DarrenByrne.com

On Ray Foley‘s show on Wednesday, he briefly touched on the subject of drugs. No, Foley did not dare delve into serious for any more than the briefest of moments (he would never try to steal Matt Cooper’s limelight). He mentioned his disinterest in drugs and how he also has a tendency to wipe his nose a lot. When he was out at a club/event/gig (I’m not sure, I wasn’t paying the best attention – I did have a lot of work to get through) he caught himself touching his nose and started to feel paranoid, so in an effort to disguise it, he began hiding his itchy nose when he wiped it, which could have only made it look more suspicious.

Why do I bring this up? Well, I’ve found myself doing the exact same thing on a number of occasions. I have mentioned before my hatred for drugs and the drug culture developing in Ireland today. I have never taken drugs, nor do I have any intention of. It is perhaps for this reason that I get so paranoid in clubs (particularly if they are very smoky around the entrance – I don’t cope well with cigarette smoke) when I catch myself wiping my nose. It may sound like a silly thing, but it is something that bothers me. I don’t want complete strangers thinking I’m on cocaine (or anything else for that matter) and I certainly don’t want people I do know to think I have some sort of secret habit that only surfaces when I’m in a nightclub, late bar or music gig.

Today, I’m off to Oxegen and I’m not stupid – I understand that drugs will certainly play a part in the festival. I’d like to think they won’t feature too much among my group of friends, but I am always the last to know about these things. I try not to judge – goodness knows there’s many things in my life I could be and have been judged for, so I would think it hypocritical of me to bring my judgment down upon others. I would claim to be open minded and liberal to a point, but when it comes to drugs – all I see is scumbags. There’s scumbags in tracksuits, scumbags in three piece suits, scumbags in haute couture and scumbags in pyjamas. My negative feelings towards drugs cross the class divides.

So, if you see me at any time over the weekend, dancing away and wiping my nose, allow to to assure you – all I am doing is wiping my nose. Do not offer me cocaine and do not try to buy some from me. I will happily take your money and then run away. Try catch me, scumbag! 🙂