Uncle Grayhawk's Front Porch

The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star
Nikki Sixx
Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: VH1 (October 28, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416511946
ISBN-13: 978-1416511946

I admit to not being a huge Motley Crue fan until the mid 80's, sometime just after the Girls, Girls, Girls album, and even then, I wasn't a huge fan like a number of my classmates. Ergo, I don't have any memories of any of the large, public events that mark the beginning and end of this book.

The book covers a year in the life of Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx (born Frank Feranna), from Christmas 1986 until Christmas 1987. It's composed of diary entries written by Sixx during that time, as well as recollections and remembrances from the people who were there as well. It comes across as a very raw look at a man who was struggling to deal with his own personal demons by introducing more demons in in the hope that they would cancel each other out.

Yeah. That shit never works.

There's a number of amusing insights into the band, the making of the Girls, Girls, Girls album, life on the road and time with friends. After all, they were Motley Crue, and to paraphrase Sixx, they were going to do it bigger, badder, harder, and nastier than ANYONE else. From the sounds of it, they lived up to their own hype.

But for all the amusement value there, the real meat of this book comes from the diary entries where he talks about his depression and drug use; when he's being honest about what it's doing to him physically and mentally. I found myself reading the diary entries and talking to him as if he was there. Not conversations, but things like "Right, that's the way to do it" or "Don't be a dumbass". It speaks to the emotional authenticity of something when it evokes a reaction like that in me.

The one repeated jarring note that I found annoying was the "present day" comments by Denise Matthews, who then was known as Vanity, and was Sixx's girlfriend for a while. Since then, she has "found God", and seemed to be more interested in proclaiming her beliefs and "reclamation by Jesus" than adding any insight or interesting/useful information about the year in question.

Mind you, I'm not knocking her for her beliefs. If that's what got her to clean herself up, awesome. But this...wasn't the place for what she was talking about. This was supposed to be about Sixx, and how he was affecting the people around him. And I never got that feeling from any of her entries.

I believe that Motley Crue fans will enjoy this book for the "behind the scenes" looks at the band, but I believe it's real value is that it shows the effects of drugs on a person and their life; the self deception, the desperation, the shame. The slow descent, as he put it, into hell.

Hi there.

Yeah, I know I said I'd post daily. But I actually worked on stuff yesterday, so there.

So, not much going on. Fairly quiet weekend at our place. We hung out, watched Iron Man: Armored Adventures. Specced a laptop for mousecat0 to use at work. Played some WoW.

Exciting, ain't it?

One thing we did try this weekend was substituting chicken for pork in the Sweet & Sour Pork recipe. Unsurprisingly, it came out great.

Speaking of meals, I have finalized the Mother's Day dinner menu!

• Pina Colada Scallop Brochettes
  
• Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi
  
• Roasted Asparagus
  
• Peas with Shallots and Pancetta
  
• Au Gratin Potatoes
  
• Biscuits
  
• Sugar-free Blueberry Cheesecake Bars

Just a little something I'll whip up... ;-)

Recipes with commentary will posted after the meal.
( WoW notes )

Read three books in the last few weeks:

The Downhill Lie by Carl Hiaasen. Although I have about as much interest in golf as I do in french kissing a great white shark (that is to say, none), this was a very humorous book that just happened to be about one man trying to return to the game of golf. Well written and very funny, you get a real feel for one man's frustration with himself and his golf game - yet tempered with the healing and humor that comes with time and distance. I imagine that those who have played golf will find more humor in this than I did (much like survivors of Catholic schools get much more humor out of Nunsense), but I can recommend it to just about everyone.

A Few Seconds of Panic: A 5-Foot-8, 170-Pound, 43-Year-Old Sportswriter Plays in the NFL by Stefan Fatsis: If you ever wondered what it was like to try out for a professional football team, read this book. Look, I have *never* claimed to be an athlete. My favorite weightlifting move is the 12 oz. curl. The closest I ever came to Pro Football was watching a game at FedEx Field. But I did play for a while in high school. So, I have the barest echo of an inkling of what it's like in training camp. And Fatsis does a great job of making you feel the exhaustion, the frustration, and the bonds that are forged by it. He also shows the human side of the players and coaches - the part that so often goes overlooked by the fans. He left the Broncos training camp with a new view of and respect for the players - and after reading this, I think you will too.

Boys Will Be Boys: The Glory Days and Party Nights of the Dallas Cowboys Dynasty by Jeff Pearlman: Football fans generally fall on one side or the other of the Dallas Cowboys Fence: you either love 'em or hate 'em. Me? I hate 'em - and so does damn near every other fan of the Redskins, Eagles, & Giants. This look behind the scenes of "America's Team" in the 1990's is...wow. You wonder how these people could co-exist. You wonder how they could even play football, let alone win 3 HyperSuperBowls with all the drinking, drugs, and women. Control freaks, physical freaks, and football freaks, and they pulled it all together to be successful - and then fell apart. I found this to be compelling reading - but it was more because you wanted to see what happened next - what new low or level of debauchery they'd hit - and when would it start to unravel? I found the ending kind of abrupt, much like the end of a number of coaches there (Tom Landry and Jimmie Johnson) - yet, I am unsure how else it could have been done. Overall well written and an interesting read for those on both sides of the Cowboys fence.

OK, that's about it for now.

Remember: You woke up on the proper side of the grass this morning. By definition, that makes this a good day.

Peas. Out.