I have those "romantic notions" as well. I work in a restaurant (where about 35% of our sales are alcohol) and see our customers, many of whom are my friends, and employees (after work, of course) hanging out and having fun and enjoying a few drinks. I find myself thinking, "I can do that. 1 beer and 1 shot won't hurt."
But the problem is, I know that when those people leave and go home, they'll probably have a nice feeling from the alcohol, watch a little TV and head to bed.
I, on the other hand, even if I controlled my drinking in public, would likely pick up a 24-oz beer to drink on the drive home and kill a 6-pack of tall boys once I got to the house. Or as many of the 6 as I could drink before I blacked out and passed out on the couch in my clothes and sweat from the night at work.
That's where my problem lies. Heck yeah, I'd love to be like most people and have a couple drinks, not have a problem cutting myself off, and have a lovely evening. That's unfortunately not how I operate. That 1 drink for me leads to a lot of bad stuff that the majority of the population doesn't have to worry about. And that kinda sucks, but all I can do is play the hand I've been dealt. I got a problem, and I can either ignore it and allow it to destroy me, or I can man up and attack it head on. I've chosen the latter.