Here's another little anecdote that might help you. Because I wasn't sitting in pub every night this summer, I had to find other ways to fill my time. I sat in my yard every night and read books. I told one of my friends about a book I had read that I thought was absolutely spectacular. She told me she had it ordered from Amazon. Then we got talking about other books that we had been reading or were about to read. I've known her since 1999, and I had no idea that we liked to read the same genre of books - she said the same thing. It's the main thing we talk about now, and we are swapping books left right and centre!
I guess the point of my anecdote is that you should go ahead and be sober, and let your friends know that this is your intent. You might be surprised at how many others are thinking the same thing, and you might be even more surprised at what you have in common with your friends besides a cup of liquid.