Hunter S. Thompson R.I.P.

We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like, "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive . . ."And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about 100 miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas. And a voice was screaming: "Holy Jesus! What are these goddamn animals?"

Derek's favorite movie was Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. It also was the movie that convinced him that Johnny Depp was a REALLY good actor and was worthy of being his favorite actor. The story that Hunter S. Thompson wrote for Rolling Stone magazine way back then really changed journalism. Gonzo journalism. When I majored in journalism in college, gonzo journalism wasn't taught in any of my classes but I studied it whenever I could. Hunter was not the type of person that you try to explain to your kid but just as I happened to find the same religion that my father did, Derek found that gonzo journalism made for a very exciting read.
I said READ, not do. Only people like Hunter or Keith Richards could live a life like that and stay alive. It's like listening to "infotainment news", as long as you know it isn't real life, it can be fun to watch; just always remember that it isn't real for people that have any brain cells left or have any wish to treat their fellow man with any respect or dignity.
OK, I seem to be spiraling now, time to load the van and check out the strip. I will not partake in any of the potions that Hunter and his attorney used to make Las Vegas such an interesting vacation spot, but we will enjoy the lights, the buildings, the Vegas.