I'm Here for the New Sobriety!
Maybe I was a trendsetter? I had no idea ...
My pal Craig sent me this WSJ piece on the “Loud, Bold, and Stigma-Free” sobriety wave. I’m deep into my own sobriety — how deep? It’s complicated. Is it the first time I got sober? The second? The last time I drank? Or maybe when I finally stopped abusing prescription meds? Let’s just say sobriety isn’t a straight line, and I’ve got a winding road and a lot of sober miles behind me.
The article stirred up some feelings:
I love that sobriety’s gone from shameful whisper to loud-and-proud. The more people who own it publicly, the better.
It’s genuinely wild (in the best way) that people are getting sober before bottoming out. I can’t imagine that for me, but hey, growth.
And then there’s this quote: “Sober fascism,” from a New Yorker writer who says people are so into sobriety they’ve made it their entire personality. I mean… God forbid someone talks about not poisoning themselves for sport. Perhaps there is more context to this quote but I am choosing to just be angry and a little lazy.
And this gem from a reporter mocking booze-free bars: “What’s next? A restaurant without food?” Big same energy as the time a client asked me, “What’s the point?” when I ordered a nonalcoholic beer. The ignorance is strong out there.
When I quit drinking, I was sure fun had died. For a while, I wasn’t wrong. My friends stayed the same. I didn’t. It was brutal. But eventually, I learned to enjoy life without numbing it—and that took time, mistakes, and a few really awkward social occasions.
And the increasing availability of nonalcoholic alternatives at concerts and sporting events has helped a lot! This past weekend at Western Massachusetts’ Green River Festival, organizers offered three choices from the great KIT Brewers, which is anywhere from 3x to ∞ x the number of nonalcoholic beers at most venues.
So in short, hail sober fascism!