I used to be a high functioning stoner who felt deeply uncomfortable in a world of red carpets, trying to fit into the matrix with my proverbial mask on at all times. In order to function at an event, I’d pre game with a few puffs on a joint and kept a small bottle of lavender oil in my bag to sniff before facing the cameras.
As in the below photo, which was taken at a Tom Ford fashion show during Oscar week in 2020, just before the pandemic.
I particularly remember this event because although Tom’s gowns were gorgeous and the people watching glamorous, great fodder for this writer —a newly ripped Jeff Bezos sitting front row with more bodyguards than any celeb in attendance and a fun chat with Lil Nas X— I left with my self-esteem in the toilet.