The meaning of Altered States brings to mind a drug familiarization lecture I once attended, presented by a DEA Agent. To gauge our beginning level of knowledge, he asked a few questions of the group.  One was, “What is a narcotic?”  Several answers were shouted out, all met with a short explanation of why they were wrong.  The best was by one who opined that a narcotic was something that “altered one’s level of consciousness”.  The answer here was, “No.  I can do that with a Louisville Slugger!” (a baseball bat for the unfamiliar).

As a pre-teenager I saw an article in Life magazine on Heroin addicts in New York City. A quote in that article has always affected any desire to engage in drug experimentation.  Under a photo of a woman, severely decimated by her self-admitted drug use was her admonishment that, “Heroin is so good don’t try it, even once.”  I was, from then on, wary of trying any of those drugs that so famously are associated with the 1960’s.  Including even the softer drugs like Marijuana which I may or may not tried and if I did I may or may not have inhaled!

By the time drugs were becoming common place I was married and busy with other things. I was aware of, and you might say exposed to, the drug culture via a few friends and relatives some of whom were able to handle it and others whose indulgence ruined their lives, in a couple cases even ending them.  For that I am both happy and thankful I avoided any of those troubles whether by choice or mere happenstance.

Thankfully, I never read any such warning relating to alcohol usage. So, whenever I need to change my attitude or otherwise alter my current state it is wine time!  And that, thankfully, can be at anytime because, as they say, it is 4:00 p.m. somewhere!