Originally Posted by
Fandy 
I was watching an older episode of law and Order last night....Marlo Thomas guested as a retired judge giving advice in her living room....mixing these HUGE martinis with beatiful crystal glasses and these very attractive plump olives...she and the DA sat down on her attractive couch, sipped and chatted...wearing pretty clothes and make-up talking about a child abuser parent.
i kept staring at the drinks....and i thought about how good one would taste too....then i realized that the best part of the drink was the olives....and they would do me less harm...so i told myself if i wanted to get out of bed and eat olives go right ahead.....eat the whole JAR if i "needed" them.
i had already turned the heat down..it was too late and too cold to get up and satisfy my craving....and it passed.
but i didn't want the booze, i think i craved the "mood" the TV show created.
This reminds me that a big part of what I used to like about martinis was the ritual of preparing and consuming them. It ties into the whole mood thing you're talking about.
Now that I don't drink I'm a lot more aware of the presence of alcohol in TV shows. Dunno if any of you watch Cougartown, but the adults in it are constantly drinking beer and wine. Yet you never see them sloppy drunk, angry and lashing out at their kids or spouses, passing out or getting DUI's. It's always, "hey this amusing thing happened so let's finish the episode with a big goblet of red wine hahaha!"
The other one I've been watching lately is Californication. The main character drinks A LOT. I know that'supposed to be part of his flawed character but the guy has to be driving drunk all the time given the amount he drinks. And what I don't buy is that he drinks so much but still manages to be this loving, attentive, emotionally in-tune parent. I could never do that when I was drinking so much.
Oh well. I'm just glad I quit and am now a lot more aware of what's going on with my kids. It's been great actually.