The Necessity of Escapism (ch. 32)

Ch 32, Part 1.

i want something more from this misery called life

it's hard to keep my dreams alive

when there's all this pain and strife

i dream of a place where all of us can hide

a world where my answers can never be denied

i want to move to disneyland and forget about this place

what a better way to get away from the fucked up human race

i want to get away! i want to go to a world where all i have to do is play!

and i never want to leave! there's no way to make believe!

-strung out, 1992

Need I say anymore? This past June, I took my 4th trip to Disneyland. Well, one time was to DisneyWorld, Fla. actually. But nevertheless, I get this place. I get the idea of Walt's dream where a family can go together to be happy. The second that you walk through those gates, everything in the outside world: war, famine, taxes, crime... are purged from your mind completely. It's more than the sights, smells, and sounds. It's got something more to do with the air you breathe within those gates that make you feel like you are young again, and nothing in the world can bring you down.

People do need a break. The news is sick. Lucky for us, Daryl McIntyre, Kevin O'Connell and Nicola Crosbie are effing ridiculous. Jello Biafra has a silly media spoken word thing that makes fun of newscasters and how they can flip from being Oh So Pleasant and Smiley to tragically emotional and serious in a flash. Without the news though, we would be ignorantly blissful. (AMEN!) But in application, this is not possible. We rely on news so that we can decide how we live our free lives. (Don't try to pull into PetroCan for gas, don't eat Maple Leaf products and don't holiday in Afghanistan any time soon, for example).

So we vacation when we can. We exploit our credit cards, odometer, or air miles collection so that we can simply just get away from it all. It doesn't end there either. Alcohol. That's usually the very first thing the adults reach for when they get to their destination. Something to take the edge off from all the stressful packing, driving, or sitting in the airplane I suppose. Alcohol is such a cure! God knows there would be sooo many more potheads out there without it. That's why he probably continues to make it so readily available in most of the countries you would think to escape to. The other day at Ceili's across from GMAC I noticed that the menu didn't actually have a "drinks" or "beverages" section. It was called the "alcoholic" section. If that's the first thing you look for when you sit down at the restaurant, then maybe you should take a look at your life and wonder what on earth makes it sooo stressful that you need that dulling effect of what is also known as a depressant.

I have done a lot of escaping over the years. But please realize that I have had a lot of time to "build my character" (as an ex-gf put it) with respect to a lot of my history. Now I just drink mostly @ home cuz I am sick of carbonated/sugar-saturated alternatives and water/milk/oj can get very redundant. Drinking at school was done out of habit. A good habit, but a habit that I am quickly falling out of since Matt, Gary, and Dan have all graduated. I don't drink more than 1 @ shows cuz I have to drive. I don't drink @ clubs because I don't club. From time to time though, my Binge Drinking skills return. This is mostly because of special occasions like getting my heart broken, having a really exciting concert come through, or perhaps celebrating a family member's birthday. Otherwise, I really respect straight edge lifestyles/movements and like to think that I too could be strong enough to keep sober and suffer this reality called life.

I know that I will always be able to count on Disneyland to escape to after all.

DISCLAIMER: Disneyland is a place that generates large amounts of wealth, often at the expense of others. This exploitation I acknowledge and appreciate but I will not apologize for still thinking it's great.