Delirium is the youngest of the endless. She smells of sweat, sour wines, late nights, old leather. Her realm is close, and can be visited; however, human minds were not made to comprehend her domain, and those few who have made the journey have been incapable of reporting back more than the tiniest fragments.
Rocks Off is a big fan of celebrating the more obscure holidays, and today we made a wreath out of thorazine and our own hair to commemorate World Mental Health Day. Begun in 1992, the goal of the day is to bring some awareness and advocacy to various mental health problems across the globe. More than 150 countries worldwide participate, and some actually turn it into a whole Mental Health Week.
We're here to do our part. Here's our five favorite tunes about shining on like a crazy diamond.
Rose Kennedy was the mother of President John F. Kennedy. Trapped in a loveless marriage to a man who cheated on her, she was under constant stress and was prescribed a bewildering array of tranquilizers. "Rose K." is about her final years after a massive stroke confined her to a wheelchair and severely retarded her mental facilities.
Rose's daughter Rosemary also suffered from mental problems. She showed signs of slowness as a child, and became aggressive and wayward as a teenager and young adult. Her father had an unnecessary lobotomy performed in an attempt to rein her in, and she spent the rest of her life incapacitated.
Young Rosemary Kennedy got us thinking about how her story is somewhat paralleled in Suicidal Tendencies' "Institutionalized." What is crazy, anyway? That's part of what World Mental Health Day is all about, learning the signs of true mental illness as opposed to maybe just really wanting a Pepsi.
