1 Year In

I wanted my next post to be about some of the whiskey substitutes I've experimented with, but since today marks one year since my last drink, I thought I'd commemorate the occasion, and share some observations.

Do I miss drinking? Rather than a simple yes or no, I think I need to dissect what drinking is.

Do I miss the narcotic effect of alcohol? Only a little, as it would be nice to have a shortcut to calm nerves at the end of a stressful day. I don't need it for liquid courage, or to 'celebrate' from an internal point of view, and using it as a crutch to manage stress never felt that right to me.

Do I miss the taste? I'll have posts on near-beers, and other substitutes in the future, but the short answer is no, I'm managing that part just fine.

When I look at drinking culture and habits, what I notice is the concept of ritual. Certain foods seem to call for certain drinks, for example, and even that drink to mark the end of the workday/workweek has a ritualistic element to it. When you can observe a ritual (or a reasonable facsimile of the original ritual) with an non-alcoholic substitute, the only thing really missing is the narcotic effect - which is a depressant, and not something I need.