A Handful of Pills in the Morning

Three glugs of Glen Elgin was all I needed, after I drank beer all day, to get in the mood for the year's end last night. I had never tried that brand of scotch before. I am not a scotch snob. Unless it is in my flask I like it with ice and water. I have never tasted traces of vanilla or cinnamon or anything else when I drink my favourite booze besides beer. Until last night that is. The Glen Elgin tasted just a little like chocolate. Could be I have just eaten a little too much chocolate the last couple of weeks.

Not getting too wasted last night, which is what would have happened if I drank scotch all day and capped off the evening with a few beer, allowed Sonja and I to enjoy a day at the races without having to take a handful of pills in the morning. Jimi, who does not knock them back the way he used to on New Year's Eve either, and Connie, who left her poisoned husband Stan on the couch, joined us and the big crowd who had gathered to gamble their dope money on the horses and in the casino.

Jimi already was warming a Canadian with his big hand when he joined Sonja and I high above the crooked little harness track. "Now it is my daughter going out partying on New Year's Eve for fuck's sake. And she's only fourteen. Fuck. I was still learning to jack off and playing on my hockey set when I was fourteen."

Connie looked a little pale as she made her way up the stairs. A couple vodkas and couple more pills would fix her up. "You should see Stan. He looks like he used to on New Year's Day when I first met him. Our new neighbours and their non-stop drinking and dope smoking are starting to take a toll on the old man. If we don't move to a new neighbourhood Stan is not going to make it to retirement."

Connie and Sonja went to play the slots. Connie walked off the floor with $300 in her purse. Sonja lost about half that much.

Jimi got lucky with his numbers and went home with a thick wallet. "Motherfuck the handicapping Beer. Just pick numbers, drink beer and enjoy the races." I had several winners but not enough of them to make a profit. And my pick six ticket on a two million dollar jackpot at Santa Anita lasted three legs. The track sold thirty plus winning tickets. They all went home with over 50 grand in their pocket. One of these days I hope to tell the story of how I hit a life-changing jackpot like that.