I wanted a better friend like I wanted a better mother, and although it was never my job to improve either of them, I felt the need to take on the challenge. Part two of two.

I spent my teenage years researching ways to die and hanging out in cemeteries. My relationship with death has changed considerably since then — but not entirely.

After a night of too many drinks and an emotional outburst at a bar, I started reading into alcohol abuse and discovered that there is another kind of picture painted for the alcoholic - my "kind."

A candid confession about emotional affairs, self-deception, and the pattern of seeking self-worth from the wrong people — written before I had the language to fully understand it.

The origin story of The Candid Crook: an honest confession about self-deception, cognitive dissonance, and the lies we tell ourselves — and what happens when you finally stop running from the truth.