Pot Thoughts

A while back, I was talking with a friend via IM. We talked about the usual foofy things for a bit. Then suddenly, they tell me something very surprising. They smoked pot the other day.

Uh...

Wait, what?

I was surprised, to say the least. Pot smoking is something that is out of character for this friend, to say the least. I never thought they would feel the need to do something like that. Their admission to me of doing this caught me by surprise, to say the least. I thought I would clarify my views on the whole thing, just for posterity. And since my friend reads this blog, maybe they'll understand a little better too.
First of all, I prefer not to smoke pot. I have this preference for several reasons:

• Pot is addictive, and I'd rather not get dependent on any substance for my wellbeing. I hardly even drink coffee.
• It is still illegal in my state.
  
• Smoking pot can lead to smoking stronger drugs, which is something I do not want to get mixed up in.
• Because of my different brain wiring, a drug like that might affect me in new and exciting ways than it affects most people. I'd rather avoid that.
  
• I just don't see the point. You smoke it, you're high, then what?

You come back down, and want to do it again. And again. And again. And again.
See my point here? The primary reason people do recreational drugs is to feel better for some time, to escape, as it were. The problem is, it's only a temporary escape. Sure you feel good for awhile, but then you're back to feeling bad again. If you're like most people,you want to get that good feeling back, so you smoke some more pot. Then problems develop. Pot smoking becomes more important than anything else. You neglect food, sleep, friends, your dog, everything, all in favor of that pipe of weed. Eventually, you get discovered, lose your home, your dog, your freedom, everything, and get your ass hauled to detox for 6 months. Then when you get out you have to live with your parents because spent all your money on drugs.

Ok, that is just a worst case scenario, and not very likely to happen. But it is one reason why I do not find getting into drugs that good of an idea. I don't smoke tobacco or otherwise, I don't drink, I don't do fun stuff like that. Call me a goody two shoes if you want; I don't give a fuck. That is just how I have chosen to live my life. I believe I can have a good life without those things.
What about people that do drugs? I'm not sure how to explain my opinion of them. On the one hand, I feel sorry for them, for feeling they have to resort to something like that to achieve happiness or good feelings, or whatever their goal is from smoking pot. On the other hand, it's not really my problem. They made a choice. Now they have to live with the consequences.

I guess I'm still somewhat ambiguous about the whole thing. Oh well, we'll see what happens next.