D 2

I'd like to give you my personal, reflective, historic viewpoint on that old favourite substance; Dope. I can't remember every variety I've tried, but I gave them all a pretty good workout, and, unlike a lot of the youth of my day, I held down a good sequence of executive jobs and didn't end up in any limbos, while socialising to the full and observing my fellow tokers with a keen but sometimes blurry eye. The biggest drawback I can see with this stuff is what goes on at cellular level in the participant's body; it coats the cells, that THC oily substance, and it doesn't want to shift; I say this as, after a lengthy involvement, I decided to go clear, and needed the help of a homoeopath to affect a total clearing of that ligering influence. You can guffaw at this; fine by me, but the same scientists you are listening to were really cool about tobacco for too bloody long for my liking; sure, I used to smoke tobacco too, but only the cleanest, preferably export to Japan grade tobaccos, free of the nefarious shit that every tobacco company sees fit to foul their product with; the Japanese rejected shiploads of top brand tobaccos, and it was their attitude that woke me up to being careful what one inhaled. So yes, I got clear of the influence of THC, but still socialised where a lot was being smoked, and the passive participation still needs clearing on a regular basis. Since going clear, my decisionmaking processes have hardened up; I don't accept second grade options in my life, and I don't regret being clear about all that. I know, above all other impressions of dope and its adherents, that even a casual user will develop a fixity of outlook that absolutely spoils their chance of a great view of the world. Compare this to the LSD crowd, who had the acid break down the cellular boundaries and open group consciousness to unprecedented levels; often to a level that average intellects find hard to encompass, and you have suddenly two fringes, supposedly similar, who are; a) too wide eyed to comprehend anything deeper than the 'geewhizz' factor, or; b) too fuzzled to see anything that isn't already 'far out' and clichéd beyond belief.
I've got a few acquaintances who still smoke; I don't see that it improves the quality of their life; whether it is physical or intellectual, there is nothing I've found that cannot be matched and exceeded 'straight', and as a pretty fast and furious skier, there is only one memory I retain of an awesome experience; I was given one of the first Walkmans in the country, a tape of Santana 'Borboletta', and a tab of unidentified LSD, to experience off the top of one of New Zealand's more exciting skifields; that was a fine day, but I just need me and the mountain; keep the rest; the experience is very simple, and mostly between the ears, and we kid ourselves greatly about what makes it great for us.
Nuff said.

C 2

I haven't had a cold for at least ten years. And it is nearly thirty years since I went to a doctor with an ailment; he asked 'what do you want me to do for you?' and I am now cured of doctors. I think my successful avoidance of the surgery is because I don't eat much in the way of cow products; someone once told me that milk as we usually know it would fatten a baby optimised for that liquid, at about 8kgs a day, and if we must insist on consuming milk derived products we should milk something more in the weight range of ourselves, like a sheep or a goat. Since then, at often enormous inconvenience, I have sought out and only consumed a little of the best in goat and sheep cheeses, an experience, now I am living in Europe, that approaches the sublime. A friend has just been staying nearby at his holiday house; he was quite unwell, and didn't benefit much from the break. He always leaves us his surplus perishables, and this time several cheeses were included. Now I don't know how long it takes you to cotton on to what tastes good, but we forced ourselves to eat a little of these 'luxury cheeses' every day, and the immediate increase in output from the mucous department tells us the benefit (?) of 'flavour' is not enough to justify ruining the body's balance. We are back to a really subtle Italian goat cheese, and a sheep fetta, and the nose is drying out as I write; not a cold; its just like putting a litre of diesel in your petrol tank; the car still runs but the exhaust is worse.... and our friend does not repond to the advice; he's determined that what he is told is good for him, from the mainstream noise machine that life can become if you let it, is what he'll rest with; regrettably he's having a bigger job resting than he deserves. I think homo sapiens are a little more basic than the TV ads suggest; try shaving with the opposite of the noise; I've now been shaving successfullly with the cheapest throwaway shaver since 1988; that's 19 years of single blade, economical, throwaway after one month (yes, I get a month) shavers, and the enormous fortune I've amassed via this economy allows me luxuries like the cheapest Coenzyme Q10 moisturiser I can find, for my fair complexion thanks to a Dutch mother and the consumption of only the finest cooking chocolate - unsullied by those nefarious flavour enhancers that chocolate NEVER needs, and a really nice Argan oil skin tonic (from internet, Fair Trade and all), and I don't for a moment believe a five bladed shaver with a battery in it has a place in my life OR yours, but someone is paying for those ads between the boys' favourite TV shows....... So when will you work it out? Nuff said.