do all dreams have hidden meanings?

when we were on vacation over at lake tahoe earlier this month, we went fishing at a nearby lake called echo lake. the lake is absolutely gorgeous and also has quite a bit of snow around it as it sits at 7400 feet. i almost considered putting up a tent and claiming a little patch of ground as my very own. and then i considered the possibilities of not having a blow dryer for my hair and i willingly followed LH back to his parents' condo where all things luxury awaited me.

anyhow, the pacific crest trail and desolation wilderness are right there at the lake and LH was kind enough to remind me that it truly is wilderness out there. earlier, my FIL had mentioned that i shouldn't go running alone outside since mountain lions have been known to attack and kill runners. i certainly didn't argue with that. so while we were hiking and fishing around echo lake, all i could think about was the numerous mountain lions that were stalking me. when i found the perfect fishing spot under a fallen tree, i thought about how the trunk of the tree was the perfect spot for a mountain lion to perch and watch me before he or she pounced. shiver. suddenly, it all made sense why nearly every pair of hikers we had seen on the pacific crest trail had a dog or two with them. they were the bait to distract the mountain lions from attacking the humans!

i obviously survived the trip without any mountain lion attacks or sightings, but i was constantly looking over my shoulder. once we were back home, i had a dream about those silly felines. in my dream, LH and i were working at a ranch where we ran a camp for kids. we took the kids horseback riding, fishing, etc. the ranch was in mountain lion country, but we were able to keep a safe distance from them because someone from our ranch had tracked down all of the mountain lions, tranquilized them, and put bright greenish, yellow reflective vests on every single one of them. problem solved.

i kind of doubt that this dream has any hidden meaning other than:
*the fact that i don't want to be eaten by a mountain lion
*i wish there was a way to spot mountain lions way before they even got close enough to stalk or pounce
*i like kids
*i don't want kids to get eaten by mountain lions
*i spend too much on the pioneer woman's website
*i have a very active imagination

what do you think? anyone ever actually had a mountain lion encounter?

p.s. i love the advice in one of the articles i linked you to: convince the mountain lion that you are not prey and that you may be a danger to the lion. riiiiiiight. and you can do that by providing them with a convincing argument that they'd be better off chasing down a wild deer?