Andy Johnson, the middle child in a family of five, has lived in Louisiana his entire life. His father was a wonderful, but peculiar fellow, given to reading cookbooks to his pets and harmonizing to the hum of his electric razor. His mother is from the House of Windsor in Maringouin.
From an early age, Andy liked to write. Unfortunately, his penmanship was so bad, no one could read it. As a result, he abandoned writing in favor of looking and listening. An avid reader of comic books, he preferred Veronica to Betty, though he freely admitted either would do in a pinch. Andy also loved cartoons, especially The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle. By junior high, he had supplemented his addiction to Mad magazine with an addiction to National Lampoon.
And speaking of addiction, Andy first got drunk at the age of twelve. The resulting epic hangover did nothing to warn him off. In his defense, he was never particularly bright. As if to prove this point, Andy graduated to other substances, married too young, enrolled in law school, had his first child during final exams, and stumbled into a high-volume practice as an insurance defense lawyer.
In 1998, Andy ceased consumption of all intoxicants, and devoted his life to anhedonia. Realizing the world needed another drunk’s memoir like it needed another fast-food restaurant, Andy kept a journal about his experience with sobriety. The journal entries were later edited, and published as The Otis Ring.
When asked about his goals for the future, Andy replied, “I hope to break even.”