July 22, 2002 | 10:21 AM

Date: Saturday, July 20th

Time: 2AM

Place: Danni�s House

State: Totally stoned, yo�

SARAH: See, he said that really our sexuality has been perverted by the media�mostly the advertising industry, who like get you when you�re really young and like Alex in �A Clock Work Orange�, condition you into certain types of responses. So people are like, divorced from their own natural sexuality. Do you really think that men would be attracted to skinny skinny women with gigantic basketball breasts normally? That that�s the natural order of things? Or that people actually enjoy having sex the way they do in porn movies? I don�t think so. I think we are missing so much.

She passes me the joint. I take a hit and refill my glass from the box of wine before responding.

ME: That�s so true. I think the unfortunate problem is that capitalism has merely replaced Puritanism as the methodology of controlling human sexuality. So whereas in the past, people, like couldn�t fuck without all sorts of pre-existing conditions and a nagging sense of guilt, now they are sold the concept of fucking, as though it is something outside of themselves�something they have to acquire. The result is just as repressive, just as perverse, and creates as great a sense of inadequacy and frustration as the church yelling at people that sex is a mortal sin.

SARAH: I think that�s pretty much true of like, everything though. Not just sex. I think that in the past the church maintained control of people vis a vis the fear of eternal damnation, and society was set up in such a way that the church was a patriarchal figure that everyone tried to please...

ME: And capitalism has merely superceded religion. People believe themselves autonomous because the secular notion of absolution via the acquiring of money, social position, and you know�material stuff provides the illusion of self empowerment, that people are not under the control of some larger governing force.

SARAH: But they still so totally are!

ME: Dude, tell me about it.

Pause.

SARAH: �You wanna roll another joint?

DANNI: Hey guys, let�s make a bowl out of an apple! It�s way more natural na dit's like we'll be sculpting fruit...

All agree and we are on to the next project.

I haven�t had a good marijuana induced evening of pretentious grad school conversations and silly but satisfying art projects in a million years. Boy was it refreshing.