Now that I’m sober, people ask me how I handled my booze when I was not. Most people wonder if I used to drink during the day, while I was at work, and if I used to drink while driving.
The latter is easy to answer. I’m not much of a driver. I live in a busy city where using the subway is faster than driving, so most of my driving takes place during weekends and holidays. I’m lucky to have a wife who drives, so she would drive the kids around town for school and pastime activities.
My Relationship With Day Drinking
Now, I used to drink during the day. Quite a lot, actually. I enjoyed drinking during the day, especially if I was hungover from the night before. I was a beer drinker. On some Sundays, I would pop open the first beer at noon and drink until I had to sleep.
This was before I married my wife, when I was still sharing an apartment with some friends. We used to say “Let’s make a day out of it” and start drinking. This happened so often, nobody needed to ask what we were going to make a day out of.
After I married my wife, my priorities changed, so I didn’t drink so often during the day. I would still do it on vacation, but I had already developed a high tolerance to alcohol, so I managed to spend an entire day drinking beer without acting like a complete buffoon. Most times, at least.
Why Drinking At Work Doesn’t Work Out
I didn’t drink at work. I was a highly functional alcoholic, and I controlled my urges. I drank every night, but I didn’t drink at work. I did, however, try to. This happened back when the TV series Mad Men just aired. If you’re not familiar with the series, here’s a short synopsis. This series focuses on an ad agency, especially on one of the agency’s ad executives. The action takes place in the ‘60s, so everybody is smoking and drinking.
One day, one of my coworkers had the brilliant idea of bringing some bourbon at work. All of us watched the show, so we considered that a couple of drinks during lunch break wouldn’t hurt anyone.
Well, long story short, six of us drank bourbon, and when we entered a conference room we managed to change its smell. The entire room smelled like a distillery. The client wasn’t impressed, so leadership was disappointed. They didn’t take any drastic measures, but they did threaten to fire all of us. And that was the end of our Mad Men impression.
Why Drinking At Work Is Not Worth It
Honestly now, drinking at work is never worth it. Most workplaces have strict policies against drinking. And even if you’re your own boss, drinking affects your productivity and lucidity, and your day might pass without anything to show for it.
Like most responsible adults, you probably have bills to pay. Drinking at work might get you fired, which might lead to other, more serious, problems. People get evicted for not paying their bills on a daily basis.
How To Help Your Spouse If He Or She Drinks At Work
If you suspect your spouse drinks at work, I recommend talking to him or her. Explain that you need his or her salary to keep things going and that your entire household might suffer if they get fired. Talk some sense into them. If that doesn’t work, I recommend counseling.
Read the rest of the articles in this series if you want to learn what happens in the mind of an alcoholic. In our next articles, we’re going to talk about spouses who drink too much on vacation.
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