The # effect

We were seven of us. Three, including me were still in college, in their third years and the rest four were pass outs, working. So we had made the joints and were ready to get high. There were two joints in total and quiet thick ones. Such that overall we had more that 3 joints. We started smoking. The joints being passed on in clockwise and anticlockwise directions respectively in the group.


The second time I got my chance to puff, as the joints were passed along in a circle, is when I started to feel that it was different this time. I had tried these before but not with the proximity that I was dealing with now. As I took breaths of hash smoke, I suddenly felt a sharp burning sensation in my throat. This confirmed that this time around I was having the drug more than I've ever tried before.


I excused myself from the group and walked outside. I was scared to the bone by the sudden nausea that was raging inside me. But I hadn't had anything to eat except for some chips that whole morning, so I was almost sure that I won't puke. But still, it was as if something outside my control was playing with the chords of my life. I was uncomfortable to extreme levels. Others came outside soon and stoned obviously, were totally oblivious to my condition or their own for christ sake. Suddenly the death of Heath Ledger due to drug overdose started flooding my thoughts and that made my stomach turn even more. My hear beat was breaking records. My concern of getting home were now replaced by my concern for my survival.


I excused them to go back home. My thoughts were barely in my control and I had to trust it to lead me safely from Safdarjung Encalve to Green Park metro station. I had come here only for the second time and that too via a different route and after a long time. As I turned the corner, my mind started racing.


I got lost deep in the thoughts that I can't recall now. I was looking down on the road and walking. Suddenly when I looked up I realized that I had completely cut my mind off the present. ( And it could've been worse like me landing up in the middle of the road, looking down, lost in my own space, and a crassshhh). After that I made a conscious effort to keep my eyes on the road, on the vehicles around me. But I wasn't successfull at all. Now I am grateful to my instincts which lead me safely back home in spite of my condition being that of a dead body.


There were a few things I remember:

1. As i was walking, I couldn't feel the throb in my legs that I was sure should have been there as a result of the amount of exhaustion i have been throug the day. My legs just kept walking, and it was as if now my concern should be on how to stop them and not on worrying about them collapsing to the wright of my dead-body.


2. I remember hopping on to the ladies compartment of the metro in a rush and total inablity to see and think clearly. Then I suddenly realized that there were females all around, all of them giving me an angry glance. And then the sanity that there was supposed to be something known as the 'ladies-only' compartment. 'OH', I had said to myself and ran out the same moment. All of this happened in 3 seconds.
   


3. There were periods of unconsciousness when I was standing/hanging inside the metro. Not blackouts but periods of total oblivion about my environment. No memories. I was damn sure that my demeanor to an outsider wasn't that of a drunk. It could have been that of an extremely tired dude. But I was sure I wasn't misbehaving inside the metro.
   

By the time I got back home at around 10pm. My hallucination effect was completely gone. Though my control over my body was still in question. My throat was burning dry and the first thing I did was to drink lots of water. It was also to remove the lingering odor (if any) for my Mom to detect. (Once you take hash and are away from smoke, then unlike cigarettes, there's no odor from your mouth (unless of course inspected very closely)). Then ate lots of food and went straight to the bed.