Page 64 - WHACK35
P. 64
IN OUR
O W N
W ORDS Whats
Crack-a-lacking
in the USA
I’D HEARD OF ‘CRA CK DENS’ AND
HERE I WAS, IN ONE – WITH A MATE,
I felt a bit like a novelty….
an Australian in America. IN A B ASEMENT SOMEWHERE IN THE
SUBURBS OF EASTERN US A.
I’d never smoked crack cocaine
quite like this, my first dabble had broken smoking pipe, ready to cause
been a decade ago – I’d messed up My ‘housemates’ were street tough, an accidental blood flow. There
badly that time, dropped a rock so not the kind you’d mess with. were nails sticking out of broken
which rolled, never to be seen When we came in, I’d noticed a furniture, which in itself was sparse
again, under the stove. The look hand gun in the kitchen. There was apart from a couple of grubby old
on my friend’s face, the tone in a system to entering and exiting mattresses on the floor, one
his voice, was one I didn’t need the house. The dealer and colleagues resting up against an old fashioned
to experience again. And here I were upstairs on ground level futon base, and there was one hard
was, same friend, different town, weighing and packaging – we were wooden chair. That’s the seat I
being handed a small clear frag- down in the spacious laundry with chose (to begin with), better for
ile glass tube, steel wool carefully 3 complete strangers, com- observing; then it was a mattress,
burnt and pushed into one end of ing together to share a stinking better for relaxing into the hours.
the pipe. Oh, please don’t let me hot afternoon smoking crack and
make a complete arse of myself (I whacking up heroin. We were in Yeah, it was a pleasant way to spend
was thinking) …. this second time a less than hygienic setting with a Sunday though what I saw
around. bloodied tissues lying about, and terrified me and it’s a road I fear
the odd shard of glass from a
Australia is heading down, ‘cause
64 W H A C K P. I E D I T I O N : S P R I N G 2 0 16
WHACK35_LYOT.indd 64 11-Oct-16 4:25:34 PM
