Oh my gosh, Gosh

Sara Novenstern / Castleton Spartan
Bobby Gosh sings a song at his presentation at the Soundings event on April 20.

Soundings Professor Robert Wuagneux laughed as he joked that there’s “nothing like weed to bring people out!”

Sophomore Taylor Sanders agreed, saying “people see marijuana in the title and they come.”

Students, faculty and community members alike came together at Castleton’s Fine Arts Center on 4-20 to see award winning musician and songwriter Bobby Gosh, as he combined a musical performance with a book talk.

His new book titled “Confessions of a Marijuana Eater” seeks to break negative stigma about the ever-popular herb, while also chronicling the wild and successful life Gosh lived as a professional performer. Gosh has chosen, for much of his life, to consume marijuana by baking it into edibles like cookies.

Students came in groups from campus, and some attendees of the event also emerged from the neighboring woods. One student in the library parking lot, who was not approached for comment, was sitting with his front car door open as he was clearly fiddling with – and licking at one point – something in his fingertips.

Gosh had a blast with the opportunity to perform again, admitting after the show “it was awesome! It has been 13 years!”

The energetic 80-year-old was bouncing and swaying on his piano stool, rocking and shaking as he simultaneously played and sang songs he had created himself.

A few times, the audience even caught Gosh glancing to a particular spot of the audience, where it seemed likely his wife, Billi Gosh, was sitting. Many of the songs Gosh performed focused on the idea of love. In one song, Gosh sang about how a couple could make love “at least 10,000 times” if they were to do the deed every day for many years.

During his book reading portion of the performance, Gosh recounted hilarious stories, important milestones in his career and eye-opening changes of perspective with regard to marijuana. Gosh compared marijuana to a drug like aspirin, and also expressed how the habit of using the sticky herb is not much different from habitually consuming alcohol or tobacco.

Professor Brendan Lalor says he loved Gosh’s “stereotype-busting story,” and how Gosh energetically defied the common assumptions of such derogatory terms like “lazy pothead” or “stoner.”

“Over more than the last half-century, his moderate consumption of marijuana has enhanced a fruitful life of love and productivity. Thinking about positive models like this one stretches our bias-laden imaginations toward adequacy and may help us approach marijuana a little more wisely,” Lalor said.

Food and refreshments followed the event as Gosh remained in the FAC to answer questions and to sign copies of his book.

Sophomore Chyenne Williams said she was impressed with the performance, and that she couldn’t believe how good Gosh looked and how well he performed, being an 80-year-old.

Perhaps it has something to do with what Gosh bakes into his special cookies?

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