the.com/sandman
the mythical figure who trades you dreams for consciousness, no refunds.
means a folklore character who sprinkles magic sand in children's eyes to bring sleep and dreams.
from rooted in european, especially germanic and scandinavian, folklore from the 1800s, popularized by hans christian andersen's 1841 tale ole lukoje and later darkened considerably by e.t.a. hoffmann's 1816 story der sandmann, where he steals children's eyes.
eye theft versionhoffmann's original sandman pries out eyeballs, not dreams
crust in eyesthe real inspiration is literal sleep dust, rheum
freud's essayhoffmann's tale inspired freud's famous concept of the uncanny
for instance
neil gaiman comic — the sandman, 1989, reimagines him as dream, lord of the endless
chordettes song — 1954 hit mr. sandman begs him for a dream lover