Decorative LSD Blotter Papers

One of my friends (his blog: http://www.danielmitsui.com/hieronymus/) is an excellent artist, and he has exposed me to the wonders of icons and patterns. He has only exposed me to the religious kind, however. To my delight I came across some reproductions of decorative LSD Blotter Papers at the lab today. Its truly remarkable how much effort people put into making the papers they “drop acid” with look lovely. Perhaps they stare at them while in their trances. It is clear that different clandestine LSD manufacturers "brand" their acid with their blotter paper patterns. The most common pattern, the "Felix the Cat" pattern originates from a lab in Northern California, for example. It is assumed that LSD blotter paper branding works just like branding with other products. If you had a high you liked with the Felix the Cat brand, you are more likely to purchase it again.

Here are some examples of blotter paper patterns:







Here is the “looking glass” design, which is fairly common content for blotter papers:





Through the Looking Glass was the sequel to Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. What could be a better work of literature than this for a LSD user? In Wonderland people walk backwards, see things as they have never seen before, and cat’s talk. Alice herself hallucinates when surrounded by teas, mushrooms and smoking insects. Its like an acid dream without the acid. In fact, Lewis Carroll almost certainly dabbled in psychedelic drugs, probably laudanum, a tincture of opium and (usually) alcohol. The name Mad Hatter, another reference to altered states of mind, is really a literal reference to mercury poisoning suffered by hatters in the 19th century since mercury was used to process felt at the time. Sometimes this mercury poisoning (especially when combined with alcohol consumption) leads to Korsakoff’s syndrome. This disease also made its way into art in the movie Memento based on the case study by neurologist Oliver Sacks called the "The Lost Mariner" in the book The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. What a strange world!

This is my favorite:





Yes…that is the crucified Christ on that blotter paper. And yes…that is a psychedelic insect-eyeball pattern in the background. This depiction of Jesus is very unique in that it clearly shows that He is "high." The aura of light is around his entire body, not just his head. He veins, arteries, and bones seem to be electrified. This all indicates that the artist was quite deliberate and made this drawing for this purpose.

This makes me wonder, “What would Jesus think of this?” After all, LSD is quite destructive to the mind and body, which are dwelling places of the Holy Spirit (and at times for the body and blood of Christ). In fact, at least one Priest I know has likened the tongue as a throne for Christ when we take Eucharist. How ironic that one drops acid on the tongue as well?

Alcohol is also destructive of the mind and body if taken too liberally. Is it a matter of degree? That LSD is simply too potent for reasonable use? Or it is it the fact that it is not culturally acceptable, unlike alcohol which is one of the fruits of western culture. I suppose it is both.
LSD is one of the few drugs that remains in the body permenantly. It also can cause irreovacable brain damage or could cause a user to jump off a bridge after only one dose. It is terribly destructive. To learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LSD