Hi Horselover... Happy Holidays!
My second holiday season sober as well. This year is fine... last year? Well, I just as soon forget that year's holidays...
Ya know, my experience is a bit different. I usually would have handled that type of event fine. Nothing out of control or anything... But... Here's my experience... I would have had at least one or two before we left the house just to get primed and then afterward, I would have come home and proceeded to get properly pickled. No one else had to know any better... well, except my family.
My wife would have had nothing before, a diet coke with a slice of lemon at the event, and then her...
.... one tall white wine spritzer before bed (How does she do that??, well, OK, she had 1.5 last night, but hey, it was Saturday Night!! and I had a nice fire and some new christmas music on the stereo when she got home from shopping....)
Unlike normal drinkers, holiday events where just another reason for me to drink. Nothing special.... Nice, warm, holiday glow you say? Hell... I get it.... But that was always just a stop along the way.... just getting started for the evening. It wasn't special, it wasn't a nice holiday "treat" that comes along just once or twice a year....
So for me, I look at the normal drinkers having a toast at the holidays... Yea I am a bit resentful at times.... not so much that I wish I could drink.... but that I had let it become meaningless and that it had quit become something special or particularly enjoyable a long time ago.
BTW... I like Cranberry Juice and Seltzer for toasts... The Sparkling Apple Juice ain't bad either.
Mark
