They Laughed Me Out Of Class, Out Of Town And...

Didn't we all



Hotwater

 

I think that would depend on what you mean.......

 

the tradition in my circle generally involved smoking a large joint to honor the dead rather than wasting our malt liquor.

 

Nah, liquor is quicker.

 

Sounds like one or more of her family members had mental health issues such as narcissistic personality disorder. Being the child victim of that kind of issue will create an unquenchable thirst to "prove them wrong" and gain approval. I'll bet she saw her high school reunion, her family and that whole town as a part of her inability to be truly loved as a child by that narcissist parent and was just trying to put that pain to rest finally...now that she had something to be proud of (her success).

I've never been to a high school reunion. I had two high schools and I just don't see myself going to one for any reason whatsoever. I don't feel like I need to prove anything to anyone from my schools. I graduated from a very large school though in which almost no one in my class even knew me since I only went there for a year and a half. I had some friends from middle school there but most of them had either changed so much or I'd changed so much that we didn't rekindle our friendships. For the other school I think I was invited to the reunion for it because the President was one of my good friends and I had just moved back to town when it happened, but I just pretended I didn't really know what was going on and dodged that bullet. Just seems strange and awkward to me.

 

I LOVE this picture of her. Wow. Love, love, love.

 

Yeah, David Gahr was a great photographer I first discovered his work when I bought Joplin in Concert (when vinyl was still the norm). It was a double album, so there were 3 pics of Janis: Cover photo, a really large one when you opened the album up, and another one on the back. All were fantastic (as Janis used to say).

Interesting note: The pic of Janis I used for this post was taken on the roof of the Chelsea Hotel. Janis always stayed at the Chelsea whenever she was in New York. There was a garden (and a few chairs and tables) on the roof for guests. This was during the late 1960s, so not sure if it's still the same since the building was sold. I hear it's changed a lot...

 

Yes. Fucking freak!

 

having been through the mill, is not the same as learning what not to expect from people. i really don't believe anyone would get suicidal over emotional things if it were.

not having known her personally, i'm not saying for sure that she was. but i have seen people essentially neglect themselves to death from depression.

i'm pretty sure hendrix didn't intentionally kill himself either. the interests in having us believe that they did, were a little too blatant to be taken entirely at face value.

alky of course, has a tendency to contribute to depression, and she did have a reputation for fondness for alky, that i don't think was entirely just part of her image or act.

i wish everyone could have just given her a great big hug and made her feel wanted, but somehow i don't get the impression she would have accepted that.

and there's were i see as being a big part of her problem.

 

Maybe because she internalized all the hatred she received for being "unattractive and aggressive"? Janis was never a conventional person. And she was born and raised in a totally conservative town. Women were supposed to know their place (meek and seeking a husband with a good future, and all set to raise a brood of children - as she once said). But she was not pretty in the conventional sense, yet dared to be ambitious and independent.

And she became a huge success. Port Arthur still (for the most part) cannot forgive her for that. Bottom line is the woman had talent, and never gave up on her dream. Yeah, she died young, but the awesome music will survive. That's more than can be said for her worst critics