I just looked at some of my earlier comics and noticed that alcohol and drunkenness were featured a lot more prominently in them. On one hand, that is not very surprising, since these comics were created while I was still a student. As stereotypical as it is, getting drunk on occasion is a pretty common part of the student lifestyle. On the other hand, it made me ponder my view on alcohol and how it changed over the time since then. I don't drink nearly as much now, but I still enjoy the occasional Beer, a fine Whiskey or any excursion into the fascinatingly complex realm that is human drinking culture.
Yes, culture is an important component of alcohol. It's also one that is often overlooked by its critics. While I don't want this to be a defense piece for alcohol, I think that culture is the main reason why alcohol should always have a place in society. I totally agree that it is a dangerous substance and the way we are currently dealing with it is probably not the best. Alcoholism destroys lives. But even if it does not destroy lives, people being drunk in inappropriate situations can cause other people to have a s**t day. And I do think that people being unnecessarily inconvenienced is something a society should care about (although others might disagree).
When I was young, I didn't think about this much at all. I probably caused a few other people to have a s**t day myself (if any of you are reading this: sorry). It was the time of great exploration. Everyone who drinks alcohol will have memories of that period where they just didn't know what their limits were. Most people have some crazy stories about that time. That's part of the romanticism. 99.9% of those stories are funny. The remaining 0.1% absolutely aren't. It makes you wonder if that's a part of alcohol culture we want to keep. Getting rid of it somehow could save lives, but it would be a shame for those 999 funny stories per life saved. Is a life worth more than 999 funny stories? That's one of those deep philosophical dilemmas that I, as a nihilist, simply acknowledge and leave to be answered by people who actually have opinions on these things.
Another thing that I would do when I was young was to drink absolutely anything I got my hands on. Sure, I was always a bit of a foodie and the taste of good alcohol got me excited, even back then, but that stuff wasn't readily available and, to be fair, would probably have been wasted on me after I had a few drinks. That's because when you are young, the alcohol and its effects on you body is what excites you. I don't think this will hold for everyone, but at least for me that changed at some point. Nowadays, the effects of the alcohol tend to get in the way. It's the rich, nuanced and complex world of flavors that a drink can present which keeps me interested and has me always on the lookout for new experiences.
This world of flavors has become a part of my life that I am very fond of. But for all things you're fond of, at some point you start to worry that you might loose it. As I grow older, I start to worry more about the adverse effects the alcohol has on my body. The damage it causes. How much damage I have already caused when I was young and didn't care. I recently abstained from alcohol for a few months and realized how much it sucks to not be able to drink. Luckily, I seem to be fine for now and there's no serious helath-sirens going off. Still, I'm really afraid of the day my doctor tells me that I have to stop drinking or I'll die. What's more valuable? A longer life without alcohol or a shorter one with it? Simply referring to myself as a nihilist won't save me from this dilemma, nor will anyone else be able to decide it for me. Nevertheless, I don't have an answer. It depends on other circumstances, I guess.
Anyways, I'm not feeling too good right now. I promise that it has nothing to do with alcohol but with a virus or something I picked up somewhere, which caused me to spend most of my weekend in bed. Therefore, I'm cutting this post short now.
Drink responsibly and enjoy it while it lasts.
