Carroll 388-92

Carroll's blunt testimony is slightly gross but incredibly fascinating. I find it interesting that Carroll started doing drugs in 1963 and had a heroin addiction by 15 (1965). Reading his descriptions about being addicted to heroin is bone-chilling-- why would anyone want to put themselves in that situation? Like his friend, who saw candles burning at Mass and dreamt that they had heroin cooking over them. Carroll reveals the scary side of "drugs," the reason why "drugs" are illegal; however, in the end, he seems to rectify it by saying "I just want to be pure." Carroll summoned the power to quit, it seems, because he lived to write about the tale. To me, I interpret this as a cautionary tale about the dangers of hard drugs-- and proof of the power of conciousness and will power. Obviously, Carroll was able to get himself to quit and he ended the disastrous process that he began in '65. Nonetheless, I can't imagine why anyone would want to try heroin after reading this story... on the other hand, his story about LSD was highly entertaining. I just wish I could see the golfer's faces! Probably 4 stodgy, conservative guys watching a hippie having a hallucination... hilarious.