Hey John,
How the hell are ya? This is Virginia* McNulty. I remember you. Short guy, thick black hair, always reminded me of Speed Racer. LOL Can't quite remember your last name. It'll come to me. I won't post it. Don't worry.
On 2005-08-25 14:51:00, Anonymous wrote:
I don't know what to think. Was I a blind fool or did things go terribly wrong after I moved on? I was young, only 12 when starting and 16 when leaving the staff. What happened?
Well, a little bit of both, I think. Yes, Virgil brought it to a whole new level of warped. It was his big, bright idea to formalize parent and sibling indoctrination events. Probably his idea as well to set up a formal 7th step society.
We never saw much of him in person in Sarasota, at least not that I remember. But Chris Casselor (Castler? Cassler? So many possible spellings) became his li'll protege; Miller Light. Thought he was becoming a professional by virtue of his psyche classes at SPJC. That's when he really started to get dangerous. And, as I remember, that was around `82.
But yeah, the whole thing was pretty fucked up right from the get go. I can well imagine how you could not see it. It worked. You, evidently, bought into the "I was a 12yo junkie" bullshit hook, line and sinker. Of course. What chance has a 12yo got against proven thought reform techniques? Slim to none, that's what.
You must remember driving to and from St. Pete every damned day. Do you remember how much (little) sleep we were all getting? I do. On open meeting nights, we were lucky to get 3 hrs. Normally, we might get 5 or 6. And then, when we'd yawn or nod off in group, they'd stand us up and make all sorts of accusations and bizarre assumptions about it; you're avoiding yourself, you're being disrespectful to the person talking... nnooooooooo, I just haven't had a decent night's sleep in 3 weeks. And, frankly, this routine is getting quite old and boring.
That all by itself is pretty fucked up. Think about it. Intentionally deprive someone of adequate rest and privacy for an extended period of time, then torment and accuse them for being tired. Or how about the routine practice of group tackling anybody who tried to get away? Or the lies and coercion used to get people to sign in in the first place? Do things like that to anybody in the real world and they'll bring charges against you. But things like this become routine and seem to be not wrong after awhile. Especially if you're very young and impressionable (not to mention addle brained from sleep deprivation)
I think the power trippin' skinny broad w/ the tight perm you're trying to remember was Cathy Cone. She had a daughter in the program. And, probably after you went back to the real world, it started to become rather obvious that she had a most inappropriate sort of relationship w/ an inmate. Can't remember his name. Paul, maybe? All I remember about him is that he was certifiably nuts, really in need of professional help and that he ran head first into the wall in the carpet room, missing the stud and leaving a perfectly head-shaped hole in the drywall.
Anyway, glad you came along. Hope life's been good to you. Look forward to getting your take on things. But take your time. Like most sane people, you seem to have left this extended ep of the Twilight Zone well and properly buried in the past. Personally, I still can't remember a week's worth of actual days in the whole two years.
* Not really. Virginia never existed except as a legal entity as far as officialdome is concerned and a figment of Straight staff's vivid imagination. Please call me Ginger, like everyone else I've known since I was a toddler.
Faith, as well intentioned as it may be, must be built on facts, not fiction- faith in fiction is a damnable false hope.
--Thomas Edison, American inventor