Snowblind...
Crystal world with winter flowers,
Turn my days to frozen hours...
Lying snowblind in the sun,
Will my ice age ever come?
"My eyes are blind but I can see... the snowflakes glistening on the trees"
In all of my years as a hedonist, and routine drug user, I've never really understood the enduring appeal of cocaine. Even during my seven month relationship with blow a few years back when I was regularly snorting bumps off of my American Express card in dive bars and heavy metal shows, in the back of my mind, I wondered what the big deal was.
Cocaine is the second most popular recreational drug in the United States (behind marijuana you fucking stoners) and in the scene, it's everywhere... easily obtained and I know several people who use it on a regular basis. After being made illegal in 1914 by the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act, cocaine regained popularity in the decadent, party all night disco days of the 70's. Back then, the allure of blow went beyond its stimulative effects. The cost, more expensive (though higher in quality) than it is now (3.5 grams in Atlanta would probably run you about $120 dollars) made cocaine a status drug. To be able to afford it, let alone a steady supply of it, meant you likely made (or had access to) a lot of money.
"Icicles are in my brain (cocaine)"
In the 70's and 80's, cocaine was mostly consumed by celebrities, athletes, stockbrokers and socialites. By the time coke made a comeback at the turn of the millennium, upper middle class college students were taking turns doing bumps in frathouse bathrooms. Now, at any bar or dance party across the country, you can regularly see packs of hipster girls and sorostitutes making steady trips to powder their noses.
But without the social cache, what's the appeal? Sure a few lines of blow can cut right through the grogginess that sets in after one too many Jack & gingers (and I can admit to being very handy if you need to get your very drunk ass home) but it's effects are fleeting; the psychotropic effects of three expertly cut lines last about thirty minutes.
What's worse, cocaine is a prime example of the economic principle of diminishing returns... as with all drugs, you can never really return to the peak afterthe first time but even after a couple of weeks of casual use, I found myself needing steadily increasing amounts to get a good buzz.
"Fill my dreams with flakes of snow..."
Moreover, as a frequent drug user, cocaine doesn't provide much value. What an eightball of quality blow would cost me (which can disappear in a matter of hours in the right setting) I could keep my 'magic' matchstick box filled with enough ecstasy to send me and a few friends into sensory overload for six hours.
Marijuana will turn you languid, hungry and giggly. Shrooms will turn you into a five year old. Ecstasy will turn you into a wide eyed, hug giving pleasure seeker, easily distracted by texture, elaborate light displays and pulsating bass. Cocaine on the other hand, turns you into a babbling, teeth grinding douchebag. I can understand sober people finding those under the influence unpleasant to be around but there's never been a moment in my storied relationship with drugs and alcohol did I ever encounter a completely snowblown person I didn't know and thought, "You know... this person fucking awesome."
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