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"BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE."


------------------------ Hunter S. Thompson, R.I.P.




If youre lost, find something shiny and go to it.

----- overheard from conversation in the airport about 30 minutes ago.








PURE GONZO JOURNALISM - PART 1


I was about 15 minutes outside of Detroit when the drugs began to take hold And when I say was I mean am. My plan was to either yin or yang for this flight. If I was exhausted to the point where I could actually sleep, I would take a Vicoden, unwind, and snooze away with my big gray pillow against the window. (- side note: as I wrote that I looked out the window I wish you could see what I see: the world of humans below; glittering and glistening with hopes and dreams and lives being led. Straight beside me, the brilliant haze of purple and blue sky is brought to glory by the piercing of the sun through the clouds. Truly this is the play ground of angels)


Back to our story. The other alternative was to take a solitary dose of MDMA in the form of a small blue pill decorated with a Christmas tree. Ha. With the right chemical combination every moment feels like Christmas! Ha ha. So, in the line waiting to board the plane, reading Fear and Loathing, I scan my bag for the muscle relaxers. Ha-2. I packed all of my bathroom contents into the luggage which I checked about 20 minutes before. New plan. Weigh the options. Do I really want to sit in one seat with a wild backache for seven hours (- side note again [get used to it!]: stepping onto the plane I asked the waitress Oh, sorry Stewardess Oh, sorry Flight Attendant how long the flight was. She pulled a small piece of paper from her pocket and responded One hour and 5 minutes. I said Thank you.; my brain trying to wrap around the time zone difference between Detroit and L.A. And quickly remembering that my flight has two stops I said to L.A.? Checking her itinerary she said One more hour and a half after that and then another three hours and something minutes. Youre in for a long day! Little did she know that a long day to me is like a high powered rifle in the hands of an accomplished sniper. Its what I do. And I love when I get to do what I do.)


So! With Vicoden out of the options list, a 6 hour flight ahead of me, 2 sketchbooks, a bag full of pens and markers, Coldplay on the Walkman & a headful of ideas fueling a heartful of adventure, the choice was clear. In my seat on Southwest Airlines Flight #1952 (a very good year, by the way), I thought Maybe I should wait to see who sits next to me. The idea was quickly discarded as I embraced the fact that my own creative and selective reality should always take precedence over the one imposed by others. As long as I am respectful to the need of the tourists not to have their heads disassembled, I should get to play on my own playing field at all times. (Its so pretty here! AND theres lots of toys!)


So, at 5:45pm, with a tremendous swig of water (Hydrate, you hippies!), the little blue Christmas tree disappeared within my system RITUAL #1 accomplished.


Now for RITUAL #2...






(more later)




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