You can turn your back on a person, but never turn your back on a drug, especially when its waving a razor sharp hunting knife in your eye.
-Hunter S. Thompson



It all started with a pack of little red pills. No use in telling you what they were.

My roommate had just bought The Elder Scrolls VI: Oblivion for 360. Id enjoyed the game before on PC years ago,, but not as much as I did this time.

We took the sickly-sweet little red pills, and continued on our little gaming marathon. Pausing every few hours, only to trade off who was playing.

These pills you see, they mess with your head. Make you think things you did not know could be thought, and do things that may make any sane person think you've gone over that steep edge. You could find meaning in anything, and everything. And so it was with Oblivion. A huge world to overtake you. Filled with crazy looking people, and colors you just don't see in the real world.

The drug kicks in slowly. You feel light headed, and your tongue goes a little numb. Then without warning, you turn to your roommate and say silly things like, "Religion is a pain in the ass, but Christianity is a pain in MY ass". Which may sound funny and clever at the time, but when you read it afterwards on a piece of canvas paper written in huge black marker. Its not.

Then you feel a huge burden hanging over you. Not a dirty, nasty burden like you may think, but a burden to use your stupid little brain as much as possible in the next few hours. A very frenzied feeling. Almost as if you were about to have a heart attack, but it never comes.

It sometimes feels like your grasping for air, but your not.

So we explored the world of Tamriel. Insane as we were, we did nothing but explore. Trying to complete quests was simply out of the question, as it took way too much concentration than we had at the moment. We just wanted to look at pretty things really.

I was crawling on the floor like some kind of new, crazy, drug induced animal, my room mate handed me the controller. It was my turn again. I got up, sat down, and stared at the giant TV that would soon be all encompassing.

It felt as if I were there, but it wasn't as I had wanted. You see... that game is huge, but our world is much bigger. I felt like a giant in that tiny (by comparison) world. It made me claustrophobic, very claustrophobic.

I started to freak out a little, and gave my roomie back the controller. Citing that my hugeness prevented me from playing in that world for much longer. He was the only person on this planet that would have understood what I meant, without asking any questions at all.

Seeing my roommate fight those evil looking Daedra was unsettling.

So Id close my eyes and see tiny yellow dots pelting my brain.

I would yammer on about nonsense things, knowing my room mate was paying no attention to me at all. I kept talking anyways.

We stopped playing for a bit. The game had caused us to be mentally exhausted.

We though wed watch a movie. "A more passive medium should do the trick", I thought. We put in Escape From New York. We love those old 80's action movies.

Much to our dismay, Snake Pliskin could not hold us for very long.

We went back to the Elder Scrolls. We took more pills. We didn't want this adventure to fade.

We spoke of our existence, and why we both believe there is no God. As those have nothing to do with gaming, Ill go on.

My roomie again at the helm. He panicked. He saw my eyes start to roll into the back of my head. Making insane noises, and hand motions that people should not make. He was scared. Was I going to OD, or was this simply part of the drug acting out? He kept playing though. Sometimes checking to see if I was dead yet.

The drug makes no room for things like sex, and food. You don't want or need them while on it. So no need for food runs, and masturbation is out of the question. Two things of which I enjoy. There would be no calls to my girlfriend for sex. Besides what would she think if she did come over and she her boyfriend slithering on the ground like some kinda greasy drug crazed snake? She would freak and run away. I don't need to make someone else crazy tonight.

Soon though, you become tired, exhausted. The drug is still rushing though you. Pounding your face in, with its massive white fists. Still, your eyes get heavy, and then you sleep.

We woke up the next morning. Calm and relaxed. Still buzzing just a little.

We turned the 360 back on, and dove right back into that strange, scary world.

I love that game.