I was a bit of a Hip School preppie at the time - this was when I was 14 - and hadn't quite grasped the concept of musical innovation or what we refer to as "quality music."  This one guy called Eric used to rave about them, explaining to the oblivious members of his English Lit class the various nuances, mentioning Simpson's teasers, glow stick wars and the like. My first thought was "What a bunch of tree-hugging hippie bullshit" (I WAS 14!!)

And then it happened. It was what James Joyce might call an epiphany. It took one experience with some shrooms, a little ditty I and many others like to call the 'paug (I can't remember the show date), and a little contemplation of existence. As Mike's first opening licks caressed my lobes and found their way into my eardrums, I thought to myself, "This is some funky shit!"  And then the full brunt of the 'paug started possessing my soul, Trey's riffs pulling me up and up until I had reached a state of pure concentration and, what some might call, enlightenment. 

I can't really describe what happened, but let's just say that I found a place in my mind where I wanted to be. I got images of weeping willows drooping, rolling fields, a pond, and just a general mushy feeling. It was great. Now I don't want to give the wrong impression. The fungi I had consumed was not the only way I could ever appreciate Phish. Drugs are all fine and good once and a while, but I don't want to say that my entire experience with Phish was narcotically based. 

Anyways, from that exact moment on, i became a phan.  I immediately scoured Napster for shows, read webpage after webpage, learning as much as I could about the band, their history, the culture, etc. I still can't fire off the combinations of numbers like most Phishheads can, "Do you remember 7-4-99?"  But looking at the Are You a Phishhead list, it's amazing to see how far along I have come over the last year and a bit. That band is like an addiction. Phish is grand, and that's all I have to say about that.

- phat al