10/12/2007

Purge-a-tory

Sometimes I crave a cigarette. Don't you guys? I never truly used to smoke; I only did as a teenager very little---just for fun, like trying sushi, not out of "peer pressure" or any madness like that. I didn't care that much about what friends thought of me in that regard. Heck, I think I was allergic to the stuff anyway. At least my nose and eyes went nuts when around it. I just sort of liked the burn in the lungs and the nicotine high, much like eating roast beef, getting it stuck in the teeth, and flossing those bad boys out and making the gums bleed. Sometimes pain feels sort of good, like running until you are sore, or getting a colon cleanse, I don't know. As long as something bad is getting purged, like rotting roast beef, unused energy, you get the idea.

But all that is not a good point. Smoking is not like that, really. I can see smoking a pipe in moderation would be sort of relaxing. Maybe I am having these thoughts because my nasal passages are clogged and the sound of something to "burn" them clear is appealing. Perhaps I need to go eat some hot peppers. And maybe C.S. Lewis thought like me. Or I think like C.S. Lewis. He was open to a sort of purgatory because he refers to it a little in The Great Divorce and has a quote somewhere about how there will be some sort of painful change from the old man to the new man physically once we are to enter into heaven. I don't think the Catholic view is correct, like a suffering for the sins of this life. Jesus paid for that already. I mean from our sinful bodies to the eternal ones. Don't know if that makes much sense, but I can buy that. Like a literal molting. Hey, we do it all the time, sin corrupts things like our showers and we have to clean them continually, and our gardens, the weeds never stop cropping up. I suppose as long as sin is present, life is one big fat purge. Maybe I am a heretic.

And how did smoking get me started on this. I have no clue. Maybe it is the Sudafed in my system. That stuff is possibly like the red-pilled peyote. No wonder they make you sign for it. It makes you a condensed version of yourself perhaps. Which means I am a total freak. I think my point was that sometimes something burning or painful feels good---getting clean is nice.

I knew a guy once that showered very little. After a weekly trip to the shower once, he told me:
"Don't tell anyone, but this kind of feels good."

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

well that was wild and crazy. I feel like I just got off a big roller coaster. Purging is good, flossing til you bleed sounds icky. I hope you feel better soon, although it does make for good blog posts!

R said...

Thanks, Doozie.

I love pain in my gums, knowing that it is one step closer to getting the rot out.

~Jennifer said...

Wasabi.

That'll clear you right up. :-D

I love those wasabi flavored almonds, oh man I love 'em.

One time my husband and I were watching a movie in our bedroom and snacking on them, and my youungest, at only 3, walked in and said, "It smells like wasabi in here!"

~Jennifer said...

Oh, and have eraser eater check this out:
http://www.barleybeads.com/

And if you do a search for "Trey Cornette" you should be able to find some fabulous work of his, but I couldn't find a website just for his work. I want to take one of his classes too.

R said...

I just had Eraser Eater look at them. He loved them! The other kids loved them too! They were completely fascinated! They kept asking, how do they do it? I will have to show them that demo on your blog.

Wasabi. That is funny.

Anonymous said...

I have never heard a colon cleanse praised as highly. Must be the sudafed.

Avery Gray said...

This is a great story. You should tell it at parties.

Anne said...

You need some hot and sour soup. I know about the "gum" thing - I like that feeling.

Carolanne said...

Wasabi? Hmmmm

Once a week shower??? Hmmmm again.

Flossing until your gums bleed? Hmmm. No thanks. I'll stick to toothpaste.

Smoking? Hmmmm. Never tried it. :)

Hope you're feeling better soon, though.

Leslee said...

LOL... what kind of drugs are you on??!?

Dapoppins said...

I want some of those drugs now too!

R said...

Shealy--It probably is the Sudafed.

Avery---I'll do that.

Anne--You really do?

Carolanne---I won't try to pressure you into smoking.

Leslee---something akin to crack.

Dapoppins--go to the pharmacy and sign for the real Sudafed. Take it when you have a cold. Not only will you lose your appetite, you will think weird thoughts.

Jenn said...

I crave ciggies only first thing in the morning when my neighbor lights up and the bedroom slider is open a little for some 'fresh air'. I can't smoke now, I wouldn't be able to breathe. Pipes are different, they smell nice. Cigars are just NASTY. Overall it's being a good steward of our body and how we are 'examples'.....you get it...I'm rambling. Try Nyquil next time..hehe. That stuff is awesome.