london_calling
Greenlighter
I've just moved over to the US from London and have always been just as interested in drug culture as I am in narcotics themselves (ok, well almost as much). I thought I would share something I have been dwelling on recently, and invite anyone else to discuss the things they have found they have missed about their previous scene when moving town/country.
First things first - I have yet to (explicitly) look for or even enquire about finding anything here in DC so this is very much a first impression. Back in London I was a regular drug user, but always recreationally - I wouldn't say I have ever been physically addicted to anything or experienced withdrawal, but of course I have a strong psychological connection with some drugs more than others and am finding that I really miss the canon of knowledge one acquires over time about how and where to score. Knowing that it's simply not an option here (at least for now) really depresses me. I particularly miss heroin, which I've only smoked but always found a really social drug. While like most open minded young people I was initially enthralled by the high octane rush of a coke/pills fuelled rampage across town all night, my happiest drug memories from the last year or so are of sitting around in my bedroom with friends or my girlfriend, getting high and opening up about all the most important and trite things that would cross our mind. I can spend 5 hours on wikipedia reading about fruit when I have that foil next to me, and be captivated by what's in front of me.
I also miss the stories. Sitting in a stranger's east London squat at 4am listening to his (possibly bullshit) stories of brushes with fame and assorted other anecdotes. Strange, vulnerable people popping in through the night to share the light from a candle or ask who has a phone number. People and places that the world doesn't care to see, or when it does is scornful and condemning, but people that always seemed to treat me and anyone else popping by with kindness and honesty. These were heroin addicts and they weren't afraid to admit it or talk about the complications in their lives as a result. I think most of all the other users I have associated with have always been the least judgemental and guarded people I have come across, which is incredibly endearing and in stark contrast to tabloid portrayals of a typical addict. Their interests were politics, music and literature and I think they saw the likes of Kerouac and Lou Reed as contemporaries cut from the same cloth - certainly not some two dimensional junkie depicted on TV or film. This might have been self-dellusional and it might not - they were certainly idealistic, open-minded and keen to reflect on the things and people around them.
Heroin opened up this world, and so many others, to me. This has already turned into a bit of a self-indulgent tome, so I will save the other 'drug-associated benefits' I miss for another time. I guess I expected to really miss smoking H, but I never anticipated longing for the adventure. Hopefully I will be reunited with both before long.
What do you find you miss most from your previous drug scenes/lifestyles (other than the drugs themselves)? Or what spin-offs from your current scene do you cherish most?
First things first - I have yet to (explicitly) look for or even enquire about finding anything here in DC so this is very much a first impression. Back in London I was a regular drug user, but always recreationally - I wouldn't say I have ever been physically addicted to anything or experienced withdrawal, but of course I have a strong psychological connection with some drugs more than others and am finding that I really miss the canon of knowledge one acquires over time about how and where to score. Knowing that it's simply not an option here (at least for now) really depresses me. I particularly miss heroin, which I've only smoked but always found a really social drug. While like most open minded young people I was initially enthralled by the high octane rush of a coke/pills fuelled rampage across town all night, my happiest drug memories from the last year or so are of sitting around in my bedroom with friends or my girlfriend, getting high and opening up about all the most important and trite things that would cross our mind. I can spend 5 hours on wikipedia reading about fruit when I have that foil next to me, and be captivated by what's in front of me.
I also miss the stories. Sitting in a stranger's east London squat at 4am listening to his (possibly bullshit) stories of brushes with fame and assorted other anecdotes. Strange, vulnerable people popping in through the night to share the light from a candle or ask who has a phone number. People and places that the world doesn't care to see, or when it does is scornful and condemning, but people that always seemed to treat me and anyone else popping by with kindness and honesty. These were heroin addicts and they weren't afraid to admit it or talk about the complications in their lives as a result. I think most of all the other users I have associated with have always been the least judgemental and guarded people I have come across, which is incredibly endearing and in stark contrast to tabloid portrayals of a typical addict. Their interests were politics, music and literature and I think they saw the likes of Kerouac and Lou Reed as contemporaries cut from the same cloth - certainly not some two dimensional junkie depicted on TV or film. This might have been self-dellusional and it might not - they were certainly idealistic, open-minded and keen to reflect on the things and people around them.
Heroin opened up this world, and so many others, to me. This has already turned into a bit of a self-indulgent tome, so I will save the other 'drug-associated benefits' I miss for another time. I guess I expected to really miss smoking H, but I never anticipated longing for the adventure. Hopefully I will be reunited with both before long.
What do you find you miss most from your previous drug scenes/lifestyles (other than the drugs themselves)? Or what spin-offs from your current scene do you cherish most?
