Monday, May 05, 2008

How On Earth Did I Miss This?

Albert Hofmann, the Father of LSD, Dies at 102

Last Tuesday, so that would make it April 29/08.

Clearly, doing acid didn't hurt ole Al too much.

I learned Hoffman's story as a teenager. Let's just say I was interested in the subject. As I remember the story, he was riding home on his bicycle when he began to experience the effects of the drug. Like the front wheel got really big!

And then the back wheel got really small!

And then the Cheshire cat asked him what time it was because it very late!

And then Hoffman said something like, "I don't have time for this nonsense. I'm going home for schnitzel." Which he did.

And then he listened to Ravel's Bolero on the Victrola over and over and over until he solved the riddle of the universe which he feverishly scribbled on a prescription pad. After which he dropped off to sleep, and when he woke up he checked the pad.

The answer, naturally, was: 42.

The End

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4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mmmmm, I hate to ask. I'd like to come over smart and knowing and so. But, why naturally was the anwer 42?

I thought maybe that was his age. I thought, maybe he listened 42 times to Ravel's Bolero. But who would count. I've listened endlessly to Ravel's Bolero, not drug enduced, not counting.

100 years ago he was two.That's 1908. So he was born in 1906. WOW!

I don't find any 42 clue in there.

It's such a neat story, I want to get it.

Larry Keiler said...

Ah, WT, see what I did was throw references to a bunch of different stories in there...for the psychedelic effect.

42 is a reference to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. They asked the most powerful computer in the universe to solve the riddle of the universe. After many years, the computer came back with the answer: 42. When they asked, "What does it mean?" the computer replied, "I don't know, you didn't ask me that question..."

Anonymous said...

Aha! Now I know. Riddle solved.

Serves me right for never having payed attention to the Hitchhiker's guide.(Are there diferent ones? Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe sticks in my brain.)

I like that story.

Anonymous said...

hey guys, i read about the founder of LSD and his death - interestingly enough, he was quite pissed off about how the drug was "pirated" by druggies - he saw it as having scientific and medicinal purposes... and was pleased in later years when such research resumed. He was originally "accidentally" drugged - and his first trip was very pleasant... so he tried it on purpose, and his second trip was a nightmare...

Help! I've written and I can't get up!