After six months without a drink, that first one hits me like an emotional tsunami. The soothing feel of the alcohol kicking in to melt any stresses I had from the day, the positive reinforcement I get when a few work buddies clank their drink with mine after a hard project goes out the door, when the band stops to have the shot the I bought them, and they cheer me and I feel included. In that moment I go from wondering why I used to drink so much... to wondering how I went so long without it.
Inclusion... feeling special, feeling useful, feeling fun, feeling like no one in the history of parties had ever experienced one like the one I am giving to the world, and alcohol is the key ingredient. I don't hate drinking, in fact, I'm good at it. I never took the time to become a wine connoisseur or a beer snob, but I can take a drinker from another city and show him or her a great evening. I am charming and know just what to say, and when I order you a beer, you look at me, and you are my friend... right?
Can I toast with diet coke? Can I walk through a party without something in my hand? Even if I could, do I really want to? No, of course not. I like drinking. It feels like home... I am told my whole life to "go with what I know" and "do what I'm are good at" and "follow my passion".
So if you haven't figured out by now, quitting drinking is more than just what it says. It's turning my back on a part of what I have come to know myself as. All while having friends scratching their heads wondering why I would do such a thing, like when a great show decides to have their last season, or when a great band decides to break up.
Yup. Its not all about saving money, is it now...
Ok, lets keep this simple. Drinking is to quench
ReplyDeleteones thurst. Water, good old fasion water will do that job well.
If alcohol is thought to bring fun, and relaxation, then you might want to reprogram that thought.
That's how "they" get ya!
Moderation.
Excess drinking is like a rodeo, somethings got to give.