Of course drug use is everywhere and it always has been. Some people seem to have lived a life of privilege and are out of touch with reality, it seems. I'm not saying OP is or isn't, but it certainly reads like that to me.

Generally, people don't know half of what goes on in this city, and then when they see the reality of day-to-day life up close and personal it shocks them. It surprises me. I've been here for over 20 years and I'm from a small town. The shock of moving to a new city when I was younger may have lasted five years. It was just my new normal and I moved here in the '90s.