Knocked my socks off

When was the last time a book knocked your socks off? For me: today.

I picked up a new book from Seven Stories Press called Live Through This; On Creativity and Self-Destruction edited by Sabrina Chapadjiev and the first two essays kicked major butt.

"Long, Long Thoughts" by Carol Queen is an awesome account of the amazing disappointment that comes from the loss of virginity after all the build up. But includes this awesome response:

"...Good thing I got back on the horse. Every time I had sex after that I learned something new, not just about myself but about other people."

This is my first time reading Queen. I wish I had been as smart as she was. She totally rocks.

The second essay is by Daphne Gottlieb and it deals with the question: should I treat my depression if it might affect my creativity? She talks about how we choose our compromises. I really like this:

As therapeutic as it may be, barfing raw feelings onto the page doesn't make for great art either. Usually, when we're depressed, we're not at our best. ... These aren't great conditions to drive a car in, much less create art."

Cool book. I bought it at Mayday Books. I'm savoring it.