Too Much Caffine...

A couple of the others (Libby and Kristen I believe) in my book group have already posted on how the title Go Ask Alice was taken from song lyrics by Jefferson Airplane.

The lyrics support claims that Lewis Carroll was using drugs while writing Alice In Wonderland and that the story is full of drug refrences. However, there are as many websites and opinions that disagree with Jefferson Airplane's interpretation of the story as there sites that glorify the hookah smoking caterpillar.

Here is a link to one site that believes Carroll was a 'square':
Q: Was Carroll on drugs when he wrote the Alice books, or are the books about drugs?

In the same vein (vein - Ha - drugs, needles, veins) of druggie song lyrics, this song by band Jimmy Eat World reminded me a great deal of some of what Alice (in the book, not In Wonderland) went through in her drug use. Especially the dichotomy of drugs being an escape and making life's struggles easier (if only temporarily), while at the same time being dangerous and deadly. The song also talks about trying to stay clean while people around you are getting high.


Jimmy Eat World - Drugs Or Me Lyrics

Stay with me
You're the one that I need
You make the hardest things
Seem easy

Keep my heart
Somewhere drugs don't go
Were the sun shines lay
Always keep me close

If only you could see
The stranger next to me
You promised you promised that you're done
But i cant tell you from the drugs

Don't let go
Dig a great big hole
Down an endless hole
We'll both go

You're so blind
You cant see me this time
Hope comes from inside
And I feel so low tonight

If only you could see
The stranger next to me
You promised you promised that you're done
But I can't tell you from the drugs

I wish you could see
This face in front of me
You'r sorry swear it you're done
But I can't tell you from the drugs

(Ohhhh)
(Ohhhh)

(take me) I need your help
(so far away) To pull me up take the pain
(take me) Out from me
(so far away) Out from me

(Take me) If only you could see (I need your help)
(So far away) The stranger next to me (To pull me up take the
pain)
(Take me) You promised you promised that you're done (Out from
me)
(So far away) But I can't tell you from the drugs (Out from me)

(Take me) I wish that you could see (I need your help)
(So far away) This face in front of me (To pull me up take the
pain)
(Take me) You're sorry you swear it you're done (Out from me)
(So far away) But I can't tell you from the drugs (Out from me)

Keep my heart
somewhere drugs don't go
Where the sun shines low
always keep me close

Top 10 Reasons... This website gives 10 reasons that drugs should be legalized. Some of the reasonings are very interesting and somewhat convincing.

Reason #4 provided some facts that related to Go Ask Alice:

4 Drug users are a majority
Recent research shows that nearly half of all 15-16 year olds have used an illegal drug. Up to one and a half million people use ecstasy every weekend. Amongst young people, illegal drug use is seen as normal. Intensifying the 'war on drugs' is not reducing demand. In Holland, where cannabis laws are far less harsh, drug usage is amongst the lowest in Europe.

Legalisation accepts that drug use is normal and that it is a social issue, not a criminal justice one. How we deal with it is up to all of us to decide.

In 1970 there were 9000 convictions or cautions for drug offences and 15% of young people had used an illegal drug. In 1995 the figures were 94 000 and 45%. Prohibition doesn't work.

Go Ask Alice was published in 1971, the same year that President Nixon declared a "war on drugs". What a jump in teenage drug use since then! Although I do think those numbers could be deceiving. Perhaps after Nixon declaration of war, police made more of an effort to get those drug convicions and parents became more aware of the signs of use which would cause reports of use to rise, whether or not the actual amount of use changed.

Sorry this is so cheesy...Basically, I tried to explain how Alice could go from being so against ever using drugs again to overdosing and dying in three weeks. Peer pressure from the 'good' kids seemed the most logical to me, becauce ultimately I think teenagers just want to be a part of the group and can convince themselves of almost anything to accept and be accepted by that group.


September 25

The past week at school has been pretty okay. My old friends pretty much ignore me, which is better than tormenting me and making fun of me and calling me a square and a snitch and all of that. I just try to ignore them right back. I know that I never want to go back to that life and when I think of all the pain I caused my family, not to mention myself, I could just die. I'm so lucky to have their support still, but a part of me is so scared still that something bad is going to happen to my life, like i'm just not ment to be a lucky person. I mean, this all started without me knowing it and most of the bad things that were done to me were done without my control. What if it happens all over agian? I don't know what I'd do diary, I just don't know. I feel that it would be the end of me for sure.


October 3

Fawn's having another party tonight and I'm a little nervous. I know that nothing happened last time that should make me suspicious, but it feels like the whole world is just holding on and waiting for me to mess up. I'm wondering if I should stay home, but Mother and Daddy are so proud of me having normal, straight friends again that I don't want to let them down. Besides, all the kids are fun and straight and don't need all that other mind trip mess to help them have fun. I'll go and be okay keep trying to feel normal.

Later

Fawn asked me to stop by her house this afternoon before the party. I figured she wanted me to help her set up and maybe help with the cooking, but it turns out that she wanted to ask me questions about my past and what drugs I've tried and where I got them. At first I thought she was asking me as some sort of test, to make sure that I wasn't still in with the dopers, but then it started to sound like she wanted to find out for herself what that scene is all about. Why oh why diary do all my friends try to pull me back down? I thought that for sure this group was really, truly straight and wouldn't ever get involved in any of this mess. I guess it's like the adults say, that it's a sickness all the kids are catching. She explained that she doesn't ever want to be a doper, but that she and some of the others want to try it so that they can understand and maybe help other kids. It sounds okay, and they are a pretty straight group of kids, so I don't know. What, oh what, am I to do?

October 4

Well diary, as usual I didn't have anything to worry about. Last night at Fawn's some of the kids tried some pot, just to see how it works, but they didn't seem to have any problems with it like I did. I smoked a little with them too and got that same great feeling. Maybe with this group it will be okay. They seem to be able to handle the world and it's problems much better than the dopers who just want to get high, high, high and forget it all. But Fawn and the kids just wanted to experiment a little so they don't go through life not knowing. That sounds pretty okay to me, because after all, I'm supposed to get educated about the world. How could I ever tell my kids not to do heavy drugs and live that life if I had never tried it myself? So we decided only to do it together, and that someone would always do just a little so that they could be responsible. I really feel like I'm growing up and that this time, with the help of these marvelous friends, I wont make the same mistakes that I did in the past. You're getting pretty full diary. Maybe this is the time to say goodbye, old friend. I've really found a group that understands me and truly understands life. Thank you for helping me get to this point.