Booze o'clock?

January,

The traditional month of abstinence.

New beginnings: Star Trek 'Genesis', David Bowie 'Changes', 'Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning', Star Wars, 'A new hope'.

4 weeks that begin every year for every person over the age of 25 and under the age of 60 with a sacred promise to oneself. It's a valuable moment in all our lives, setting us up with renewed optimism for the year ahead, 'I can do it' ringing in our by now independent from the parental bosom; ear drums.

I won't get home from work, stare at my aging face in the mirror for 20 minutes, disdainfully remove my awful excuse for office clothes and then drink 2 bottles of £2.99 wine; I won't mitigate the misery of wasting away my short time on earth in an office by going out to student populated venues and pretending that I’m a work hard, party hard kind of a guy; I absolutely won't stay up until 4am watching, Spaced or The Office or any other (brilliant) comedy series back to back just because, 'it's a bit like me'; AND BY GOOD GOLLY GOSH, I WILL get a better job, better exercise routine and finish this year in a better financial position that Alan Sugar but with more credibility than Armando Iannucci. ALL WILL LOOK UPON ME AND DESPAIIIIIIRRRRR...

The main sacrifice that all us infidels attempt to resolve is the alcohol.

I recently found a very interesting, though preaching, article about giving up the demon drink, booze, brew, cup, draft, glass, gulp, libation, liquid, liquor, potable, potation, potion, refreshment, shot, sip, slug, spirits, drop, swallow, swig, taste, thirst quencher.........etc

http://www.spiritualriver.com/stop-drinking/

My favourite part is as follows....



For example, a miserable drunk will usually brush the question off entirely, waving his hand and saying “whatever. Take me right now if you want!” That is the miserable desperation of addiction talking. Now if we manage to sober this person up and get them involved with a creative new life in recovery, their answer will likely change quite a bit (I know mine did!). Life becomes precious in recovery.


Surely a conclusion SO conclusive as to open the eyes of even those in Dante's Purgatory who as punishment for envy had their eyes sewn shut with wire.

Despite, feeling that the points made in this article are essentially as 'spot on' and sharp as a Jimmy Carr put down, there is one point that I would like to draw into question........

'Life becomes precious in recovery'

I maintain (and I don't expect support, though do feel free to join me, no man is an island etc), that this is an argument for further fermented grape induced shenanigans......

Mortality is a mouldy old so and so, no one really likes him or his dusty breath.

I should say that there is no good excuse for ushering the old sod into the lounge to hold court, I want him tucked away under the stairwell, out of mind out of site, and if a barrel of rum helps me do this, then the socially acceptable oblivion can stay at my house, sleep with my wife and wear my trousers whenever it wishes.

...Besides, I’m slightly suspicious that if we listen to the booze o'clock nay Sayers then we might just all turn into Richard Simmons......