October 19, 1971 (Letter from Larry)

I just read your letter and I wanted to write to you while my thoughts were fresh in my head.

Pink Floyd is coming to Cleveland on Nov 6th and I'm hoping I get to see them.

School is going okay but it's a rinky-dink ass school.  I'm trying to do my best but the teaching and administration is fucked up.  It isn't really worth the money but I'm going to make the most of it.  I'd like to go to Ken State after I get out of this school but it depends on the money situation.  It's supposed to be one of the best architectural schools in the nation and besides that there are a lot of freaks down in Kent.

Did you hear that Ford and June bought Bambenek's cottage at Lake Spread Eagle.  Mom and Dad were hoping they would rent nit out so they could go up to the lake for 2 weeks t his summer.  I"d really like to go with them.

About my bad trip -- it really fucked me up.  I don't know what Mom or Dad told you but I'll you the whole story.  I've only touched the chemicals twice -- both times acid.  The first time was out here in Cleveland.  I was over at these guys apartment and just about everybody dropped.  I dropped 1/4 tab and went home by myself.  It wasn't too bad of oa trip.  I just got a lot of cramps and I felt weaker than hell.  I didn't plan on droping again for quite awhile but about three weeks later I dropped with Monty and some other guys.  It was about 2:00 Sunday morning when I did it.  I didn't want to do anything cause I knew that I would have to go to church in a few hours.  Anyhow they persuaded me to, they told me when I first took it that it was mesc, but after about a half hour they told me it was really acid.  I didn't really care then, I wasn't pissed at them for doing it.  But I started peaking about an hour later, I thought I was going to die, I had such bad cramps I could hardly breathe.  I told one of the guys I was with to check me (I was lying in the back seat of a car) every once in awhile to make sure I was still alive.  It really fucked me up.  Things began to be a little beteter when I started coming down but I had terrible cramps.

I went home about 10:30 Sunday morning and nobody was home so I went to bed.  I was still really fucked up, I would hear bells, hammering sounds, motorcycles, just about anything in my head and there was nothing around making the noises.  I thought I was going to be fucked up the rest of my life.  I even told Mom and Dad that they should take me to the State Hospital for observation.  But they wanted to wait a day to see how I'd be.  I didn't start getting back to normal til about 5:00 Sunday nite.  I still wasn't sure if I was going to be normal or not.

It took me about 3 or 4 weeks to get my head clear.  Like about a week or so after this experience I had a couple beers and I laid down and I hear swoshing and cricket like sounds in my head.  Even when I smoked some hash I'd hear cricket sounds but it's been about 7 weeks since that and it doesn't affect my head cuz I don't drink or smoke anymore.

What could have caused such a bad trip is that the acid was probably cut with strychnine (a rat poison) cause it is supposed to cause the bad cramps.

I'll never do chemicals again -- I'd be afraid that it could kill me.  I'll never stop smoking (no reason to).

I listneed to a program on one of the underground radio stations about drugs.  It was a talk session with Cleveland's chief underground toxicologist.  (He inspects the dope in Cleveland that people bring to him.)  I just want to give you some true facts about dope all over the United States.

You've probably never had mescaline before because it done't exist on the street.  If you really have had it, it would have cost about $25 a hit, that's about how much it costs to synthesize it and it is rare in its pure form.  THC doesn't exist outside a laboratory and that would cost $75 per dose cause it is a complicated synthesis.

You won't always get pure acid, a lot of time it's poor quality acid cut with speed or strychnine nto give it strength.

There's no reason why you should get involved with downs or speed -- they can't do anything for you.

Eve the grass is dangerous if it's sprayed or soaked in a chemical.  It's even more dangerous when you smoke a chemical.

The toxicologists does public service announcements on the station so most everything I said is quoted from him.  But I read articles form different people who say the same, so it's not bullshit.

I don't have anything against your taking acid but there's no way in hell that you are sure that it's acid.

It is possible to retrip on LCD under extreme tension.

I would take mesc if I was sure it was pure and could afford it.  But I'd be afraid to take pure acid, I'll never buy any chemical off the street.  The only thing I buy is grass or hash and even then I can't be sure if it hasn't been stepped on.

That's enough of that -- I just wanted to tell you how I felt and a few facts that you might not have known.

I hope everything that I've been writing makes sense.  I wrote down things so fast and I don't plan on proofreading 5 pages.

Mom might have told you I got my hair cut -- I just got about an inch or so of the back so it would grow in more even.

I hope you didn't think I turned straight from what Mom and Dad said.  I could never do that.  I don't' have to take the chemicals to be a freak.

i'm still working at school as a janitor but I'm going to have to have someone start helping me out cause I've been working over 40 hrs/week plus going to school 25 hrs/week that doesn't leave me much time to do anything.  Well my hand is getting tired so i"ll probably see you Christmas.

I hate to bug you about this but know what you're putting down.

This is the longest fuckin letter I've ever written.