I’m not sure how you do it. I have been drinking for almost 30 years (I’m 50) and I don’t know how to stop. I wish I could. I’ve had the Old 97’s on as a soundtrack to my life since first seeing Clay Pigeons. Thank you for sharing your story.
A memoir worth checking out is Uncorked: A Memoir of Letting Go and Starting Over.
Don't be fooled into thinking this funny, open-hearted, soulful howl of a book is only for those on a sober journey -- this is a universal grab-you-by-the-collar-and-hold-you-wide-eyed-close kind of memoir that can inspire all of us.
I really appreciate people sharing who've decided that alcohol doesn't work for them.
As a sidebar to this subject and the experience Rhett shared, I thought we might also use this article to jump into the subject. Hopefully I'm not being selfish or rude by detracting from this story.
I come from a family of alcoholics, some now passed on, some sober, some not.
I stopped drinking about 15 years ago. I had significant experience consuming alcohol before that. But I decided that it wasn't complimentary to the lifestyle that I had discovered and my relationship with my future partner. Fortunately for she and I, I just stopped one day. I loved myself the next day and didn't look back.
But I wonder if alcohol is much more a problem for our developed and developing countries and societies than these discreet stories of sobriety tell or not tell. Could it be at the top of a list of self-inflicted maladies that has led us to the precipice we seem to be standing at?
Is it possibly at the roots of the hopelessness and cynicism that our society behaves with?
It seems to me that there aren’t any good outcomes from its consumption. Only negative and just some that are less precipitous fails. I don't see it is healthy for any aspect of our lives or our world. The only beneficiaries seem to be the alcoholic beverage industry, its infrastructure and the people and systems that profit from cleaning up the messes consuming it makes.
Consuming alcohol is so insidious here in our western culture that there isn't any popular medium where it isn't present as a routine. Especially where "happiness" is expected.
So dominant is the alcohol consumption ideal that almost no one whose financial standing relies on popularity risks questioning it... publicly.
And like everything else us well-off developed societies do, the behavior is adopted as de rigueur for those in the developing world. So that they'll have none of the recommendations from us that there might be a healthier way to live.
It, along with smoking tobacco is almost expected behavior for artists. A free channel for marketing the products who only a very few might benefit at all from... at the expense of the health and happiness of humanity.
But I digress. I'm sure that anyone reading this has likely concluded that I'm a crazy asshole.
I wish I could be more effective with my messaging on this. Like a ripple in still water, I only hope one of us feels a little support for their own questioning.
So glad you interviewed Rhett! He’s a sweetheart and I’m so proud of him for his sobriety. The 97s are friends of ours (my husband’s BFF since childhood is their guitarist), and they’re just the best.
Thanks for having me.
I’m not sure how you do it. I have been drinking for almost 30 years (I’m 50) and I don’t know how to stop. I wish I could. I’ve had the Old 97’s on as a soundtrack to my life since first seeing Clay Pigeons. Thank you for sharing your story.
Jacob, check out our partner in this series, http://thesmallbow.substack.com Could be helpful. Good luck.
Thanks Rhett - you and your story are a great inspiration that came along at exactly the right time for me.
Have loved seeing you in Portland over the years, and looking forward to more.
Peace brother!
A pleasure. 💕
A memoir worth checking out is Uncorked: A Memoir of Letting Go and Starting Over.
Don't be fooled into thinking this funny, open-hearted, soulful howl of a book is only for those on a sober journey -- this is a universal grab-you-by-the-collar-and-hold-you-wide-eyed-close kind of memoir that can inspire all of us.
https://www.amazon.com/Uncorked-Memoir-Letting-Starting-Over-ebook/dp/B0F6433YHY
I really appreciate people sharing who've decided that alcohol doesn't work for them.
As a sidebar to this subject and the experience Rhett shared, I thought we might also use this article to jump into the subject. Hopefully I'm not being selfish or rude by detracting from this story.
I come from a family of alcoholics, some now passed on, some sober, some not.
I stopped drinking about 15 years ago. I had significant experience consuming alcohol before that. But I decided that it wasn't complimentary to the lifestyle that I had discovered and my relationship with my future partner. Fortunately for she and I, I just stopped one day. I loved myself the next day and didn't look back.
But I wonder if alcohol is much more a problem for our developed and developing countries and societies than these discreet stories of sobriety tell or not tell. Could it be at the top of a list of self-inflicted maladies that has led us to the precipice we seem to be standing at?
Is it possibly at the roots of the hopelessness and cynicism that our society behaves with?
It seems to me that there aren’t any good outcomes from its consumption. Only negative and just some that are less precipitous fails. I don't see it is healthy for any aspect of our lives or our world. The only beneficiaries seem to be the alcoholic beverage industry, its infrastructure and the people and systems that profit from cleaning up the messes consuming it makes.
Consuming alcohol is so insidious here in our western culture that there isn't any popular medium where it isn't present as a routine. Especially where "happiness" is expected.
So dominant is the alcohol consumption ideal that almost no one whose financial standing relies on popularity risks questioning it... publicly.
And like everything else us well-off developed societies do, the behavior is adopted as de rigueur for those in the developing world. So that they'll have none of the recommendations from us that there might be a healthier way to live.
It, along with smoking tobacco is almost expected behavior for artists. A free channel for marketing the products who only a very few might benefit at all from... at the expense of the health and happiness of humanity.
But I digress. I'm sure that anyone reading this has likely concluded that I'm a crazy asshole.
I wish I could be more effective with my messaging on this. Like a ripple in still water, I only hope one of us feels a little support for their own questioning.
Peace. May we all be safe and healthy.
I like that guy.
Me, too.
So glad you interviewed Rhett! He’s a sweetheart and I’m so proud of him for his sobriety. The 97s are friends of ours (my husband’s BFF since childhood is their guitarist), and they’re just the best.
Oh, nice! Agree!