Maintaining

The Crack House Diaries

“Maintaining”

 

  It didn't matter what was going on around him or who asked him at the time, "Maintaining," was always his cool response if someone asked how he was doing. The word and an ever present, teeth-filled smile were what came to mind when one thought of Larry. Well, that and his metal crack pipe.

     As straights are stolen almost as quickly as dope in a house filled with fiends, the fact that Larry held unto each of his for months at a time was nothing short of miraculous. A fading metal, it didn’t have the typically torched ends of a crack pipe, because Larry knew how to take a hit.

     He'd tried on occasion to teach a few w****s newer to the game. "Carefully move the flame. Twist the end. Pull soft. Blow slow." Either they were completely brain dead or he was a master smoker, because they never listened or learned. It used to bother him, but not anymore. As long as he got his, f**k it if they wasted theirs. You just do you. Ima do me! He'd sing in his head while patiently leaning forward with a lighter in hand, purifying his rock in a spoon, unconcerned with the w****s sitting on the couch next to him already smoking up the last of their hard earned, uncooked dope in overly eager, inefficient anticipation. 

     Typically, no one spoke during this get high ritual, as all anyone cared about was the euphoric ten-minute blast to oblivion. Then the high would wear off and the madness of the never ending pursuit of procuring the next one would return to everyone. The w****s would hit the streets or head back upstairs, and Larry would return to his own in-house hustle of requiring a piece of crack rock for smoking or cooking it in his house. Luckily for him, traffic was never slow to come to his trap house.  

     As with the other, ever-evolving band of w****s and junkies coming in and out, Larry no longer cared about anything else but smoking his next hit. Crickets scurried under the filthy fridge when he turned the kitchen lights on. The once-tan carpet of the townhouse was now streaked black throughout. It was filled day and night with dealers hustling dope downstairs and w****s turning tricks for any crumb or piece of dope upstairs. That's probably why they call the dope "work", but else would any expect in a trap house like Larry’s? As for Larry, he was always so busy maintaining his hustle and high that he rarely thought of his teenage son anymore, let alone had he flown out to California with his son the month before when his son was chosen to participate in the Junior Olympics.

     Suddenly, a fight began to break out while Larry was upstairs, mid-hit, finally trying to enjoy one alone. F**k! He thought hearing the commotion downstairs, as he rose from his bed none too quickly to break it up. Two w****s fought over a long-empty glass pipe as Tito and the other dealers laughed in unsurprised amusement, watching one w***e take another into a headlock, nearly breaking the smaller w***e's neck to reach her small hand outstretched in a vain attempt to be the victor in the fruitless, empty pipe struggle for "just one more" hit. By this point, Larry had calmly descended the stairs, got between them, and broke it up. 

      Captain Save a Hoe saves a hoe yet again he smiled to himself as he savored his hit next hit next to the w****s, who now sat on the couch anxiously near him, desperately fixated on his controlled inhale. He enjoyed it after having first watched both waste the small piece of rock he’d tossed each a minute before to shut them both the f**k up.  

Reviews

[C. Rose]

Congratulations on being in the top ten of the first "Promote Me!" contest.
Your quick chapters provide an easy doorway into the world of the Crackhouse diaries.
Voting closes in a week.
I invite you to join the group "Promote Me!". Your piece will be accepted into the library along with the other finalists, and should you win it will be featured.

[AMMD]

Thank you, C. Rose.

[jjwilbourne]

This was an awesome short piece.
I really liked the voice and I'm a sucker for music that accompanies and embodies the mood.

[Kamari's]

Very well wrote! It moved. Me by taking about the character made me see him and know what he is going through

[Rick r]

Never having lived a life like Gary's, I'm not qualified to judge how closely you capture the lifestyle. I can relate to the loss of attention or lack of caring about other aspects of life that might accompany addiction. Sorry, I like to read, but not sure this is my cuppa tea.
Rick

[AMMD]

Fair enough. Thanks for the R&R =)

[MAD ENGLISHMAN]

I find I'm completely out of my depth here. You are writing about subjects that I have no knowledge about. These are not things that have ever entered my circle of life.
I can comment on the style of your writing however.
You certainly describe in succinct detail the scene set out before the reader. The story flows well and the main subject starts to become interesting.
Clive.

[AMMD]

Thank you, Mad Englishman. The idea for these snippets came to mind, and I suppose I'm attempting to paint a brief portrait of the life of an addict while humanizing him/her in the process.

[AMMD]

Oh, I mean thank you, Clive! =)

[♔ CrownedDevil &#..]

I agree with SpeedyHobbitArmstrong. An amazing write, nicely penned.

Kaze~

[AMMD]

Thanks Kaze! =)

[♔ CrownedDevil ☾]

Your very welcome. :-)

[SpeedyHobbit Armstrong]

You've definitely taken on a very challenging and interesting character! you add a lot of dimension to the sort of person usually shown in a one-dimensional way

[AMMD]

Wow. Thank you, Speedy! =)

[Fenix Flight]

Huh.. This is pretty Neat. Its different but really cool. keep it up :-D

[AMMD]

Thank you and I will ;)