His writing was good

because of alcohol, and the other day, my friend and I were talking about the fact that writing seems easier when you've been drinking. I said this candidly, knowing that I don't use alcohol to write. It's not a problem for me.

When I saw him on Thursday night, he pulled out a bottle of whiskey and said "This is my drink of choice", acting like Burrows, and I suddenly realized he was emulating him. That he was hiding under the "alcoholic writer" guise in order to read his poetry to me.

By that point, I'd already admitted that I understood why people drink to write, and realized that by being at that bar and being a "writer", I was helping to make it "ok" to take on this persona. I was giving him reason to take on that crutch. So I casually mentioned the whole alcoholic thing, but he was too busy feeling like he was living Barfly. He didn't even notice.

You know what? Superstar writers and everyone else that gets that far REALLY DO have a responsiblity about how they're living. Even at 33, it's ok to be a drunk writer because W.S.B was, and everyone loves him. Not only was my friend talking about his drinking and writing, he was proudly talking about it, leaning over the books he was reading, establishing himself as a true intellectual.

On a separate note, I think people that don't say what they're really thinking and are too forgiving and "too" understanding are just wimps.
I'm one of them.