.
Sayid tells Shannon to gather her things; he’s leading her somewhere.
Shannon- “Where are we going?
He just smiles.
Sayid presents a tent-love nest he built for her.
Shannon is pleased and asks, “Does it have an inside?”
Inside Sayid has decorated it with lit candles, fruits and flowers.  She asks "when" he did this.
He only says, “It’s all yours.”  Shannon thanks him sincerely. They passionately kiss. {Yep. That’s what they do.}

Shannon touches the gun Sayid has tucked in the back of his pants and wonders if he needs to carry that all the time.
Sayid shares, “I only carry it because I have someone to protect.”{He needs to protect Shannon?Or someone else?}They get busy.


Night in the jungle:
The Tailies are hanging out in the trees; some are sleeping.
Cindy, who seems to be looking out for something, mentions to Ana that it's been over an hour, “Shouldn’t we start moving again?”
Ana wants to let them rest a little while longer.
Cindy’s concerned, “Yeah. But what if they come?”
Sawyer opens his eyes and remarks, “She’s lost." Ana insists, “I am not lost.”
Sawyer asks Ponce DeLeon{Ana} which way they're supposed to go.
Ana asks the genius {Sawyer} which way he would go .
His only reply is, “Hey, I’m with you. Sit tight and wait for Mr. Eko to show up and guide us.”
Ana blames Sawyer’s friend running off. “Eko would still be here now, wouldn’t he? You sure didn’t have any problem leaving him behind though, huh?”
Sawyer tells her Mike only cares about himself and his kid; neither has squat to do with him.
Michael {Orange shirt} strolls out of the jungle just in time to hear Sawyer say that. Michael's glad Sawyer feels that way.
Sawyer didn’t expect to see Michael again.  Jin talks to Sawyer in Korean, asks about his wound.
Sawyer- “Yeah yeah, Chewie I know. My arms about to fall off.”
Ana asks Eko if he’s okay. He is, but tells her they have to go, “I saw them.”
The awake folks seem concerned and ask how many were there. Libby, with her walking stick, asks if he saw the kids.
Eko, the guide says, “We need to go, now.”
Ana announces they’re moving out.

Shannon and Sayid are resting in each other's arms. She asks him if all this intent means they’re serious now.
Sayid- “Quite definitely not. I do this for all the girls I meet on deserted islands.”
She finds that amusing and whispers, “Don’t go anywhere.”
Sayid- “Where are you going?”
Shannon is thirsty so Sayid offers to get her some water.   He zips up, takes an empty bottle and heads off. A slight breeze blows out the candle and she assumes its Sayid’s quick return. She looks up and sees Walt dripping wet.   Walt says something to her, only it sounds backwards.


Shannon is outside the tent looking toward the water.
Sayid runs and tells her “There’s nothing. No one there.”
Shannon insists, “I saw Walt.”
Sayid- “It was a dream, Shannon.”
She insists, “He was here. I saw him. He went into the tent.”
Sayid was only gone for a few moments, “You must have fallen asleep .”
Shannon- “This was not a dream! I saw Walt!”
Sayid-“Then where is he?”
Charlie shows up and asks them what’s going on.
Sayid tells him nothing, “It’s just a dream. Everything’s fine.”
Shannon seems insulted and storms off.
Claire wanders over and asks Charlie what’s wrong.    Charlie informs her, “Shannon had a nightmare.”     He asks why Aaron is up. {Not sleeping.}

Claire woke him because she heard screams and got worried, “Would you rather I have I left him over there, alone?”   They bicker about waking the baby and about the running toward the screams. Claire feels it sounded like Shannon needed help.
Charlie fusses that now the baby’s awake he’s gonna need feeding and he’ll be up all night, fussy all day. Charlie will tend to Aaron; He kisses Aaron on the head. {Watch Claire here.}

Inside the “love tent”, Shannon angrily packs a bag of her stuff. {Did she have a bag before?} Sayid tells her to “Wait. Wait. Come back with me and let's talk about this.”
Shannon-“Do you believe me?”
He just stares at her. She’s insulted, “No. I know what I saw.” She walks away.

Little girl ballet students are being directed by Shannon. {They are out of sync.}
Sophie asks if her papa saw her.   Shannon fibs and says she thinks he did; as she can see “papa” if flirting/whispering with another dance instructor.
Shannon thanks the “ladies” for a great class today.
{She is sure to tell/touch a tiny Asian girl she did very nice work.}
Shannon and her friend giggle as the little girls leave with their families. Her friend shares, in a mock French accent that Sophie’s dad wants her to be their Au Pair.  Shannon’s cell rings; it’s Sabrina, her step mother.
Sabrina is headed to St. Sebastian’s hospital where Shannon’s father has been taken. Mr. Rutherford has been in an accident. She’ll meet her there.


At St Sebastian’s Mrs. Rutherford and Shannon are met by the Doctor, who tells them about the head on collision with an SUV Adam was in. {Dr. Jack Shephard hurries by with a file}

The Dr.-“Why don’t we talk down here.”
Adam suffered massive internal injuries, he stopped breathing at the site of the accident, “I’m afraid we were unable to resuscitate him.”
Mrs. Rutherford would like to see him; Shannon her step daughter is invited to come along.

Daylight:
Ana Lulu asks Eko, “How much further to their camp?”
Eko- “A day. Maybe more. Maybe less.” {Hmmm...We’ve heard this similar dialog before.}
Ana thanks him for being so specific.
Weakening Sawyer falls to his knees, but tells Libby he’s fine. She wants to take a look at his shoulder.
Sawyer- “What are you...a Doctor?”
Libby- “A clinical psychologist."
Sawyer- “You’re a shrink. Maybe you autta talk to my shoulder.”
She wonders how he got shot anyway. Smart ass Sawyer tells her, “With a gun.”  Michael tells Libby Sawyer got shot when they took his kid.
Sawyer asks her if it’s bad and Libby confirms it's bad, “But it’s not real bad. "You’ll be okay. Let's go.”    Libby looks troubled.
Michael tries to give Sawyer a hand but he’s fine. Bernard offers a hand, but it’s not taken.




Hurley and Rose hang clothes on the line made of wires. He asks her “again” why they’re doing this here when there’s a dryer in the hatch. Rose confesses she doesn’t like the hatch.
Hurley- “Oh. It’s because of the doomsday button, isn’t it?”

Rose feels they don’t need a dryer when they’ve got sun and fresh air, “Wouldn’t wanna spoil ourselves now, would we?”
Shannon and Vincent ask the two if they know where Michael and Walt left the stuff that they didn’t take with them on the raft is; she’s specifically looking for their clothes.
Hurley directs her to their stuff on the beach back where their tent is. Shannon leaves.
Rose says to Hurley that it can’t be easy losing the one person you love on the island. {Watch Hurley here!}
Shannon digs through Michael and Walt’s stuff. She takes Walt’s shirt and shoves it into Vincent’s nose, “That’s his, right? Come on, get a good whiff. You’re always trying to run off and find him. Then find him. Find Walt.”
Vincent, on a leash, takes off running. They run through the jungle. Vincent separates from Shannon right at Boone’s grave marker.{Coincidence? I think not.}





Aaron is crying in his Locke made cradle.Claire {wears 2 shirts} apologizes to the baby for waking him, “Please stay awake for eight hours straight. Isn’t that just cruel and unusual punishment?”
Locke-"How’s that cradle treatin ya?"


Claire tells him the cradle is great, “It’s the baby that’s the problem.”
She tells Locke he just won’t sleep.
Locke asks her permission to...


Locke wraps the baby in his blue blanket, “Babies like the feeling of being constricted. It’s not until we’re older we develop the desire to be free.”

Once Aaron is all constricted, he stops crying.{Mission accomplished! lol} He hands the quiet baby to Claire. Claire thinks everybody knows more about her baby than she does.
Locke- “Everybody?
Claire shares with Locke that Charlie read her the riot act last night for waking him. As mad as that made her, turns out he was right. It's like they're playing mum and dad to "this" baby, yet she does not remember marrying him. Seriously, they're practically strangers "him and me", for all she knows Charlie's a religious freak. Locke seriously doubts that.
Claire- "Then why is he carrying around a Virgin Mary statue?"
She tells Locke its one of the little statues; Charlie said he found it in the jungle.
Locke seems a bit taken aback., "Hmmm? How 'bout that."

Shannon sits in front of Boone's grave marker holding his dark corded necklace.














(Don't forget to click the pics!)





Shannon, dressed in black and black headband. They are at her father's funeral; it's being held ocean side/beach. She sits, starring, struck with grief.
A familiar voice from behind her says, "Death sucks, doesn't it?"

She is happy to see Boone; they hug.
Boone holds her tight, "I'm so sorry, Shannon."
Shannon holds on to him and says, "You came back."
Sabrina sees them in their embrace.



Boone takes two tiny teacups from Shannon's doll house. {It's VERY Alice in Wonderland to me.}

Boone asks where her poster of Marky Mark went.
Shannon's explanation is she's 18. {Age}
Boone "pours" something from a flask into the tiny teacups. Shannon thinks his mom's gonna freak.

Boone-"It's a wake. I mean seriously...who doesn't serve booze at a wake?" {Scotch} Boone sits next to her on the bed, raises his tiny teacup and toasts to Shannon's dad. {Bottoms up!}
He hands her gum, saying, "Maybe after all this you'll come visit me in New York."
Boone sips from the flask.
Shannon won't have to visit if she gets that job at the Martha Graham dance company; she'll be living there. She put in for an internship. It's a 1 in 3,000 chance, but she feels she may get it. Boone trying to be supportive says "absolutely", but it seems Shannon doesn't think he means it. They chat about Shannon not speaking to Boone's mother.
Shannon-"She's going through her things, and I'm going through mine."
She feels Sabrina hates her. Boone encourages her to talk to Sabrina but Shannon feels from day one Sabrina resented her relationship with him/father.
{Flash Whoosh}
The Tailies cross the rocky area near the water. Sawyer {w/machete} is getting weaker. Eko sees this and announces they need a break.
Ana the bitchy boss yells out, "5 minutes!" {Eko hands Sawyer the water container.}
Eko stands, surveying the path ahead.
Ana asks him what he's looking at. Eko says they have to cut inland.
Ana questions their heading into the jungle, "They said their people were on the beach. If we keep walking..."
Eko notes the beach goes into a peninsula ahead, "It may not be passable."
Ana- "May not?"
Eko-"May not."
Ana asks him if he's doing this to get the cowboy back faster, "You would risk our lives to help him?"
It's the only way Eko knows.
The bitch tells him, "I liked you better when you weren't talking."















Claire walks over with swaddled Aaron and tells Locke, "I can't believe he's still asleep."
Locke whispers that swaddling works every time. {Was Locke looking in a broken piece of mirror or something else?}




Claire asks if he would like to hold him.
Locke declines.
Claire has him put his arms out and she places Aaron in them.
Locke likes the good "baby" smell.
Claire agrees. {Uh...he's not food. lol} Charlie walks up.
Claire reveals to Charlie, "John just taught me a new trick. Swaddling."
Charlie came to take Aaron so Claire can take her walk. He gestures to get the baby but Locke looks at Claire. {Why? permission?}
Locke says it's great timing as he's got to get going. {Watch Claire when Locke gets up to hand the baby over.} Claire thanks John for his help and he heads off.
Charlie holds Aaron and is looking at Claire.
Claire-"What?"





Eko and his stick cautiously lead the Tailies through the jungle. They all step gingerly on the path. Libby steps and cracks a branch.
They all whisper, "Shhh!"


Jin says something in Korean to the weakening Sawyer. They bicker; Sawyer responds in English that he's fine. Jin is trying to tell him something.
Aggravated Ana runs over, "Shhh ut up!!"


Michael- "What? They can't talk at all?"
Ana says if he talks he's gonna get us all killed.
Michael-"By what? Them?...I thought they lived a day back that way?"
Ana wants him to shut his mouth, "And get your buddy over here moving."
Michael's getting pissed off with that New York attitude {I know so well} coming out., "What happened to you people?"
He walks right up to Ana, "You want us to take you back with us, fine. But you want me to keep quiet. Then you need to tell me why I have to."
Ana looks back at Eko and Cindy {Why? Permission?} and shares with Michael, "They came the first night that we got here. They took three of us. Nothing happened for two weeks. Then they came back and took nine more. They're smart. And they're animals. And they can be anywhere at any time."
Jin looks around.
Ana continues to say that they're moving through "their jungle", just so he can save his little hick friend. "And if you think that one gun and one bullet is gonna stop them...think again. So shut your mouth and keep moving." {Re-think your move. Hmmm.}
Michael stares and blurts out, "They took my son."
Ana- "They took a lot of things."

Shannon {Holding dark cord necklace} and Vincent {leash} are sitting by Boone's grave marker. {It looks different}
Sayid sits on the log next to her and reveals that he too knows what it is to lose someone you care deeply about.
Shannon- "You really think this is all about Boone?...I saw Walt."
Sayid wants to know then why are they sitting at Boone's grave. She gets up in a huff, takes Vincent by the leash and tells Sayid, "Just go back, Sayid."
He asks her where she's going.
Shannon-"To find him."



Shannon looks sad as she sits at the table. {She has a ballet barre in her apt.} Her friend brings her a white letter size envelope. {It has a yellow address label on it}
Shannon says she can't open it so she pushes the envelope across the table and tells her friend to open it.
Shannon's been waiting six months for this letter, there's no way her friend is opening it.
Shannon opens the letter to receive the news that she got it. The girls jump up and down with joy; Shannon's going to New York. The phone rings, apparently her rent check bounced.
Her friend is very surprised, "But, you're like...rich."


Shannon sits on the couch in Sabrina's house. Rude Sabrina would have offered her something to drink but she has to be at a meeting in 10 minutes. Shannon timidly tells Sabrina her rent checks are bouncing. Sabrina feels that's what she gets when you make withdrawals and don't make deposits. {Hmmm...taking never giving. Karma}
Shannon outright asks when will she get the money from the will her father left her. Sabrina informs Shannon there was no will; they had a living trust, "Everything passed to me."
There was nothing specifically designated to Shannon.
Shannon is shocked, "Why would he do that?"
Sabrina- "Well. Maybe he just wanted you to find your own way. We all have to work, Shannon. Most of us are the better for it."
Shannon can work, she explains she got the prestigious internship; she won't be earning any money but will be working 16 hours a day.
Sabrina- "The only thing I've seen you do 16 hours a day straight is sleep."
Shannon just needs to get to New York.
Sabrina mocks her habit of changing her mind. Last year Shannon was interested in interior design. Sabrina knows Shannon will never pay her back, "And you'll only hate yourself even more."
Shannon pleads with her, "I really want this. I can do this."
Sabrina apologizes-"You're on your own."


Lucky Locke rolls double sixes. He's playing backgammon with Charlie.
Locke hopes Charlie didn't get the wrong idea about seeing him with the baby.
Locke's aware that Charlie and Claire are close and he spends a lot of time with Aaron, "I just wouldn't want to over step my bounds."
Charlie asks if Claire told him they had a fight.
She didn't say it was a fight.
Charlie mentions she was gonna give it up for adoption and asks if Claire mentioned that to Locke. Yep, she told Locke when he built the cradle.
Charlie- "Ah, of course...When you built the cradle."
Charlie feels Claire's got a bit to learn about being a mum, "Responsibility and all."
Locke thinks that's an interesting thing for a heroin addict to say.
Charlie corrects him, "Recovering addict."
Locke gives him, "Recovering...It's your turn."
We can hear the dice get thrown.

Eko leads the Tailies through the high grass.
At the end of the line Jin is helping weak Sawyer.
Bernard offers help and his hand, Jin turns him down. Bernard looks puzzled by that. Michael and Jin seem to communicate/understand each other. Michael tells Jin to take a break, he'll help Sawyer.
Sawyer says to Michael, "You suddenly give a damn about me."
He tells them both to leave him alone, "I got it."
Sawyer takes a few steps and collapses.
Michael tries to wake passed out Sawyer. {Listen to the voice that says Sawyer.}
Sawyer opens his eyes and says to Michael, "I would have left you behind."
Michael-"Shut up, man. Don't try to..."
Weak Sawyer says, "I did leave you behind."
Michael- "Yeah, well...Good thing I aint you."
They share a smile then Sawyer passes out.

Jin calls out for water in English. Everybody runs over to them except for annoyed Ana and Eko. Libby and Mike try to pour the water into Sawyer's mouth but he doesn't respond. Libby says it's due his fever, infection, and he's dehydrated.  Ana tells them they gotta keep moving.   She doesn't give a shit about Sawyer. Jin says something to her in Korean.
Ana- "You wanna stay, that's fine. But we're rolling out."
Bernard steps in to say to Ana they just can't leave him.
Libby thinks they could rest a little while he'll regain consciousness.
Ana- "Rest? Here?"
She asks Libby, "Do you remember what happened to us? What they did to us? You remember Goodwin?"
Eko looks unimpressed with her display.
Cindy thinks Ana's right and they should push on.
Michael jumps in, "You know what...I don't remember Goodwin whispers. Ana draws her gun and tells them to "RUN!"

Shannon is in her red door apartment packing boxes. Boone shows up.
He pulls up a chair, sits down and tells Shannon, "She said no."
Shannon looks like a mess; her hair is disheveled and she looks beat.
Boone guesses "she didn't know why I asked for the money."
Broken Shannon asks if she can crash at Boone's place in New York for a while, just until she gets on her feet.
Boone shares the news that he's leaving New York because she offered him a really good job. Shannon is blown away that Boone is going to work for his mother. He has a white envelope for her, it's all the money he has right now. Boone's trust fund will kick in at the end of the month, then after that he can absolutely keep her afloat. Insulted Shannon thanks him but she will figure out a way to make her own money.
Boone compassionately says, "But who knows when that's gonna be. Just take it."
Shannon gets defensive, "Why? You don't think I can do it?"
He didn't say that.
Shannon- "You believe I can or don't you, Boone?"
He doesn't answer.
She gets pissed off, puts the envelope in his hands, tells him to go work for his mother, she doesn't want his money.
Boone's just trying to help her.
Boone turns to leave.
Thunder rolls.


A pouring rain thunder storm in the jungle.
Vincent is literally pulling Shannon.
Sayid is running behind them.
Shannon falls and Vincent runs ahead.
Sayid wants to help her up and she demands he does not help her up.
Sayid- "Let's go back."

Shannon looks at him and asks, "Why don't you believe me? I need you to believe in me."
Sayid tells her he does believe in her.
Shannon doesn't believe that, "You don't. No one does. They think that I'm some kind of joke. They think I'm worthless."
Sayid looks in to her eyes and tells her she is not worthless. Upset Shannon says he says that now, "but you don't...You're just gonna leave me. I know as soon as we get out of here, you're just gonna leave me."
She's crying.
Sayid tenderly touches her face and tells her he will never leave her, "I love you. And I believe you."
Shannon- "You do?"
Sayid- "I do."
Shannon is visibly relieved. They hug.
They both hear whispers.
Sayid sees something over Shannon's shoulder. It's Walt!
Walt puts his pointer finger to his lips to say, "Shhhhh."
Sayid just stares.
Shannon asks Sayid, "Do you see him?"
Stunned Sayid just nods yes.
Shannon turns back to face Walt and he's still in the "Shhhh" stance.
Shannon calls out to Walt. {We get a view of Shannon and Sayid from behind Walt. We actually see the back of Walt.}
Shannon yells for him and starts to run to him, but Walt takes off running.
Sayid is motionless, staring, almost hypnotized.
Shannon yells again for Walt and this snaps Sayid out of his trance.
Sayid calls out for Shannon and runs after her. Sayid trips over a branch. He takes off running again. A gunshot rings out. Sayid makes his way to see Shannon turn around and face him. She has been shot. She falls into his arms.
She appears to die in his arms.
He holds her as he cries. He looks up to see Bitch Ana Lucia with her gun drawn.
Mr. Eko stands behind her. Jin and Michael see it's Sayid holding shot Shannon.
Sayid is pissed. {He didn't do a good job of protecting her, if it was her he was to protect.}



















Abandoned is a GREAT episode!! Let's get to it.

Things to note...Questions to ask...
* Eye color.
* Sawyer remembers leaving Michael behind. This must have happened already. The last time he did something a bit different.
* Should Michael "remember" Goodwin?
* Charlie is very comfortable taking care of Aaron; it’s almost fatherly.
* Alice in Wonderland. Down the Rabbit Hole. Jack.
* Trick. Believe.
* Lost. Direction. Guide. Backwards.
* Chance. Odds. Game.
* Choreographing a ballet/dance/exercise. Teach/instruct/direct. Student. Passed.
* Playing roles.
* Languages. Linguistics. French. Korean.
* Dream. Nightmare. Vision. Rest. Sleep. Awake. Remember. Don't remember. "Ssshhh" Consciousness.
* Rose prefers sun and fresh air to the dryer. Does she prefer nature as opposed to machines/technology?  Also, does she know the use of the hatch and its dryer is only temporary?
* Why didn't anyone accept Bernard's help when he offered it?
* So, the dog’s always trying to run off and find Walt. Hmmm. Is Walt nearby?
* Claire refers to Aaron as "this baby" and says things like, "It's the baby that's the problem." Charlie even refers to Aaron as "it".
* "...the first night that we got here." Speaking more as if they arrived not "crashed" there. And Shannon says to Sayid "...as soon as we get out of here". They all speak as if they are on the "island" for a reason, like they arrived on vacation, not that they're "crash" survivors waiting to be rescued.
* If it’s not a dream and both Shannon and Sayid saw Walt, could it be a projected image? Smoke and mirrors, so to speak.   If it’s a projected image, that could account for the audio being played backwards.
*What's real and not real? Who is real and not real?

Vocabulary and Research...
* Pepper's ghost is an illusion technique used in theater and in some magic tricks. Using a plate glass and special lighting techniques, it can make objects seem to appear or disappear, or make one object seem to "morph" into another.
* Musion Eyeliner is a modern commercial variation of a stage illusion called Pepper’s ghost, using high definition video projection or LED screens to allow moving images to appear within a live stage setting.
* Holography is a technique that allows the light scattered from an object to be recorded and later reconstructed so that it appears as if the object is in the same position relative to the recording medium as it was when recorded. The image changes as the position and orientation of the viewing system changes in exactly the same way as if the object were still present, thus making the recorded image (hologram) appear three dimensional.
* Tomography is imaging by sections or sectioning. A device used in tomography is called, while the image produced is a Tomogram.  The method is used in medicine, archeology, biology, geophysics, oceanography, material science, astrophysics and other sciences. {X-rays, CAT scans, MRI}
* An au pair is a foreign-national domestic assistant working for, and living as part of a family. The title comes from the French term , meaning "on a par" or "equal to", indicating that the relationship is intended to be one of equals: the au pair is intended to become a member of the family,
* Ballet: American slang for strip club.
* Mauna-Vow of silence 
* Cradle: 1).A bed for a baby, oscillating, rockers or swinging on pivots. 2). (figuratively) The place of origin, or in which anything is nurtured or protected in the earlier period of existence. 3). (figuratively) Infancy,or very early life. i.e. from the cradle to the grave. 4). A framework of timbers, or iron bars, moving upon ways or rollers, used to support, lift, or carry ships or other vessels, heavy guns, etc., as up an inclined plane, or across a strip of land, or in launching a ship. 5). A case for a broken or dislocated limb.
* Swaddle- To restrain or restrict.





I was excited to see the Alice in Wonderland theme running through this one.  The Tailies are on their journey to the beach camp.  The life size chess pieces are on the move, or more like being moved around.  A few chess pieces were even removed from the board.

The entire scene with Boone and Shannon in her room after the wake is...very Wonderland!  Knowing how Alice's experiences are happening in the book, can we assume the experiences the "Island" residents are having are happening while they are asleep, in their subconscious or unconscious mind?  Well with all the references to sleeping {and "a wake"}  running ramped here, I believe that is the case.

There is a definite nod to being guided.   Are some of the people we see "guides"?
We also witnessed a lot of carrying going on in this episode; we see the Tailies physically carry Sawyer.  It was a burden to do this, but it was necessary to work together to get to the top of the hill. Shannon has been carrying some very heavy emotional baggage/burdens, but then again, they all are.

This episode showed us what Shannon was looking for. She wanted to deal with the pain of loss but more importantly she wanted someone to truly believe in her. They all are desperately looking for something, something within themselves.

We all want people that are close to us to believe in us, but we need to believe in ourselves first. You have to find your own way, even when it's very hard and even when you don't want to. Struggling through something can be extremely painful, but when we finally do find what we're looking for, all on our own...we'll be the better for it.

Love to all who are "LOST"™

Here's a pic combo of the two times we see Boone's grave marker.



















Posted on MySpace 2007.


Disclaimer: I never claim to know everything about the show and my thoughts by no means make me right! The things I share here are my views and/or opinions. I don't claim to catch every single detail either! You all know I hate spoilers! And I stand clear of reading certain sites as to not take me off my own course of research. The one thing I don't need to do here is rehash all of the obvious clues from an episode; we all know what they are. Understood? Let the fun begin! I'll only note things that I know come up as clues later, but need to be noted when they first show up and things I find that will be of importance.

June 14, 2009

All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues.

Let's talk about LOST! All The Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues.
“He wasn’t on the plane!” Hurley is heard saying.
Sayid is shown sleeping while Jack works on his injured leg. Upset Hurley goes on to reveal Ethan the Canadian guy wasn’t on the passenger manifest. They all start to get worked up.
Jack calls out, “Has anyone seen Ethan? Has anyone seen Ethan?” {He asks twice.}
Michael {Orange shirt} has seen him; on the path to the beach to get wood. He asks, “Is he/Sayid okay? What happened?”
Panicked Jack wonders, “Where’s Charlie? Where’s Charlie?” {Again he asks twice. Interesting.}
Locke informs Jack “He went after Claire.”


Jack is running through the jungle extremely fast;  Locke is running right behind him. {It actually looks like he’s chasing Jack or two animals running.} Though they are tear-assin through the jungle, Locke happens to spot Claire’s bag off to the side; not even on the same path they were running. He takes out his knife.
Jack-“She was moving back to the beach. Claire. That’s hers. What happened? What…”
Locke notes at least three distinct sets of footprints all over the place, “Looks like there might have been a struggle.”
Focused Locke also notes drag marks.
Jack-“Charlie. They were together.”
Locke thinks they’ve been taken. Jack starts calling out for Claire and Charlie.
Locke tells Jack to “Shhhh.”
Detective Locke notes the broken foliage and fresh tracks. It doesn’t make any sense.  Jack wonders how can one man drag off two people; one of them pregnant.
Locke-“You’re asking the wrong question. Not ‘how?’…why?”
Jack-“You think it was Ethan?”
Locke-“Certainly feels like it was Ethan, doesn’t it?”
Jack-“By himself? How?” {Again, Jack didn't ask "why?"}
Locke says they can’t account for all of our people. And more importantly who’s to say they’re even our people?
Jack-“What?”
Locke-“Sayid said there were others.
Jack corrects him, “Sayid said we’re not alone.”
Locke-“Semantics.
Jack feels Sayid is injured and they don’t even know where he went, “He’s delirious.”
Locke is just telling Jack what the ground is telling him.
Jack-“So which way is the ground telling you that they went?
Locke tells him they don’t know what’s going on here; they need to prepare. They can be back at the caves in 10 minutes and organize a search party. {Locke’s eye color.} Jack just wants to know which way they went.
Locke points in the direction with his knife.


Jack takes off running extremely fast through the jungle.

Jack is performing surgery on a woman who is “in arrest.” {Heart}
The flat-line sound is heard from the heart monitor. Jack calls out for the crash cart. They charge the defib; Jack calls “Clear.”
Jack tries desperately to revive the patient, but to no avail. Jack even encourages her to “Come on back…you can do this…come on.”
The rest of the medical team is pretty much just there, not participating.
Standing off to the side in the dark is Christian. He tells Jack to “Call it, Jack…It’s over! Call it.” Jack removes his mask and protective glasses and tells him, “You call it.”
{Flash Whoosh}
Kate-“You let him go alone?”
In the cave Locke tells Kate not to worry; he’ll catch up.  He asks her what's the word from the beach.
Kate-“Nothing. Nobody has seen him. I’m coming with you.”
Locke figured she’d might; and he hands her a knife.  Boone hears Locke is forming a search party and wants to help. Shannon is freaked. She wonders how Boone is going to find them.
Locke-”By following Ethan’s trail. No one can walk through the wilderness without leaving a signs, bending blades of grass, breaking twigs.  Especially with captives in tow.” And yes, Locke could use another hand. Boone’s up for it.
They get moving.

Walt, who has Vincent on the leash, wants to help by utilizing Vincent; he could sniff something that belonged to Charlie. Michael says no.
Michael tells Locke a lot of them don’t want to just sit there and wait for news, they want to help. Locke basically tells they’re set, “Anyone else is gonna just slow us down.”
Michael will put together another party.
Locke thinks that's a good idea. They’re going north; he suggests Michael should head south.

Jack is running through the jungle and stops at spot looking around. {Bird sounds, wings flutter.} He seems to be looking for a sign of some sort. He grabs at a branch, lets it go and just stares.
{Flash Whoosh}
The dead patient's eyes are taped closed and her head is covered with the sheet. Christian never thought he’s see the day when Jack would barge into his O.R. and work on his patient. Jack feels Christian didn’t have to do this procedure.  Christian doesn’t have to do anything, he chose to do this procedure; this emergency procedure.
Christian-“Because when this girl crashed in the E.R. they called me.”
Jack-“I was right upstairs.”
Christian-“And you should have stayed upstairs. And how did you find out?”
One of the nurses went to get Jack.
Christian wonders who, but Jack won’t give her up. Christian sarcastically says he’s grateful he has Jack and some anonymous nurse to rescue him.  Jack was told Christian’s hands were shaking; he cut her artery. Christian is adamant about her insides being a mess because of the car crash.
Jack doesn’t care whether they called Christian or not, “You made a mistake.”
Christian reveals while Jack was upstairs Christian was in a restaurant having lunch and he was the one they called. Jack asks dad how many drinks he had at lunch.

Locke calls out to Jack and Jack snaps out of his “trance”.
Locke tells Jack it’s a good thing he was going in a circle; it’s not much of a search grid but they wouldn’t have found him otherwise. Kate asks Jack if he found anything.
Nope, he didn’t.
Locke suggests Jack go back to the caves for Sayid’s leg.
Jack already dressed Sayid’s leg, "You found me. We can find Charlie and Claire. Now do we have a trail to follow or not?” {Watch Kate and Boone in the background. It’s weird how they just stay put with their backs to the conversation.}
Locke feels this is his fault as he hunted with Ethan and spent time with him and never sensed anything 'off'. But for everything Locke knows about hunting, tracking, whoever he is, he knows more. If they catch up to him Locke doesn’t want anything to happen to the only trained physician on the island, “So go back. Be the doctor. Let me be the hunter.
Stubborn Jack-“Can we go now?”
Locke-“Follow me.”
Kate, looking concerned, watches them walk off.
While in the caves filing up water bottles, Michael complaining to Hurley about Locke telling him to go south; like he’s just going to get in the way or something. Hurley thinks they’re all feeling tweaked, including Locke.
Michael doesn’t care as he has five other guys who are going out there with him, putting their necks on the line trying to find Charlie and Claire.
Michael is tired of getting treated like a second class citizen around there cause Mount Baldy can bag a boar.
Walt feels Mr. Locke can do a lot more than bag a boar, “Mr. Locke’s a warrior. He can hunt, he can track stuff and he’s the only one who brought knives. So if it were me, I’d listen to him.”
Michael does not want Walt to listen to Locke.
Walt understands.
Michael wants Walt to stay with Hurley, “I might not be a warrior, but I am going south.” {He says it as if that’s the only way he can go. Lol}
Hurley tells Walt that back home, “I’m known as something of a warrior myself.”  Walt obviously doesn’t believe him.

Locke uses hit teeth to tear strips of bright red fabric to use as markers. “We mark our progress by line of site, tie these off so we don’t get lost.
Concerned Boone wants to be sure Locke can lead them back to camp and Locke will, “If nothing happens to me.”
Boone-“Maybe I better take marker detail.”
Locke hands him the bright red fabric.”

Jack and Kate run up to them. Locke hasn’t found anything yet, but feels he’ll pick up the trail again. He tells them, “We need to rest a minute to get our clarity back.”
Jack-“You’re gonna take a break? It’s gotta be almost 4:00, when the sunsets…”
Locke looks at his watch- “It’s 4:25 and yes, I’m taking a break.”
You can see this pisses Jack off. Kate wants to talk to Jack.
Kate asks Jack, “Would it kill you to give the guy a little space?”
Jack-“It might.
Kate wants him to stop that; she wants to know what’s going on.
Jack shares that he didn’t believe Claire; he gave her a sedative, “She told me someone was after her, that she was being attacked. And I…she just seemed so out of it. I thought that her pregnancy was amping up her stress. I didn’t believe her.”
Boone yells out for Jack. We see a quick montage of Charlie's “L” tape and him writing on the “L” tape at the beach. {LATE}
Locke asks Jack, “Look familiar.”
As Jack takes the tape out of Locke’s hand it looks like Jack’s hand has blood {or dirt} on it, “It's Charlie's.”
The tape didn’t just come off; he’s leaving them a trail. Locke concurs with Jack.
The foursome look around the jungle for more of Charlie's left behind clues.
Jack finds the tape with the “A” on it and tells the gang, “They went this way.”
Locke isn’t so sure, “There’s another trail here.”
Jack-“What do you mean another?”
Locke-“These are footprints. People moved off this way.”
Jack checks it out and tells Locke that Charlie's leaving these for us to follow, “They went that way.”
Kate suggests, “Unless Charlie isn’t the one leaving them. If Ethan knows that we’re behind him, he could be setting up a dummy trail. Take off in one direction, double back in his own footprints.”
Boone-“Wait. Now you’re a tracker?”
Locke tells Kate she’s just full of surprises. Jack suggests splitting up due to two trails, “I’ll take that one.”
Locke suggests they stay together. Jack thinks they still should split up because they have two trails and two trackers. {Locke doesn’t seem happy that he’s not the only tracker.}
Locke tells Jack to be careful and they split off.

Who got taken by what?” Sawyer asks Walt in the jungle.
Walt informs him of the whole Charlie and Claire and Ethan taking them, story.
Sawyer bends down to tie his shoe and asks,”Took em why? And who the hell’s Ethan?”
Walt doesn’t know,“His name wasn’t on the list thing, the manifest.”
Sawyer suggests to Walt that he might have lied about his name. Walt feels it’s stupid to lie about your name.
Sawyer asks Tattoo where he thinks Ethan came from.
Walt-“Maybe he was already on the island before were."
Sawyer feels the kid has one hell of an imagination. Walt says there can be lots of other people on the island.
Sawyer-“So a tribe of evil natives planted a ringer in the camp to kidnap a pregnant girl and a reject from VH1 has-beens. Yeah. Fiendishly clever.”
Walt is unimpressed. Sawyer wonders why he’s getting the evening news from a six year old.
Walt-“I’m 10."
Sawyer- “Okay. Then it must be true.”
Walt says if he doesn’t believe him to ask Sayid, “He said we’re not alone.”
Sawyer-“Sayid’s back?”
Walt ’kind of’ nods and walks away with his stick.
Boone is tying a red strip of fabric onto a tree as a marker. “Red shirt.”
He asks Locke if he ever watched Star Trek. Locke looks like he can’t be bothered with this. “Not really.”
Boone shares that the crew guys that would go down to the planet with the main guys, The Captain,red the guy with the pointy ears, always wore shirts and they always got killed. {As Boone tugs on the red fabric.}
Locke feels it sounds like a piss poor Captain. This statement amuses Boone. He asks Mr. Locke what he does in the real world.
Locke-“It’s John. Why don’t you guess?”
As they continue to look for clues Boone thinks he’s either a taxidermist or a hit man. John laughs and tells him, “I was a regional collections supervisor for a Box company.
Boone-“A box company?” he says, surprised by John’s reveal.
Locke-“They made boxes.”
Boone doesn’t believe him.

On their path Kate tells Jack to slow down, but he is determined to go in the direction Kate gave. Although she admits she only thinks they went that way, “I’m not as good at this as Locke is.”
Jack asks her if she picked up the tracking skills before or after she was on the run. Annoyed Jack wants some honesty from her, “Something real. Anything.”
Kate shares her dad was “in the Army, Ranger Battalion. We were stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington State. We go hiking together. One day we spent eight hours tracking deer. Being in the woods, it was like…his religion.”
Kate looks uneasy and makes like she’s looking for tracks/something. She tells him “That was real. Anything you wanna share, Jack?”
{Very short Flash Whoosh}
Jack enters Christian's office. {Jack dressed in light and dark, no wedding ring,also note his hospital badge. Blue eyes}
Christian, who is sitting behind his desk, would like for Jack to sign a report about “the truth”. “That a patient was brought to the E.R. following a car accident, rushed into surgery with massive internal bleeding, you joined me, and in spite of our most heroic efforts, the patient succumbed to her injuries.”
Jack-“Looks like you fixed everything but the patient.“
Jack feels dad had no business being in O.R.. Christian wouldn’t have walked in there if he couldn’t have handled it.
Jack-“You’ve done it before.”
Christian has done it before because he’s perfectly capable. Jack wonders how he can say that after what happened yesterday, “You were impaired!”
Christian claims to know his limits. Jack won’t sign this.
 Christian reminds Jack he’s part of a team, “I’m not the only one on the hook for this. You called me off. {Like a dog?} You were the surgeon of record when she died.  Look, accidents happen in surgeries all the time, Jack, that’s the truth and you know it. But if you contradict this report, if you mention alcohol…well that’s the only fact that’s gonna matter. They’ll strip me of my license.” {Jack has been pacing the whole time.}

Jack emphatically says, “Yes, they will.”
Now Christian looks concerned and troubled. “I know I have been hard on you, but that is how you make a soft metal into steel. That is why you are the most gifted young surgeon in this city. And this… this is a career that is all about the greater good. I've had to sacrifice certain aspects of my relationship with you so that hundreds and thousands of patients will live because of your extraordinary skills. {He puts his hand on Jack’s shoulder and they share a very bizarre moment together.} I know it's a long, a long time coming. What happened yesterday, I promise you, will never happen again. And after all what I've given…this is not just about my career, Jack. It's my life."
Jack signs the paper. Christian thanks him.

Sayid is sleeping in the caves.
He jolts awake when Sawyer is next to him.
Sawyer doesn’t know if those Islam’s have a concept of Karma but he feels the island just served him up with a heaping platter of cosmic payback.
Sawyer has to hump it up to the caves to get his meds because Dr. Do-right doesn’t trust him with the antibiotics. He intimidates Sayid. {Sawyer’s fingers have dirty white tape on them.}
Sayid tells Sawyer to take his shot, “But know that I left this camp out of shame for what I did to you. It was never my intention to return.
Sayid returned because he was taken prisoner by the French woman who was on a ship wrecked science expedition. She said that there are “Others” on this island. She believes her people had all gotten sick; she murdered her entire team.  He doesn’t know who these Others are and she’s never seen them, but she knows they’re there. {If you believe her.}
Sayid isn’t sure if he believes her, but on his way back he heard something in the jungle surrounding him.  Sawyer tells Sayid the tide is coming up the beach and that he kept Sayid’s signal fire burning and he exits the cave.
At the beach Walt and Hurley are playing backgammon. “Yahoo!”
Walt blows in the cup for a long time; he needs a 4 - 3.
Hurley- “Dude! Would you please roll?”
Walt rolls a 4 and a 3; his skills have gotten very good!  Hurley’s turn; he rolls a 6 and a 3. Hurley didn’t just start playing; he took 17th in a tournament once.  Hurley feels 17th is very good.
Walt’s turn, he blows in the cup again wanting to roll double sixes. And he does!
Walt-“I’m lucky.
His dad said he was the luckiest person he ever knew. Not Michael of course; Brian his other father.
Walt wins and wants to play one more game; double or nothing.
Hurley {lucky lotto winner}, owes Walt $20,000 and will be sure he gets it. He’s off to a “meeting

In the jungle Boone tells Locke it been 15 minutes since they’ve seen any sign. “What are we following?”
John-“My gut.”
John asks Boone what he does in the real world. Boone runs a subsidiary of a wedding business; his mother has this “empire”.
John wonders who is running it now.
Boone-“I guess it doesn’t matter.   John touches Boone's shoulder and tells him he’s sure there are people who can run it temporarily. {Why? Is Boone going back there?} He also says, “It’s gonna start raining in one minute.”
Give or take a few seconds.
Locke tells Boone he should head back, the trails been cold a quarter mile, dangerous terrain ahead; if he starts now he can make it back to camp before dark.   Locke admires Boone courage and Locke can take care of himself. Boone isn’t heading back.
It starts to rain and John is happy.
Boone wonders if they taught Locke how to predict the weather in at a box company.
In the rainy jungle Jack feels he and Kate were right; he found the letter “T”.
When he asks Kate 'where to now', very strange and loud sounds begin; screams. He runs off in search of their source and Kate calls out to him.
Kate, “Where are you going?
Jack climbs the hill and asks if she heard “her”.
Kate-“What? Hear who?” {Kate heard something for sure! But was it something different than what Jack heard?}
They both struggle they’re way up the rainy, muddy hill. Jack slides down to the bottom.
Standing over him in the rain is Ethan.
Ethan kicks Jack and warns him, “If you do not stop following me, I will kill one of them. Do you understand?” {As he’s squishing his foot down on jack like he’s a bug.} Jack gathers up his anger and uses it to fight Ethan. Although Jack tries, Ethan kicks Jack’s ass!
Ethan-“No more warning.”  And kicks Jack in the face; knocking him out.

Jack, dressed in scrubs and his white Dr’s coat, walks down the hall and sees Christian talking to another man at the other end of the hallway.
Jack asks Andrea about the man Christian is talking to. That’s her husband; he’s threatening to sue. Jack sees Christian put his hand on the man’s shoulder in an effort to comfort him. Jack has seen this gesture from dad as well. {Jack knows the truth of this case and yet in an effort to win Jack’s sympathy Christian used the same gesture to get Jack to sign the paper.} You can hear Christian’s voice as if it’s whispers.
The husband cries.

“Jack……” Kate wakes Jack. {There is something else said when Kate says ‘Jack’, but I can’t make it out.}
Jack-“How long was I out?
Kate tells him 4 minutes;You slammed your…on the rocks.
Jack tells her Ethan was here but Kate just says he banged his head. She insists he has to stop; the rain washed away the trail even if he was here.
Jack is on a mission, “I’m not letting him do this.”
Kate- “Not letting him?!”
Jack-“Not again.”
{Flash Whoosh}
At the meeting with the hospital board, Jack is deep in thought while Christian tells the board “We realized that her blood pressure was continuing to drop precipitously, at which point the patient went into cardiac arrest. Of course, every effort was made to resuscitate her, but the severity of her injuries, the amount of internal bleeding, made that impossible. Now, in my professional opinion, ladies and gentlemen, and that's all I have, by the time I was called in the damage was irreversible.”
The man at the head of the table apologizes to Christian for this formality. Just one final detail, “You were aware of the patient’s pregnancy when you went into the procedure.”
Christian says yes; the husband informed the attending in the E.R. and it was extremely early in the pregnancy so their primary focus had to be on the mother. This news stuns Jack. {Did Jack not look at her chart at all?!} A final report will be filed.
The meeting is about to adjourn when Jack indicates he needs to revise his statement. Jack reveals he didn’t come into the O.R. until well into the procedure. He was warned by one of the nurses that his father was operating under the influence. Christian tries to interrupt Jack but Jack goes on. “By the time I got there it was clear that my father was not only incapacitated, but that he had also severed the patient's hepatic artery, which, in my professional opinion, caused the crisis which led to her death.”
Christian is stunned.
{Flash Whoosh}
Jack and Kate continue to make their way through the jungle. They come upon Charlie, who is blindfolded and hanging unconscious from the Banyan tree. {The tape letter “E” is still on his left index finger.}
Jack holds on to Charlie, trying to keep him up, while Kate cuts him down. All the while Jack is holding hanging Charlie he is literally slipping in the mud. Kate cuts him down.
Jack checks his eyes and also determines he’s not breathing. He tries desperately to resuscitate him. Kate is crying.
Jack doesn’t give up!
He pounds on Charlie's chest 23 times. Seeming as Charlie is gone, Kate tells Jack “It's okay.”
Jack still doesn’t give up and pounds on Charlie's chest some more. Kate wants Jack to stop. On Jack’s 9th whack Charlie is back gasping for air. Jack cradles Charlie in his arms and tells him to breathe deep.

Back at the caves Charlie is in shock; he’s just staring. {This guy has been through more crap the past few weeks than many go through in an entire lifetime!}
Walt hugs Michael after a long day of searching.
Walt-“They brought Charlie back but he hasn’t said anything since he came back.”
They didn’t find Claire.
Jack checks Charlie's neck. “Does that hurt? How's your breathing? {Charlie just stares.} Charlie, you've got to talk to me. We're going to back out and look for Claire the moment the sun comes up, and I could really use your help. And anything that you can tell me about what you remember, where you were going. Did you see or hear...?”
Charlie-“I didn’t see anything…hear anything. I don’t remember...anything…Claire…That’s all they wanted….All they wanted was Claire.”

Shannon's worried that Boone and John aren’t back yet. Kate tells her not to worry, if there's anyone on this island your brother is safe with, it's Locke.  Freaky huh?!

In the dark jungle Boone asks Locke, “Are we lost?
No. they’re not lost. Boone can’t see how Locke can be following his trail; he thinks they should go back.
Locke-"Don’t you feel it?"
Boone-“Feel what?”
Locke-“It.
Boone’s gonna follow the strips back. Boone needs the flashlight more than Locke does, so he tosses it over to him. The flashlight falls to the ground onto something metal. Locke claims it to be steel. Boone asks what it is.
Locke-“That’s what we’re gonna find out.
They wipe away the leaves, dirt and mud.






All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues is a GREAT EPISODE! It shows us the relationship between Jack and Christian. Christian has a bit of a liking for happy hour. Jack is in professional mode at all times, or so it seems. He ultimately doesn't want to lie for his father, even though Christian has made sacrifices for Jack. {I wonder what sacrifices they could be. Hmmm.}

We also get more insight to Locke. Did he send Jack into Ethan's path? Locke can predict the rain and he can claims to physically feel it; whatever is pulling at him, yet he hung out with Ethan and never sensed anything “off”.

Walt knows of Locke's strengths and we know a few Castaways trust him enough to feel safe; and even that Locke would be the one to save them. {Keep that info for later too.}

I must question Jack’s encounter with Ethan. Jack experiences a physical fight with Ethan yet Kate chalks it up to Jack hitting his head.   Where was Kate when “Ethan” was fighting Jack?  Did she not see him?  Why wouldn’t she have seen him?  I wonder if the “Ethan” encounter was only for Jack to experience.


Things to Note...Questions to ask…
* It is very important to note when the “Flash Whoosh” sound is signified and when it is not. Especially when we see an off “Island” event happening. Why, you ask?… Because it’s not always there! I believe that’s because they blur together.
* Locke-Warrior.
* Game. Playing. Teams. Captain. Tournament. Sacrifice. Time. Win.
* Wrong/weird
* Karma. Path. Wood. Water. See. Hear. Chakras.
* Boone mentions here that he works for his mothers wedding company. In the pilot episode he tells Jack he’s a licensed Lifeguard.
* I love how Boone is in the jungle with the red fabric attached to him.
* Eye color.
* Drinking. Addiction.
* Why wasn’t Jack the first choice to do the surgery?
* Michael headed south.
* Sawyer seemed more interested that Sayid heard things in the jungle not really about Danielle.
* Made up names. Fake identities. Double lives/jobs/careers. Anonymous nurse.
* “Be the Doctor. Let me be the hunter.” Plus a Tracker. As if they’re assigned a role to play. But here Locke sounds like he wants to be the hunter.
* Real World…as opposed to fake or unreal world? It is possible some of the people aren’t real either.
* Ethan-Already on the island. Native.
* Shhhh. Sleeping.
* The word LATE is an anagram for TALE.
* In Jack's "Flash" Christian talks about how the "primary focus had to be on the mother" and Charlie tells Jack "All they wanted was Claire."
* Jack hits Charlie in the chest 23 times. Then 9 more.

Vocabulary and Research...
* Semantics: The study of meaning. Language. The Greek word semantikos,"significant", "to signify, to indicate" and that from sema, "sign, mark, token. 2).In Linguistics: it is the study of interpretation of signs or symbols as used by agents or communities within particular circumstances and contexts. Within this view, sounds, facial expressions, body language, proxemics has semantic (meaningful) content, and each has several branches of study.
* Grid: A system for delivery of electricity, consisting of various substations, transformers and generators, connected by wire.
-In computing: A system or structure of distributed computers working mostly on a peer-to-peer basis, such structures being known as a computational grid or simply grid computing, and used mainly to solve single and complex scientific or technical problems or to process data at high speeds (as in clusters).
-Grid Compass-the first laptop computer released in 1982
-Cartography: A method of marking off maps into areas.
-Tension grid-an area of a theater.
- Managerial grid model-a behavioral leadership model.
* Mark, or marches, the border territory of a country.
* Marker: An object used to mark a location or even a place in a game. 2). Someone or something that marks. 3). A felt-tipped pen. 4). A signed note of a debt to be paid.
* A hatch is a small door or opening as on a ship. 2). Emerge from an egg.





This episode gives us a look into a dynamic with Jack and "Christian".
We also get a hint to Walt and his issue with more than one dad. These people seem to have emotional issues that have their insides all messed up.

I can’t help but note that Locke has taken Boone under his wing for this quest. Speaking of my favorite Mr. Locke…predicts the rain. Hmmm…is it precognition or does he just “know” it’s coming.
This is all SO exciting.

Love to all who are "LOST"™

Disclaimer: I never claim to know everything about the show and my thoughts by no means make me right. The things I share here are my views and/or opinions. I don't claim to catch every single detail either. You all know I hate spoilers, and I stand clear of reading certain sites as to not take me off my own course of research. The one thing I don't need to do here is rehash all of the obvious clues from an episode, we all know what they are. Understood? Good. Let the fun begin! I'll only note things that I know come up as clues later, but need to be noted when they first show up and things I find that will be of importance. It will get very exciting as we progress into the story.