Anybody who has ever drunk alcohol will know the feeling of being drunk. You will also know the feeling of waking up with a massive hangover and regretting excessive consumption the night before. When drinking, it almost always seems like a great idea to drink more and get more inebriated. In general, the reason for this is quite simple – when consuming alcohol, people loosen their inhibitions, gain more confidence and thus enjoy themselves more. It is one wing that a bird never flew on.
Anyone who has ever been drunk will also know that feeling of regret that can follow a night on the booze – whether it is something you said to your boss, an excessively low dig at a friend, a smart remark to someone unsuspecting, waking up beside someone who you shouldn’t or simply disgusting photos appearing on facebook.
The magic of alcohol is that most people accept these minor indiscretions in the face of the general fun you do have with alcohol. They become part of the language of alcohol, almost like rites of acceptance in some cult. People who have been there relate to you and you therefore accept it as being ok. You say things like “never again” to a response full of laughter, when in fact you are saying “thank god you know how shit this feels” and are just glad they’re not laughing at you.
I have had some of the best nights in my life drunk as a skunk. I have had even better nights when off my rocket on drugs and alcohol. I have penned some great verse and painted my best picture while stoned and semi drunk. Most of my friends I know through a shared love of a few pints or tokes on a few spliffs which allow us to open up and laugh and share stories. These are the hard facts of life as an Irishman. These are the facts for most people throughout the world – we share a substance together and then share ourselves with each other – be that tea, coffee, alcohol, drugs or anything else you can think of.
Here is the common pattern I have found-
Sharing invokes trust. Trust is vital for any relationship. If you don’t feed a relationship it will die. Therefore we feed it if we want it to live. Therefore we consume with that person. Therefore we drink/smoke etc.
This is a great pattern which is deeply ingrained into our social habits and our very way of being. When you drink with someone you are confirming how you feel about that person and that is a great thing. It is a strong connection which is to be loved and cherished.
There are some people who cannot maintain this discipline with alcohol. They are not able to drink while with others, or when drinking with others they drink excessively and cause mountains of regret which consumes their lives. These people have two options – one is to give up drinking completely or the other is to find a way to drink in moderation
In so saying I have come up with the following tens reasons why you should keep drinking
Ten Reasons Why You Should Keep Drinking
- You Enjoy it
- You and your partner find it loosens you up just enough to talk about the big things in your relationship, which otherwise would be left in a vacuum of silence
- You love the taste of particular wines with particular foods, how some accentuate flavours and some complement particular tastes
- You don’t drink to get drunk, you drink to be social or for the particular flavours some drinks contain
- You are healthy and drink while also maintaining a fit attractive body
- Your doctor and friends have never suggested that you should stop drinking
- You love to have a few beers or glasses of wine after a round of golf with your mates or a day’s shopping with your girls
- You find three or four drinks gives you enough venom to get up on the dance floor and display to the public those moves you have been practicing in the bed room
- You drink whenever you want, but not at every social gathering or any occasion which merits consumption of alcohol
- You are controlling your drinking, not the other way round
There are plenty of other reasons to stay drinking – these are some of the obvious ones and I am sure you can pick out many more which fit in.
As I said earlier, I have had most of my best nights out while I have been drinking, but that also excludes me stating one glaringly obvious point – 99% of my nights out over the last seventeen years of so (I am now 33) have included me drinking alcohol. This is not to say that I am an alcoholic, far from it, but my lifestyle has become such that I equate going out and having a good time, with going out and drinking and having a good time.
This is the case for most people I know. Alcohol is part of our culture and deeply ingrained in our conscious and sub conscious thoughts. The top marketing people on this planet of ours are employed by alcohol companies to maintain and build this reliance and trust we have in alcohol. They use the most powerful subliminal techniques to convince the masses that alcohol is part and parcel of life, good times and success. Inevitably they succeed because most people believe, succeed and enjoy themselves along the way.