Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Detox Mansion. By The Doc

I am a man of addictions. I imagine that it started in college. Booze was an early and faithful standby. From there, I began a short love affair with pot, followed by ecstasy, and then ‘shrooms. Cocaine lasted a while, but then I graduated from college and life became less conducive with the habit. So liquor took the reins, peppered with the occasional visit with Vicodin.

But now I find myself relatively clean-cut: a decent-paying job; a respectable apartment; a few employees that slightly depend on me. And in the midst of my (relative) sobriety, I finally realize what it was that I was truly addicted to. My friends’ company.

I played hopscotch across the country over my years. The military afforded this luxury, but it also supported the lie (that I told myself) that I was a loner. When you’re constantly on the move, there’s a lot less time for introspection. Hell, in my early twenties, there wouldn’t have been much depth to a bout of introspection anyway.

But as I slowly set down a few roots in college, Vegas, and finally Kalamazoo, I became spoiled by some truly amazing people. So this little rant is for you guys. (Yes, I’m boozy. And yes, I’m listening to Warren Zevon.) Scott, Dan, Bram, and John: you gentlemen are giants among midgets. I miss the hell out of all of you, and I’m half the man I was when you’re not around to play wingmen. Cheers, fellas.

10 comments:

qhunt said...

doc,
interesting, interesting indeed. I should have you come in and talk to my adolescent patients.

Anonymous said...

Hurry home Doc. I'm always just a short drive down 94. There's a nice little bar in town, and to the East there is a true hole in the wall. It's so local that you are guaranteed a fist fight, and it should be featured in Fromers.
My couch is leather and comfy so you have a place lay down.

Keep in mind that the wife is always willing to get out of bed to pick us up, but she refuses to post bail until after sunrise.

Anonymous said...

The first few months here in Vegas were tight as hell. I miss those days. Thanks for the memories! If you ever want to swing the Vegas way again, I might be able to get you in at my company. Lots of growth. Delish.

kagroo said...

I miss those days too. For having no money and shitty work (I didn't work...what's new) we had a fucking blast. We owned our little part of Henderson.

kagroo said...

addictions...fajlkddadafdadfa...sorry about that, I spilled my beer on the keyboard and I had to lick it off...what was I saying? Oh yeah, I wish I had addictions.

qhunt said...

doc,
I was being sarcastic. You would make a terrible speaker, you are like a drug success story. I can see it now "yeah I used drugs, lots of them. It was cool, had some fun, banged some chicks. Now I have my degree a good job and plenty of friends, drugs didn't hurt me at all." that woudl be really productive for my patients to hear!!

Anonymous said...

I can't decide. Do I hate you with my love, or love you with my hate? I suppose neither is an accurate or fair description of my feelings.

I mean, you always PAID for the drugs, at least. I wouldn't always even know about them; I was too busy trying to drink as much as humanly possible, soaking in all of Milwaukee,so I could summon the courage to walk up to some semi-good looker and proposition her.

"Would you like to go to my room, listen to Miles Davis, and fuck?" I'd slur through a smarmy grin.

"No!" cried the damsel in distress.

"What the fuck do you have against Miles Davis, bitch?!? Don't you know he's the only jazz artist ever to..."

And so it went, until the party cleared out and I slumped on the loveseat. Defeated and about to slip into a coma, my mouth would be opened forcibly and filled with what tasted like dirt and calamari. I chewed, swallowed, and dozed off for another twenty-minutes.

Oh, how do I describe what planet I woke up on? Let's just say I spent that morning in a world that would've made Lewis Carroll cry "Uncle". Fucking mushrooms.

Can't say I didn't deserve that, but not entirely sure I desereved your friendship, either.

But that was just it wasn't it? Either of us had our own built-in,counter-balance hydraulics system with triggers that could only be activated by the other.

It was OUR movie, and though the others may have found it either appealing or appalling, they were secondary; flat charachters with no origins.

The seperate story-lines and spin-offs aren't as fun as the original series. Whenever you're ready to write the big cross-over that die-hards have been holding their breath for, let me know. I'm not dead yet, motherfucker.

Anonymous said...

BTW...I (barely) remember taking that photo.

I'm still surprised I could figure out how to use a disposable camera (!), and that the flash didn't cause you to jump through the window in an effort to avoid some kind of 'Shock and Awe' fire storm.

Ahhhh...youth is wasted on the young.

Anonymous said...

Bobby Chacon and I are waiting for your call. Actually Bobby's not around, but that makes no difference.

Anonymous said...

Who's not Boom Boom?