#3

Daniel Cuevas-

I do not remember the ride home that night any better than I do the time I drove halfway across the state to visit my in-laws for Christmas. That's the nature of a blackout. But I must've stopped off at a liquor store along the way because there's a pint of Canadian Club in my lap. And most of it is empty. It's light out now, and somehow I've managed to navigate my way home. Sixty miles of freeway. Another twenty of winding mountain roads. (Anaya, 16)

James Brown, the author of The Los Angeles Diaries included this experience about his life. The way he stated the nature of the blackout shows that he has them frequently. For example, the fact that he used the phrase "thats the nature of" emphasis to the reader that the author knows or has experienced a "blackout" many times before. Thus, he must of been a frequent drinker. I wonder if in what ways his drinking has affected his family. I ask this because from my personal experience, alcoholics not only hurt themselves, they hurt others, like their family members.  In addition, when they drink, the alcohol impairs judgement, so they do not think correctly and may physically hurt their family members. Furthermore, this reminds me of drunk drivers, which usually always survive a crash caused by them. This makes me angry because some other persons foolishness and bad life choices can hurt a victims family very gravely by taking away a family member from them. I find it crazy that Brown somehow drove across a state to visit his in laws, without receiving a scratch, and did it all while being drunk. Further, in a past blog I stated that his life would be riddled with drugs and substances that are bad for the human body, this shows that my prediction was right.