Tales from the Lost Semester - The Second Wave

Yes, it's been far too long, but here I am.

First and foremost, after two months away from posting, I am quite certain that most of my nine readers have given up hope that I would ever put out anything new again. You've had two months to read and re-read my lament over the wretched gas I had back on April 26, 2006. This is unacceptable but not entirely surprising, seeing as there have been several gaps in my creative being over the years I have been churing out these writings. Now that I'm back, I think it's only appropriate that we pick back up with that sensation of sensations - the Tales from the Lost Semester!

Now I have a confession to make. Namely, I have spent a great deal of time fretting over the release of the coming Tales from the Lost Semester, particularly the next volume (as if that wasn’t obvious by the wide chasm of time between my last Tale and this one). Why, you ask? Well, aside from the fact that nine people who are not me will have the chance to witness firsthand the details of my downward spiral into a serious funk, one that took me significant time and effort to dig myself out of, some of what I will reveal to you is quite frankly very humiliating and questions my status as a normal, healthy adult male. I shudder to think of how you might feel about me once these stories of decadence, debauchery and despair rear their ugly heads and make their way onto this dark, scarcely viewed corner of the Internet. Consider this your disclaimer… no, your stern warning: you may never look at me the same way again.

In addition, as we all know, a few of my nine readers are actual participants in the madness that was the Lost Semester. Be forewarned, gentlemen: some of my stories refer to agony and heartache that at the time I perceived to be maliciously inflicted upon me by you all. As the years have gone on, we have collectively (and rightfully) reached the conclusion that most if not all of the misery I suffered through came directly as a result of how I perceived things in my own mind’s eye. However, as I am trying my best to relive these dark days of my life as accurately as possible, it is very likely that my perception had painted you as the bad guys in certain situations. I only ask that you don’t let it ruin your lives as a result – I think that’s not too much to ask.

Now I must take some comfort in the fact that those who know me realize that I tend to overly dramatize matters that in the grand scheme of things are quite trivial – call it my “plan for the worst, hope for the best” mentality. I realize we all have skeletons in our closet that we must deal with, and sometimes to effectively deal with them we must swing the closet’s door open and expose its musty, murky inhabitants to the rest of the world. And no, all this “closet” talk does not allude to a forthcoming confession that I am gay – I am not, have never been and do not plan on being gay (not that there’s anything wrong with it, of course). And to keep the placing-of-J’s-issues-in-perspective theme rolling along, I am not guilty of any crimes, sins or other chicanery that would require me to be ostracized from society and/or humanity as a whole. Although this is technically debatable, I digress.

No friends, when all is said and done the Tales that follow simply divulge the actions and antics of a confused, misguided, insecure, nervous individual with too much of an appetite for mind-altering substances and not enough confidence or perspective to realize at the time that things were probably going to work out just fine. It is in that spirit that I continue down this path and bring you Volume 12…coming to these pages very soon.