Christmas

            Christmas Day was the longest day of the year. I woke early and opened presents. I had my first Mimosa at 10:30 or so, and from there, a shot of moonshine and then after that, straight wine. I ate tamales for breakfast, then tamales for lunch. I ate off and on all day long until dinner, and then ate some more. My sister made a leg of lamb with mashed potatoes and salad. And of course, more wine. The wine put a strain on me. It was pulling me down from the shoulders.
            At seven o'clock or so, I went to a friend's house. It felt more like twelve. I couldn't feign an interest in the conversation. The responsibility of listening was far too arduous. I tried to be pleasant, but I didn't feel pleasant inside. I was in the midst of the longest day of the year and the wine was pulling me down by the shoulders. 

Drum Circle

            I went to the hippies' house for the Sunday drum circle. There was a small turnout. And the drummers who were there had attention deficit disorder. We'd get something going and then they'd suddenly stop. Sometimes people are fearful of exposing themselves and get self conscious. It's contagious. I didn't want to be the only weirdo drumming full tilt so I'd stop too. 
            It wasn't like last week where I was properly intoxicated and drummed to the point of bruising my forearm. I woke up the next morning to notice a huge red welt. It was very tender. My god, what have I done? I knew exactly what I had done. I had drummed myself internally bloody. Oddly, the bruise was healed up in three days. I took it as a sign of good health.