It WAS a great metaphor. Specifically: I love friction shifters, but in the dream it was a problem that they had really slipped quite a long way without me adjusting them. Since they didn't click-clack-click-clack, I'd just let them go, you know? And eventually my proprioception of where the shifting points were was entirely off, and I discovered that I couldn't even access some of my gears anymore...

Love your dream. How did the semi-bike ride, in the dreamworld?