I discovered this by random because I was in a place with a bunch of friends but needed a break from what I call "cross talk." This annoying phenomenon is where you have a group of say, 20 people that are all sitting in the same place but there are a dozen conversations going on. For some people this is perfectly normal but for me, I am annoyed by this because I am incapable of focusing on any one of the conversations with so many going on at once.
I wandered to the back of this restaurant we were at and encountered this sign
In case you can't read it is says "To Alcohol! The cause of and solution to, all of life's problems!"
I didn't have much of a taste for alcohol when I was a teenager. It just wasn't my thing. I was quickly transitioned into a beer drinking party guy when I was in college because of the fact that this is what most people end up doing. I also attended what was considered by many to be a "party school." It definitely was that and it seems like we had almost every day of the week ear-marked for various drink specials that would happen at various bars that were always in the same downtown area that was conveniently within walking distance of the campus and most of the off-campus student housing.
I became a regular drinker during these times and when I think about it, it is quite remarkable that I ever graduated, let alone in the top 10% of my class. I became very familiar with hangovers during that time of my life and I am not so proud to say that this feeling is something that I have more mornings than not every day of the week to this day.
However, I managed to make my consumption, for the most part, a manageable part of my existence and it has never destroyed anything as far as my potential for success is concerned.
Just like the sign says, alcohol is the solution to all of life's problems and while that is meant as a joke it is kind of true. When I think about my own life, almost every GOOD thing that has ever happened in my life happened during some sort of drinking session. I got information about various jobs that changed my life, I met every girl I ever dated, and a vast majority of my life-long friends were all encountered during drinking sessions.
The successful businesses that I had in Thailand for 11 years were run, for the most part, by a guy (me) that was at least buzzing from beer almost all the time. I'm not saying that this is a good idea and it probably could have been managed better if i stayed off the sauce but the booze helped me to tolerate the sometimes annoying customers of which, we had quite a few.
I don't think that booze is necessarily a good thing and I don't recommend that most people attempt to live their professional lives the way that I did because I don't think it is a good idea, nor do I think that most people can pull it off. I'm not trying to give anyone any life advice here, I am just merely pointing out that booze actually did result in me meeting almost all the people I know today and in the past, and most of my business opportunities were created or discovered while I had at least a couple of drinks in me.
So thanks Homer, I believe your words are correct! I wouldn't say that I am an alcoholic because I don't NEED the stuff in order to function or anything like that. I do think I am borderline though and seeing my age, I would say there isn't much chance that I am all of a sudden going to ruin my life with what is essentially the same life-game I have been playing for 25 years.
When I run into people that don't drink and never really did I have a sort of admiration for them. I also admire the people that had a real problem with it and successfully gave it up.
I'm glad I partied most of my life though, so don't think this is a "woe is me" post. I am happy about most of the drunken encounters that I had in life and the way things panned out for me could have been very different and perhaps not as good if I had chosen to not live this way.
You are "that guy" I always end up partying with. But if you remember a guy that drink 2 glass and started to talk very loud, before the 3rd he already belly dancing on the table that embarrass everyone, I'm that guy 😂
But as you say, we strike most of the good deal at the drinking table. I guess, that's just how guys operate and managing business with the amount of alcohol going in and burping out.
I have a weird cycle I go through. On my first couple of drinks I get tired but then after my 5th I get a second wind and then I don't want to stop until I've had all the beers!
That's funny.. same here. In the rare times that I do drink, I go through 2 or 3 and get super chill. Then after a few more I am laughing my ass off and bouncing off the walls.
It's a vicious circle isn't it? I sometimes wonder if my body is on auto-pilot at that point because after the first couple I normally feel like I want to go home and get away from everyone. But since I am a trooper I power through!
Hell yeah, the auto pilot thing for sure. I can physically feel my perception shift. It is as if I switch to a 3rd person perspective where I become an observer of myself saying and doing weird things.
Others who turned out to be drunk after drinking some glasses of alcohol will sing aloud old songs, talk loudly and dance in front of the crowd. Hehe
Others just sleep after drinking.
Some people also are talking while sleeping. It's just like having a dream. Heheh
What a beautiful life. So motivated and so interesting. Uh can plan a movie on your life. And it is lesson in it do what you want to do. God has plan for you to live this type of life. And it is beautiful. Keep growing and always be blessed. And again think about a movie or book on your life it seems very interesting.
wow, thanks for that. It is certainly a lot more enlightened than I actually view my own life :)
I didn't touch the stuff in high school either. I think I was probably not invited to a lot of parties because of that. Either that or because was such a nerd. Who knows. I don't regret starting. I think I do a pretty good job of keeping it under control. I actually drink far less now than I used to. I think have hit a happy medium. I kind of feel like since I started so "late", I was trying to catch up and I went a bit crazy in my 30's. I would agree, some really good things do happen when you are drinking sometimes, not my bowling game though, that always sucks!
I did almost no drinking in high school but college changed all of that. Drinking was part of sealing deals in my jobs after college and it was kind of the reason why I did as well as I did.
I got a bit out of control when I owned bars in Thailand and I'm pretty sure I was one of our best customers. I calmed down now but after nearly 2 decades of drinking kind of being involved in everything that I do my choices on days where I don't drink are quite limited because I kind of built my life here in Vietnam around booze. Oh well, I keep it in check for the most part. No pity-party here!
That's good that you were still able to stay successful managing the bars. I know a lot of people who thought it would be a great idea to own a bar and then they went and drank all the profits.
Different strokes for different folks. I used to have my fair share of drink when I was younger doing sport and working on the cigarette promotions as you were paid to sit in bars and sports clubs lol. I have the occasional drink these days but unless there is a reason I don't touch it as I have to be in the mood I suppose. You are used to this lifestyle and fits in with what you do and I would struggle doing that these days.
haha! I know the feeling. I don't know how I was able to function so well on no sleep, loads of alcohol and a seriously crappy diet back in those days. It would pretty much kill me now. Or at least I'd be in bed for 2 days.
I pretty much never drink anymore to be honest. It's not that I don't enjoy it, I just feel so crappy the next now. It's a toxic feeling. Getting old sucks.
well i think the increased intensity of hangovers is our bodies telling us that it can't deal with that sort of punishment anymore. There are weekends here in Vietnam where the latter part of every night for several nights in a row, is a blur. By the time Monday rolls around I am on what we call and AFD (alcohol free day) and all of us feel like we should get a trophy for going a whole 3 days without booze!
College was an unusual time wasn't it? I wonder how well I could have done if I had actually tried.
I wonder this about so many things in my life... one side effect of having some level of natural intelligence is that it can lead to some serious half-assing of things.