overdose awareness day

[jvi]

Today is world  od awareness day so I thought Id offer condolences to those who have lost loved ones or are dealing with the issue of addiction.Thanks as well to the front line workers who do what they do too often.

[kidblast]

Good call on this post.

In my circle, we've lost two in the last 10 years.  They both tried so hard to break free,  died way too soon.  Both were kids of friends of ours, one of them was my band mates daughter.  She had two young kids who they are now mostly raising.

[kidblast]

22 minutes ago, ghost_of_fl said:

How could I have stopped them?  I don't think I could have.  In the case of the guitar player, even his own family couldn't stop him.  I have a recording of us playing a blues jam together somewhere.  What a damn shame. 

You can't.  Often times it's one of those "this wont happen to me" kind of misconceptions,  where they believe they will be able to control this,  till they finally understand they cannot and then it's too late.

Edited September 1, 2020 by kidblast

[SteveFord]

Things are so much different today than when I was a kid.  We smoked pot, dropped acid, stuff like that, no heroin.  There's no telling what evil people are putting into that white powder, either.

My wife had a job at a local  hospital and they'd OD in the parking lot, their buddies would sneak drugs in and they OD inside of the hospital, just crazy.

[jvi]

here in "beautiful bc" we are losing approx  170-5 per month.The dope is laced with fentanyl and is pure death. Most of us know or have lost someone. Here on the forum we mention all the souls who gave us music, and that the contribution they made was inspiring,  SO SAD they gotta dance with the devil...common folk too...thanks for kind thoughts, Jim  PS,  Im clean 36 years...

[kidblast]

12 hours ago, jvi said:

here in "beautiful bc" we are losing approx  170-5 per month.The dope is laced with fentanyl and is pure death. Most of us know or have lost someone. Here on the forum we mention all the souls who gave us music, and that the contribution they made was inspiring,  SO SAD they gotta dance with the devil...common folk too...thanks for kind thoughts, Jim  PS,  Im clean 36 years...

Congrats on your transformation,  36 years are ones that you may not have had Jim. 

It's the same here, (Central Mass, west of Boston) the fentanyl gets more potent and deadly by the month. 

Worcester Mass  (closest major city) is really bad as is one of the surrounding towns.  It's in our little town too, but you don't seem to hear a lot about it until you get it thru the grapevine.

My daughter is a store manager at a Mc'D's restaurant in town.  there's been more than a few times they had have to call 911, someone OD'd in their bathroom.    There is a CVS across the street,  getting hit more often with people coming in to "take" what they need.  It's horrendous.   When the Police come for that, they just empty the house, everyone on duty that is able,  responds.   It's a real circus when that happens.  The world seems to be coming apart at so many different levels..

 

[jvi]

thanks for the kind words.I was lucky to get a grip,find a women and build a great life, (which sometimes I forget IS great , problems and all )   ...Jim

[jaxson50]

I've lost more than a few friends to dope and the peripheral  world of drugs.  I know of four from my high school class that were gone within a few years after graduating,  (1968) . 

The guitar player in one band was shot in the back over a drug deal gone bad, that was in 72,  One guy I knew was a Navy Corpsman in Nam,  got strung out on morphine over there, never really got better, died 15 years later,  I've lost a cousin to it, and watched my niece just about ruin her life on crank,  her son has dealt with heroin addiction his entire life, he's nearly 30 now, trying to stay clean and out of prison.  I hope he does, I pray he does, but I wouldn't trust him further than I could kick a brick. 

In my experience,  tough love is the only thing that works.  You have to be there for them, but you can't play the game, . 

It isn't easy or fair. 

[fortyearspickn]

23 hours ago, kidblast said:

Congrats on your transformation,  36 years are ones that you may not have had Jim. 

It's the same here, (Central Mass, west of Boston) the fentanyl gets more potent and deadly by the month. 

Worcester Mass  (closest major city) is really bad as is one of the surrounding towns.  It's in our little town too, but you don't seem to hear a lot about it until you get it thru the grapevine.

My daughter is a store manager at a Mc'D's restaurant in town.  there's been more than a few times they had have to call 911, someone OD'd in their bathroom.    There is a CVS across the street,  getting hit more often with people coming in to "take" what they need.  It's horrendous.   When the Police come for that, they just empty the house, everyone on duty that is able,  responds.   It's a real circus when that happens.  The world seems to be coming apart at so many different levels..

 

 We lived outside of Springfield (Chicopee) in the 80s.  It was idyllic.   From this and other things I've read - it sounds like a third world country  now.   I guess we can officially say The War On Drugs has been lost.   

[Sgt. Pepper]

2 minutes ago, fortyearspickn said:

 We lived outside of Springfield (Chicopee) in the 80s.  It was idyllic.   From this and other things I've read - it sounds like a third world country  now.   I guess we can officially say The War On Drugs has been lost.   

I don't think the War on Drugs was ever won. My stepson decided Heroin was a good life choice. He went to rehab a few times. He is clean now. He even decided to do it after he watch one on his friends OD in front of him.

[Sgt. Pepper]

30 minutes ago, ghost_of_fl said:

Some people habitually cut themselves with knives.   Others sniff paint fumes.  We haven't declared war on knives or paint.  

I habitually touch things with 6 and 12 strings.

I didn't post the confused faces. I'm an a-hole but not that big of an a-hole.

Edited September 3, 2020 by Sgt. Pepper

[Pinch]

Congratulations on 36 years clean. 

On 9/2/2020 at 3:44 AM, jvi said:

PS,  Im clean 36 years...

Much respect!

[jvi]

thanks

[Karloff]

1 hour ago, jvi said:

thanks

congrats JVI.  thats awesome.   26 years for me this past April 16th. 

[jvi]

42 minutes ago, Karloff said:

congrats JVI.  thats awesome.   26 years for me this past April 16th. 

excellent Karloff , hard battle but big rewards, Jim

[Karloff]

1 hour ago, jvi said:

excellent Karloff , hard battle but big rewards, Jim

absolutely. 

[fortyearspickn]

23 hours ago, ghost_of_fl said:

Some people habitually cut themselves with knives.   Others sniff paint fumes.  We haven't declared war on knives or paint.  

 

False Equivalency.   (Nice way of saying  "Here's your sign:  another Confused Face.") 

[jvi]

my problem started in 68, the one thing that helped and still does was the moral and hopeful message the  music being created gave me, listening and playing...play on drummer...

[fortyearspickn]

42 minutes ago, ghost_of_fl said:

Well that's one opinion.  I have mine too.  How about this then:

Alcohol is the approved drug of choice.   Why?  Seems like a lot of people die from using alcohol.  It's just another drug, right?  Do you support banning alcohol?  We tried that once in the US.  It was a huge success. 

 

So you deflect from knives and paint fumes to alcohol.  Typically find a graph as if that proves anything.   No, I do not suggest that we ban alcohol.  Speaking of deflection, isn't caffeine a drug?

[SteveFord]

Anyone who tries to ban caffeine will be killed by me.

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

2 hours ago, SteveFord said:

Anyone who tries to ban caffeine will be killed by me.

 

I don't trust anyone who doesn't drink coffee.

[Pinch]

I'll moderate the upcoming Forty vs. Ghost bout, maybe even quell it:

Knives and paint have uses other than self-harm and getting high. Distilled whiskey, not as much, connosseurs excepted.

/Asparagus Rex, dinosaur and peace-keeper

[Pinch]

2 hours ago, ghost_of_fl said:

Marijuana plants on the other hand can be used for 8 million legitimate uses including making rope.   

I guess you're right.

[Sgt. Pepper]

33 minutes ago, Pinch said:

I guess you're right.

Without weed how would Rubber Soul have sounded?

[Dub-T-123]

11 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

I don't trust anyone who doesn't drink coffee.

😬 I don’t drink coffee or anything with caffeine. Sorry man!