The cause of and solution to all of life's problems

This picture reminds me of crazier days in Tokyo. For a few years, I was one of the regular photographers for a rock band named Tits Tats and Whiskers. Those are some of the most wonderful years of my life. It's hard to believe that everyone has settled down now. It wasn't so long ago when alcohol-fueled madness was our norm. There were never drugs, not with this group. Alcohol was all the drugs we needed. I never quite understood how booze could be legal, but all the forms of intoxication illegal. Alcohol is addictive and causes just as much destruction as any of the other mind-altering substances out there. It's like the alcohol industry made a plan and blocked the competition. Thank goodness the puritanical forces at work left at least one drug available to us. Although I do feel bad for those who struggle with addiction and destruction because of too much drinking, I also have to honestly say, for myself, thank God for alcohol. I have a couple friends who are psychiatrists that deal with addiction. I'm pretty they're going to scold me later if they ever read this. It's true, though. Yes, alcohol has been a disruptive force, but I somehow lack the gene that causes full-blown addiction. Or I'm just in denial.

One of the biggest problems with alcohol is it's hard to remember stuff that happened. I know that we had some adventures, but I don't remember half of them. I know that I met many people along the way, but their faces have faded with my hangovers. I remember going to Taiwan with the band and losing two days' worth of photos because of alcohol. We were in the youth hostel, and the drummer, Mattia, insisted we all go to the park. It was a great idea, but trouble came when he also insisted that I bring my camera. Like Spiderman and his tingle, I knew it would be a bad idea but since I was a photographer, why the hell would I leave my camera behind. We got to the park, and we started to party at the first bench we could find. A cute girl named Rebecca walked by. She was really friendly and talkative. She joined our party in the park. We laughed, drank, and laughed some more until all of the world was a rocking ship.

After we got back to the youth hostel. I found a Chinese girl named Riddle asleep on the sofa. She was wearing nothing but a long t-shirt that was hiked up just enough to be sexy but not too sexy. I had to have the picture. It was too beautiful to miss, but my camera was full. Somehow, while trying to download the photos in my camera into my laptop, I erased everything without even realizing it. Honestly, I hadn't remembered doing any of this until I found just one photo on my camera the next morning. I had to piece together the rest of the story by using deduction. Anyway, I got my shot of Riddle, but it came at a terrible cost. Two days of Taiwan memories had been traded for sexy legs on a sleeping Chinese girl. It might have been worth it if it was a killer shot. It was not. Riddle looked beautiful alright, but from a compositional perspective and art that I might be proud of for the rest of my life, nah, it was a total waste.

Homer Simpson said it best, "Alcohol! the cause of and solution to all of life's problems ."