headbang8: I woke up with a hangover this morning. No big deal; it happens about once a week. In a particularly jolly week, maybe twice.
As usual, this hangover began at my local, an Irish pub upstairs from a ramen shop on the way home from the station. We regulars often joke that it's the world's least-Irish Irish-pub. For a start, its in the centre of Tokyo. The kitchen does a brisk trade in nachos, spring rolls and yakitori. The owners are from Ghana; they employ a Polish-Australian manager; his deputy, a Japanese guy raised in New Zealand; the bar staff consists of a Nepalese-Czech girl, an Italian backpacker, a female ex-Israeli Army private, and a Brazilian beach boy. I do not recall an Irish man or woman ever setting foot in the place.
Then again, who recalls much after a few pints, anyway? It doesnt really matter, since my local is very local. A five-minute toddle home, easy to negotiate even if Ive had a few.
A convivial habit, and one that so far caused no trouble. Until the company health insurance questionnaire came around.
Yours truly has plenty to make an insurance company nervous. My father was a mature-onset diabetic, and I carry quite a few extra pounds. Ive seen a shrink more than once. Im in a high-risk group for HIVthat is, Im gay. It doesnt matter if you test negative, always practiced safe sex, and have a monogamous relationship; in actuarial terms, all gay men are bare-backing libertines.
Curiously, none of that worried our insurance company. They think I drink too much.
I wrote that in the course of an average week, my partner and I would split a bottle of wine over dinner, Id have a couple of glasses at a business function, and that I would visit the pub on Fridays for a serious sessionmaybe four or five pints over the course of three hours. This, they said, added up to twenty one standard drinks, borderline acceptable.
Hmmm it gave me pause to think. Theres certainly the gene for alcoholism in my family. But my drinking habits are waaay below that levelIve seen what real alcoholism is.
Its nowhere near what my buddies and I could put away when we were young. To borrow a phrase from P.J. ORourke, my college pals majored in Women and Beer. I may have flunked Women, but passed Beer with distinction.
And my industry (advertising) has a strong focus on well-lubricated socializing and business entertainment. If our insurance company is worried about someone like me, they must really fret over many of my colleagues.
Most of the authorities on safe-drinking have an agenda to push. Some actively promote moderate drinking as healthy. On the other hand, the nanny-state types who infest government and the so-called "caring professions" spread alarm over even quite modest alcohol consumption.
There could be something cultural at work, too. Our old health insurance company was European; the new, American. Are American companies more cautious because of the litigious environment, or do Americans really drink that much less nowadays?
So, guys, whats your street-wisdom on the subject? How many is one-too-many? Do you sometimes go out with the clear intention of getting drunk? Is it ever acceptable to get drunk?
Do teatotallers find drinking functions a bore? On those occasions where Im a designated driver or just dont feel like a drink, I find the company of even mildly tipsy people is tedious, but after consuming a glass or two of charm juice myself, they turn into fascinating raconteurs.
I would hate to make a big change in my drinking life. Business drinking would be easy to give up, I guessits seldom a real pleasure. But I introduced my partner to the culture of wine early in our courtship, and its a special, sentimental joy that fine wine brings us. And I treasure the warmth and fellowship of my local pub, with the smart, funny, wise people who go there.
Sorry to ramble. If I were drunk Im sure Id be more concise! This post isn't about having a big dick, of course. But there are eleven thousand men on the LPSG list, so it seems a good place to explore an important subject that affects male health and well-being.
So whats your life with alcohol?
Cheers,
hb8
As usual, this hangover began at my local, an Irish pub upstairs from a ramen shop on the way home from the station. We regulars often joke that it's the world's least-Irish Irish-pub. For a start, its in the centre of Tokyo. The kitchen does a brisk trade in nachos, spring rolls and yakitori. The owners are from Ghana; they employ a Polish-Australian manager; his deputy, a Japanese guy raised in New Zealand; the bar staff consists of a Nepalese-Czech girl, an Italian backpacker, a female ex-Israeli Army private, and a Brazilian beach boy. I do not recall an Irish man or woman ever setting foot in the place.
Then again, who recalls much after a few pints, anyway? It doesnt really matter, since my local is very local. A five-minute toddle home, easy to negotiate even if Ive had a few.
A convivial habit, and one that so far caused no trouble. Until the company health insurance questionnaire came around.
Yours truly has plenty to make an insurance company nervous. My father was a mature-onset diabetic, and I carry quite a few extra pounds. Ive seen a shrink more than once. Im in a high-risk group for HIVthat is, Im gay. It doesnt matter if you test negative, always practiced safe sex, and have a monogamous relationship; in actuarial terms, all gay men are bare-backing libertines.
Curiously, none of that worried our insurance company. They think I drink too much.
I wrote that in the course of an average week, my partner and I would split a bottle of wine over dinner, Id have a couple of glasses at a business function, and that I would visit the pub on Fridays for a serious sessionmaybe four or five pints over the course of three hours. This, they said, added up to twenty one standard drinks, borderline acceptable.
Hmmm it gave me pause to think. Theres certainly the gene for alcoholism in my family. But my drinking habits are waaay below that levelIve seen what real alcoholism is.
Its nowhere near what my buddies and I could put away when we were young. To borrow a phrase from P.J. ORourke, my college pals majored in Women and Beer. I may have flunked Women, but passed Beer with distinction.
And my industry (advertising) has a strong focus on well-lubricated socializing and business entertainment. If our insurance company is worried about someone like me, they must really fret over many of my colleagues.
Most of the authorities on safe-drinking have an agenda to push. Some actively promote moderate drinking as healthy. On the other hand, the nanny-state types who infest government and the so-called "caring professions" spread alarm over even quite modest alcohol consumption.
There could be something cultural at work, too. Our old health insurance company was European; the new, American. Are American companies more cautious because of the litigious environment, or do Americans really drink that much less nowadays?
So, guys, whats your street-wisdom on the subject? How many is one-too-many? Do you sometimes go out with the clear intention of getting drunk? Is it ever acceptable to get drunk?
Do teatotallers find drinking functions a bore? On those occasions where Im a designated driver or just dont feel like a drink, I find the company of even mildly tipsy people is tedious, but after consuming a glass or two of charm juice myself, they turn into fascinating raconteurs.
I would hate to make a big change in my drinking life. Business drinking would be easy to give up, I guessits seldom a real pleasure. But I introduced my partner to the culture of wine early in our courtship, and its a special, sentimental joy that fine wine brings us. And I treasure the warmth and fellowship of my local pub, with the smart, funny, wise people who go there.
Sorry to ramble. If I were drunk Im sure Id be more concise! This post isn't about having a big dick, of course. But there are eleven thousand men on the LPSG list, so it seems a good place to explore an important subject that affects male health and well-being.
So whats your life with alcohol?
Cheers,
hb8
