Just checking in, finally

I haven't written anything here in many months, but since it's been about a year since I became serious about drinking in moderation, this seemed like a good time to post an update. There's not much to report as far as my drinking habits go, and that's a good thing. But I recognize that old habits can creep slowly back into one's daily or weekly routine, so I'll be sure to mention that.

First off, I'll describe what has worked for me over the past few months. I've probably said it before and I'll say it again: I love beer. I'm not really picky about my beer either. I went to college in the 90's, and that was before all these micro/craft brews entered the market. You could pay more for some tasty ales, but those didn't pack the punch of some of these 7-9% alcohol, super-hoppy ales, stouts, and porters.

These craft beers that so many of us have learned to love taste good and it's fun to try new ones, but have become increasingly expensive over the past few years. For a person who is trying to drink in moderation, these beers can lead to trouble because, as I mentioned above, some of them have twice as much alcohol in them as the old-fashioned lagers that used to be the standard "keep-in-the-fridge" American beers. I've wondered if this new generation of super beers has helped guys like me become heavy drinkers. No, I'm not blaming the alcohol. I'm just saying that if you give a chubby kid extra candy, he might gain a little weight. (Is that a good enough metaphor?) My solution? Well, first I started drinking less of them, but the high prices still bothered me.

"Ten bucks for a six pack? Twelve?! What? Wait... that one is only a FOUR pack?!"

Well, you know what I did? I went back to mostly drinking good-old, American lagers. They're half the price and I don't get all stupid if I drink two of them. I'm not saying I never drink the good stuff; I just buy it on special occasions, like when people come over. I like the regular stuff as much as I ever did. There's nothing like a nice, cold beer. If I'm really thirsty, I drink some water first so that I don't end up gulping a beer. Even a cheap beer should be sipped, especially if you're practicing moderation.

Those who subscribe to the "black and white" philosophy on alcoholism and abuse have told me that it doesn't matter how high a person's tolerance is to alcohol because an alcohol abuser is an alcoholic and therefore, that person should abstain completely. I disagree. I abstained for a while and then changed my habits, and my tolerance is noticeably lower. As a result, I feel the alcohol faster and I believe I'm able to cut myself off sooner. I'm not a young guy anymore and I have no intention of raising my tolerance to keep up with other guys (it sounds so ridiculous now), so having a low tolerance keeps my drinking within the moderate level of 14 or less drinks per week.

Now, let's get to the reality check. I'm not perfect, and I have broken my own rules several times within the past year. Although my drinking habits have been very healthy, there have been weeks where I had a beer or two nearly every day. This isn't a big deal while on vacation, but I have done it during a regular work week too. I won't beat myself up over it though because I noticed it and I've been more careful lately. Two six packs per week is still moderation, and my rediscovered love for beer-flavored beer means that there's a lot less alcohol in those six packs.

As always, please feel free to leave questions and comments.

Be responsible and be safe.

Until next time,

Jack