RACY PROGRAM TO HELP METH ADDICTS QUIT

LONG BEACH -- If sex is used to sell soap, there's no reason it can't
be used to sell recovery.

So says Marshall O Boy, organizer of a new event designed to help
those struggling with a drug that has cut a crater through Long
Beach: crystal methamphetamine.

Dubbed "Tina's A Drag," which nods to a common nickname for meth, the
event will feature a drag show, a rock band and a flurry of
information on the drug, which has spread over the past five years to
become the most oft-abused stimulant in Long Beach and many other cities.

The purpose of "Tina's A Drag" is to increase awareness about crystal
meth and provide the community with a "meth-free zone," a place where
people can have fun far from the drug's clutches. It will be modeled
after shows that O Boy has put on in Los Angeles.

Tina is a street name derived from another name for meth, Christina,
a play on crystal. The form of speed has wrecked homes, destroyed
lives and fueled the spread of HIV in the gay community, health experts say.

Shows are racy and at times lascivious, not for the faint of heart, O
Boy cheerfully warned.

"It's very baudy and we did that intentionally," he said. "When
people are getting off crystal meth, they lose all emotion. Nothing
makes them happy ... we wanted to at least pump some adrenaline in them."

Proceeds will be split between O Boy's Los Angeles-based
organization, Friends Helping Friends Quit Crystal Meth, and a peer
support group run out of the Comprehensive AIDS Resource and
Education program, or CARE, at St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach.

Founded by Elizabeth Eastlund, substance abuse and mental health
coordinator at CARE, the peer support group has a harm-reduction
philosophy and is meant to be an alternative to 12-step programs,
which advocate abstinence from alcohol and drugs.

The group has five peer support leaders who work with people
struggling with meth and help them adjust to healthier lifestyles.

Eastlund expects the number of leaders to climb to 15 by January and
expand to a more diversified group.

"We've seen more people die from addiction than from HIV this past
year," she said. "Of the four clients I've known personally, two died
from addiction, one from suicide and only one from AIDS-related
complications. Even though the numbers are small, it still makes a statement."

While counselors and information on support and recovery groups for
meth will be available at the event, lectures on the drug will be
kept to a minimum.

"We want this to be a place where (recovering addicts) can meet new
people, new friends who don't use crystal," O Boy said. "If you're
holding down a job, have a home, have a car, if your life is stable
- -- these are the types of people that recovering addicts need to
meet. I can't think of a better way than to come down to the club,
have a beer, and be a friend to somebody."

Both Eastlund and O Boy expect this show to be the first of a series
of such drug-free social outlets.

The show will take place at 10 p.m. Nov. 23 at the Paradise Bar and
Grill, 1800 E. Broadway, Long Beach. For information, call (866) 243-7435.