I get repeatedly pressured to drink on Fridays at lunch at work. My company sent alcohol as gifts. I was shocked…like what if I was a recovering alcoholic? It must be so hard not to relapse in this country.
I’ve been drinking less and less over the years. I have a lot of digestive issues, (IBS, GERD, histamine intolerance). Once I realized that alcohol was a trigger for all of them, I quit completely.
I’ve started getting “silent reflux” after boozing. The incessant throat clearing and taste of acid sensation. Actual heartburn on occasion. My diet sucks too, but my body can’t do both.
I hate it but it’s so hard to divorce oneself from it completely.
It’s been tough for me to quit. There have been several times I’ve stopped at a gas station and seen the beer cooler. Grabber a 22 of junk craft IPA and said to myself. Just grab one and it wont be bad… thankfully I’ve gotten halfway to the counter and turned around put it back… sometime I’ve done that multiple times in the same visit. Addiction is a bitch and gets the best of us sometimes.
It’s always seemed really weird to me that alcohol culture could be tolerated let alone promoted in the workplace. Everything about it seems like it would negatively effect the bottom line, as well as its potential to exacerbate relationship problems within a company. I “get” why coffee is promoted in the workplace but alcohol being promoted has always puzzled me. Also strange to think that there used to be a ration of rum to be given to sailors every day in multiple countries, one of which was not abolished until the 1970s.
I think the rum ration was to keep sailors from freezing to death on watch.
I read in some book (maybe 2 years before the mast), the author was a non drinker, but almost immediately began drinking his ration along with the rest of the crew, saying it was the only think that would make nights survivable.
Also, once upon a time, beer was the only safe, potable liquid available as most water sources were contaminated.
Nothing wrong with a nice cold beer. Back years ago they drank beer instead of water because the water would spoil especially on trips across the ocean. Alcohol really became a problem when we discovered distilling. I personally don’t like to be drunk so I just stick to the light beer and a couple joints.
Imagine being a bartender.
Anything that is burnt or carmelized (food&beverage) has carcinogens. I didnt read the article but, I’m assuming this wouldnt include wines or meads from natural fermentation?
Still contains alcohol my friend.
My alcoholic friend thinks he’s doing his body a favour by drinking beer instead of whiskey lol. Alcohol is alcohol. It’s all the same once it gets broken down by your body (into acetaldehyde) and has likely been a problem long before distillation was discovered (wine has been around for thousands of years). I don’t think an occasional beer or wine is going to kill someone necessarily but they’re all the same once they go down the hatch. I also don’t think it’s harmless either though.
Alcoholism has likely been a bane on humans/ human culture since it’s discovery.
I used to be a heavy drinker myself and I’ve known plenty of heavy drinkers. I’ve heard all the rationalizations and excuses in the book.
Now that I don’t drink much if at all anymore (don’t think I’ve had a drink since like April) and haven’t drank much for years before that, I can’t even stand to be around people when they’re drunk ( play my song, watch this video, sing very loud, etc… 
)
@NewfieGreenThumbs Btw this rant wasn’t necessarily directed at you just the whole beer thing reminded me of my friend and was bouncing my thoughts off a few other things. Not calling you an alcoholic or anything lol.
I understand but it’s also a known fact that smoke or combustible material entering the lungs also causes cancer. I can find enough writings that will also tell you red meat and sugar WILL cause cancer. I also know alcoholics who lived longer than some of my “healthiest” family members. Do what you want to enjoy life with the word moderation as the key.
Alcohol is a solvent. It passes the blood brain barrier and dissolves the fat between the brain cells that causing dead zones. I drink once every few months a beer. I have never made one good decision on alcohol. True poison.
One of my favorite books as a lad! Still like a bit of rum ,LOL!