Reading Andy A's response to my post, I can only assume that life along the upper Hudson is different from that on the lower third of the Mississippi. I said: > I'm not sure what's given here. What does "life is hard to take" mean? To which Andy replied: >> I'll contemplate the answer as I wonder why are liquor companies among the best stocks to buy. << But, I protest, it's not life that's hard to take, it's sobriety. After two or (depending on your history) twenty-two drinks, life if wonderfully easy to take. Sobriety's the bitch, not life. Paul Stone's already told us why sobriety's such a bitch, because she's so relentless in her demands. Every half second: "What now? What now? What now?" Who can blame anyone for killing herself to escape that? And you wonder why liquor companies are among the best stocks to buy? I'll tell you why, my friend, because hallucinogens are illegal. Life is not synonymous with sobriety. Sobriety sometimes helps us function within life's parameters, but the two should never be confused. >> A.A. Personally, I think our problems are too much food; too much money, or at least too much crap shoved at us that requires money; and too much sex. << That's gripe # 134, 147, 181. In the technologically undeveloped world, the average annual income is equal to what an American lawyer charges for one hour's consultation. We're talking humanity here, not the U.S. gluttonous, greed-dripping, pornification corporate executive wage scale. Most of the world goes to bed hungry. I can only hope the sex is good. Too much, too much, too much is parochial, parochial, parochial. >> Good sex, or rather the search for it (all around you, take a look), is another distraction. You say, all we can do is bitch. Is that inconsistent with your first statement, What does "life is hard to take" mean? I'd like to meet the person who isn't looking for good sex. Know anybody? << No, I didn't say "or rather the search for it", I said "GOOD SEX". Good sex isn't "another distraction", it's THE distraction. Why the hell do you think there are so goddamn many people in the world? Because of Paul Stone's bitch sobriety. Obviously. If you're hungry, what pops first into your mind? Eating. If you're bored, what pops first into your mind? Fucking. (well, into guy's minds anyway, who knows what women think when they're bored -- women might, but they never let on so as we guys can know). And so there you have it. I'm right. You're wrong. Mike Geary Memphis on the Mississippi ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html