Alcohol is the only drug you need an excuse not to use

I started drinking beer around the age of 16 or 17, I guess. I actually stopped for a while when I saw the other side of alcohol — back when I worked at a Laserquest arena and had to deal with more than enough drunk people. I cleaned up my fair share of vomit, or cleaned up after people who couldn’t even hold their proverbial number one while playing a game of lasertag in the labyrinth.

That experience put me off for a good while. But a few years later, I started drinking again.

Why?

No fucking clue.

Your first drink

And do you remember your first drink? Your first beer or your first glass of wine? Did you like it?

I sure as hell didn’t.

Beer is bitter by design. I hated it the first few drinks. I can still remember people telling me, “It’s an acquired taste!”

Yeah… right.

And take wine, for instance. I still can’t enjoy it. I never made it past the so-called “acquired taste” stage. How the hell is it even possible to create something so foul-tasting from something as tasty as a grape? What even is the taste of wine, anyway?

Oak barrel juice?

And how do people even imagine it has a fragrance of banana, strawberry, or whatever fruit they think they smell or taste? Seriously — it’s fermented grape juice that’s been sitting in a wooden barrel.

And let’s not forget the traditional method: people mushing grapes with their bare feet.

Toe cheese, anyone? Try getting that idea out of your mind. 😛

Or the insane customs that come with wine. You have to spin it in your glass, then stick your nose inside to smell the so-called aroma, and then slurp a bit to “enhance the taste.” All part of the wine-snobism — pardon my French.

Try doing the same with a cola or a coffee, and people will look at you like you’ve completely lost your mind.

Let alone when you say, “Hey, this cola has a banana fragrance in the background — this must be a good year!”

I quit drinking

“Alcohol is the only drug that if you don’t do people will look at you like you’re having a problem.”

The quote is not mine. It is taken from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eCktvGBkeo this video, credits where it is due 🙂

I quit drinking a few months ago. Do I miss my beer? Yes! Even yesterday. We got home from working in our garden, and the moment we stepped inside, I craved a cold beer.

Am I really that conditioned?

But I didn’t do it.

For one, alcohol is just empty calories — and the more I dive into the subject, the more I’m glad I stopped drinking. And now let this sink in. We all know smoking is bad for you — no debate there.

But did you know that alcohol is ranked on the exact same level as heroin and tobacco when it comes to health risks?

Yes. It’s that bad.

And to make it worse: alcohol is socially accepted. “Hey, you don’t want wine with your food? Are you sick? Are you pregnant?” You actually need an excuse not to drink!

Alcohol is linked to several types of cancer. And here’s another lovely fact: alcohol is an actual poison. Your body just happens to have developed a way to break it down — as long as you only ingest small amounts.

The reason our bodies can cope with small quantities of alcohol is actually pretty simple. Thousands of years ago, our ancestors were able to eat overripe and partially fermenting fruits in the autumn. That small evolutionary advantage — being able to survive the mild toxicity of fermented fruit — is why your liver can just barely handle alcohol today.

Let that sink in: we normalized a toxic substance, just because we can barely handle it.

Lets take it to the extreme:

• “Hey, why don’t you want a shot of this tasty heroin? It’s from a really good year.”
• “This cigarette has the perfect bouquet — care to join me?”
• “You don’t want a line of this premium cocaine from ‘92? What’s wrong, are you pregnant?”

Sounds insane, right?

So why is alcohol viewed any differently?

Why do we raise a glass to someone’s health — and then drink poison?

Benefits

“Brain fog is real — and alcohol is the cloud machine.”

And the benefits are real when you quit drinking. If you haven’t watched the mentioned video yet — please do so now 🙂 No more brain fog, no more hangovers, more energy. And for men: more testosterone! 😛

And the brain fog part? That’s real. I experienced it myself. Even though I wasn’t a heavy drinker, I actually felt the fog lift after my last drink.

And trust me — that clarity is great!

I quit drinking. I’m glad I quit.

And I’m never going back.

It is — insane — to drink alcohol.

Agreed?

Are you quitting too?