Kate Swift of Winesburg,Ohio

I was also reminded of this pocket of my life by listening to NPR today...

One of the times I was admitted into rehab I remember the usual intake procedure where they go through all of your things and decide what you can and cannot have. Unlike jail where they take everything ( I've never been but heard..) rehab is a little differant, much more subjective. In a way, a little more insulting. my watercolor pan and sketch pad were taken without question and in hindsight I can see this as being a sound decision- all that trying to make artwork really did more harm than good- though I'm sure they just thought I was going to make a mess ( which I did without art supplies ,thank you very much). Then they took away my clove cigerettes. Lame, i know, but it was another one of my very guilty pleasures at the time. "these are going to remind people of the smell of marijauna..." . "Maybe they should be reminded of the smell of marijauna", I thought. I'm sure it's not what got them thrown in here. then they rooted through the books. i had been to rehab twice before and the boredom is the real cross to bear. I came prepared with some of my favorite books. nothing to challenging, but some favorites. "open anywhere and read" books. After ALOT of debate they let me keep The Little Prince. I'm sure it had alot to do with the illustrated cover, as all of these nurses were wearing tweety bird scrubs. But the real point of contention, and probably the real reason I eventually "went on a smoke break" and never came back was when they refused to let me keep Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson. Obviously they had no intention of getting me clean and prepared with dealing with any sort of real life. they like to say that denial is one of the casues of a spiralling addiction but I think that denial is one of the things they try to rewire and turn you into a lifeliess annoying meeting-head.
Having said that I will mention my favorite character from Winesburg,Ohio. Kate Swift was the 30- year old schoolteacher who began an affair with one of her former students, the one she thought was the most brilliant. The reverand in town used to spy on her walking around naked in her house from the church bell tower, a practise which, eventually, made him have a spiritual breakthough. She would tel her students absurd and sometimes in appropriate stories that seemed to lack a point. One student fell out of his chair he laughed so hard at one of her jokes.
And they wouldn't let me have that book! Well, i am just saying it's a great book. And you know what? They took it away and they never gave it back. I picture a tweety bird nurse reading it on a real smoke break...

Comments

[molly]

this makes me want to read this book! speaking of which, i want to invite you to join this site...it's pretty nerdy and i like it: http://www.goodreads.com/friend/i?i=LTM2MDY0NTg1MjQ6MzEx%0A