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Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
...is frustrating. Yes, the writer may be more privileged than most. Yes, she complains (or "whines") and self deprecates. Thank God Fitzgerald or Wasserstein didn't try posting on this site. This is what personal essays are about: depicting your particular experience. I thought it was pitch perfect. The specifics (yes, even Pucci) get us to the universal. We've all been there.
For the record. I've tinkered with the benzo/alcohol cocktail, stupid I know, but it doesn't seem to have this dramatic effect on me. Guess what, alcohol alone, and in sufficient quantities sure does. Maybe Ambien lowers the threshold for some people, but it's not like waking up with no memory of outlandish and inapproriate behavior is a new phenomenon.
Sam and I had a marathon phone conversation.
We were like pandas in heat.
We imagined our future home - a brownstone on Bethune Street - and our children's names - Jane, Nick, Nell.
But soon things got confusing.
And thus began our long and bumpy breakup.
I formulated a compelling theory of our relationship and constructed a plan that would make everything better!
We would see his shrink together, "date" again and grow our relationship in organic, incremental ways.
Sam agreed. We cried at the relief of not breaking up. We talked until the sun rose in the sky.
Ouch.
Didn't do her homework. Liked the money. Liked the parties and connections. Liked being a princess. Grow up.
What, Ayelet isn't bad enough, now we have Tessa Blake.
MAKE IT STOP!!!!!
.....the letters that blame the big bad drug company, the letters who say being rich and stupid isn't a bad thing, the letters that sycophantically kiss the author's ass.
Here's hoping the Salon staff take Tessa's advice and have an Ambien/whiskey party then all sleepdrive off a cliff. Then maybe someone with chops could put this site back where it used to be.
in a barage of stinkers lately.
Why????
Regardless of the "caliber" of the essay... Ambien *does* do these things. My ex, a beautiful but rather uptight young thing, was prescribed the drug for sleep. After popping the dose, she would get absolutely uninhibited, giving pleasure in ways that she would normally never deign to do... and, yeah, I loved it, full knowing it wasn't even "her" molesting me. Afterward, like clockwork, she would then get gushingly lovey-weepy for awhile, then nod off. She took two once and was so immobilized she wet the bed. Like most her assorted meds, she didn't stay on the script long.
Perhaps some of the disappointment regarding this article, and others Salon has posted recently, is that they are come across as narcissistic journal entries, not journalism. And while that sort of writing can be effective, it can't always stand on its own. A memoir-style article on Ambien would be great -- if there was a companion piece that looked into the issue in more depth. Where is the research that broadens this interest of this story beyond Tessa? Where is the medical data or even expert opinion on the true effects of Ambien? What other stories are out there, beyond a nurse acting out of character and a boyfriend who may have had an addiction problem? We won't find out in this article.
And if it is inappropriate for me to expect Tessa to contribute that sort of research to this type essay, fine. But it is not inappropriate for me to expect Salon to focus on journalism, not navel-gazing. It would behoove the editors to supplement these sorts of essays with some facts and insightful commentary. (Didn't Salon used to do that?)
One or two of these essays -- fine. Multiple essays without any others with investigative chops? Not so great. (Unless the essays are by Anne Lamott. Because her writing is valuable without having to write about the hot topic du jour. Now that's the sort of essay Salon can be proud to publish.)
The Prada, the parties, the passion! LOL! Cosmo is sending their rejects to Salon, right? You are only putting this out for our amusement, aren't you? Please tell me I'm right. Please?
I really found this article fascinating, especially thinking about what Sam would say if he were given the chance to speak. It would be interesting to hear if he thought it possible to find a "middle way" between his two extremes, or if he was consciously playing a hide and seek game in which he could not develop a "will to love" in his daytime self's "will to power" (thank you, Frederich N.). Obviously, the writer of the article was quite willing to live and evolve with this 'ambien'(t) state of relationship, and I applaud her for that. What would be interesting to hear is why Sam backed out. If he thought he was making himself vulnerable by being a "cuddle muffin" then it might explain his actions in negating that part of his personality in the light of day.
If you look for it. Andrew Leonard, Patrick Smith, the occasional super science wonk article (such as the Nanolife one)...
But I've learned to stop reading anything personal set in NYC or LA. I can get that stuff out of every glossy rag on the newsstands.
Hi, so, i'm not sure what's happening on this thread, but it seems people think it's completely appropriate to call female stangers "sugar" and to call each other "fucking idiots" for smoking weed and to hate writers simply because they have money.
Where do you people (and that's not every letter writer, just some of you) get the idea that it's okay to insult strangers? where did you grow up, in a cave with some wolves? why don't those of you who just like to make fun of people for their problems to feel better about yourselves just go to therapy, because i think it would really help you?
I'm partly shocked, partly amused by the vile bitterness in some of these letters. Is wealth really that threatening?
YEah, i think people is just jealous. I mean, if you have a Pucci scarf, there's no way you can have problems! and if you do have problems, then you're just too self-absorbed for words. And the amazing thing is, apparently now, just having a bachelor's from a private university means you're Bill Gates! WTF! Do you have to work 3 jobs and live under a box to get any cred here?
Much of the initial coverage about Fort Hood turned out to be wrong. Is there anything wrong with that?
The accountability imposed by another country for the CIA's kidnapping and torture reveals much about our own.
Fox News' morning show plays to type, talking about whether Muslims in the Army should face "special debriefings"
The survivor and author is upset about comparisons some on the right are making to genocide
Once seen as a lunatic fringe, reactionary anti-women groups are courting respectability
Salon headlines in your mailbox
