“I once heard a sober alcoholic say that drinking never made him happy, but it made him feel like he was going to be happy in about fifteen minutes. That was exactly it, and I couldn’t understand why the happiness never came, couldn’t see the flaw in my thinking, couldn’t see that alcohol kept me trapped in a world of illusion, procrastination, paralysis. I lived always in the future, never in the present. Next time, next time! Next time I drank it would be different, next time it would make me feel good again. And all my efforts were doomed, because already drinking hadn’t made me feel good in years.”
― Parched: A Memoir
― Parched: A Memoir
“Was I being groomed for some special mission? What possible purpose could an existence like mine serve? When I wasn’t drinking in crappy bars, I was home by myself reading: a life that was achingly lonely, and yet perversely designed to prevent anybody from ever getting close enough to really know me.”
― Parched: A Memoir
― Parched: A Memoir
“I personally believe this: We have only today; yesterday's gone and tomorrow is uncertain. That's why they call it the present. And sobriety really is a gift... for those who are willing to receive it.”
― No Regrets: A Rock 'n' Roll Memoir
― No Regrets: A Rock 'n' Roll Memoir
“Listen to God with a broken heart. He is not only the doctor who mends it, but also the father who wipes away the tears.”
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“When you quit drinking you stop waiting.”
― Drinking: A Love Story
― Drinking: A Love Story
Mark’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Mark’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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