Koolaids Read Online Free PDF

targeting civilians.
    â€¦
    Steve was the epitome of the angry young man. He was one of the founders of ACT UP in San Francisco. I believe it was his anger that kept him alive for so long. He always said he wanted to stay alive long enough to bite Reagan’s nose off. Steve was one of the first to be diagnosed with the disease. The acronym at the time was GRID, Gay Related Immune Deficiency. He was part of the hepatitis study of the late seventies. The blood they drew from him then turned out to be positive. Yet he went on living, baffling the experts.
    Kurt convinced him he should attend a workshop with Louise Hay. Kurt felt Louise would be able to help him resolve his anger issues. For two days, Kurt and Steve listened to Louise explain about creating one’s own reality. Kurt kept expecting Steve to get upset during the workshop. It did not happen. Steve absorbed it all. Louise explained making things happen in your life. She always found parking spaces, she said, because she created reality. On Sunday afternoon, the last day of the workshop, Louise began talking about the possibility of dying. She said if you were not creating your own reality, and it was time for you to die, you should accept it. Do not fight it, she said.
    At this point, Kurt noticed that Steve stood up. He interrupted Louise. “Excuse me,” Steve said. “Let me see if I have this straight.” He paused, placed one hand on his chin, with one finger pointing up in the universal I-am-pondering pose. “Basically what you are saying is, ‘First you park, then you die.’”
    Kurt burst out laughing. He took his friend’s hand and walked out of the building.
    â€¦
    Scott told the doctor he was better. Tests showed his T-cell counts were improving. He had more energy.
    The doctor said he probably had AIDS dementia, which is why he imagined he was getting better.
    When I found out, I stormed into the congenital idiot’s office looking for trouble. I could not find the good doctor. My noisy entrance warned him. He did not return my phone calls either.
    â€¦
    We all had what some would call a European complex. We wanted so hard to be European. This manifested itself in a couple of ways. There were those who mimicked everything European. They ate European, dressed European, watched European movies. It was a sign of sophistication if one intermixed difficult English words with the predominant French. Many of these Lebanese—let’s call them Francophiles—had trouble speaking their native language, Arabic. They really had problems speaking to other Lebanese if those others were not like them, if they did not speak French fluently. Most Francophiles were Christians, but not exclusively. They even developed a relationship to America similar to what the Europeans have, an unhealthy fascination mixed with simultaneous disdain.
    Another manifestation was the complete opposite. Many hated Europeans with a passion. Some tried to revive Arabism. Islamic Fundamentalism was on the rise. They kidnapped Westerners.
    One lone person blew up two hundred marines, while another blew up only fifty-seven Frenchies.
    â€¦
    I was reading a book about this man traveling in Lebanon. The man went from one small village to the next. He described how beautiful the villages were, how kind the people were. He came into the mountains where I was born. I was so disappointed. He described the village before my home village and then skipped ahead to the next village. Tears welled up in my eyes. The teacher asked me if I was sick. I told him the writer skipped my home. The teacher explained that writers could not include everything in a story. I understood that. I asked the teacher if there was a book that had my home in it. He did not know. I asked my father when I got home. He asked to see my book. He got really upset. He told me the book was trash. It had nothing to do with Lebanon. I almost started crying again. I liked the book.