When I was in college, Quaaludes were in vogue. Does anyone remember those? They produced a high of very questionable value, in that generally you either completely fell asleep or were so out of it as to (1) tend to walk into walls and (2) not remember a fucking thing afterward. Well, shit, isn’t that why God made Kamikazes? I mean, it could require several rounds, but it will get you to the same place. I never saw much use for ‘Ludes.

Yesterday, though, Matt had dental surgery for which he required general anesthesia, and his reaction to the sedation immediately put me in mind of someone on Quaaludes. Within three minutes after they administered the shot his eyes were all sleepy and crazy, his head lolling, his body limp as a potato sack. They carried him into the back room to work on him, and three hours later they called me back in to sit with him while he came to.

His speech, when he came out of it, was so slurred that it took a good half-hour before I could understand him. It was about two hours after that until he could walk unassisted without holding onto furniture. His teeth look awesome, although you could have bought a brand-new Toyota Tercel in 1981 for what I paid to have them fixed. And I wish I’d had a camera for Matt’s sedation. Because you want to know how many people I saw walking around like that in the late ’70s and early ’80s? Tons. You notice ‘Ludes aren’t in vogue anymore; Matt, yesterday, reminded me why that is so.