Originally Posted by
jazzfish 
Thanks for all the replies. It's not so much that I don't understand how that thought is incompatible with my drinking pattern, and all the implications it has for my life and health. It's that I can't get that thought out of my head. It just keeps coming back.
I have a similar issue Jazz. I rarely drank at home; instead I almost always drank in lively bars, clubs, casinos or parties. My vacations always included drinking (although, not everyday), so I have trouble
not romanticizing the use of alcohol while traveling. There's still a part of me that feels a vacation without alcohol is simply not worth the bother. Of course, I have no trouble forgetting all the problems drinking caused me while traveling or boozing in clubs and bars.
Speaking for myself, I realize I will have to retrain my mind and build a new mindset as to what is and isn't enjoyable. I've been using mindfulness and the study and some practice of Buddhist principles to help in this regard, but I know the process will take time.
Personally, I believe successful long term abstinence requires a pretty significant psychological view as to what is enjoyable and rewarding and what is not. Finding the activities and beliefs that will serve as the catalyst for that psychological change is the real challenge. Fortunately, the options available to help with that change are almost limitless, one need only google various words and phrases that have to do with lifestyle and psychological changes to find information on how to change one's view of what a happy life really is.