I Will Never Drink Alcohol

Alcohol brings the best out of us.

I have this one friend whenever we hang out at parties ask the important question:

Will you ever drink alcohol?

In the past I would have said,

I'll have my first glass of scotch after my first million.

Then I realised, that's not what I want.

For this article, I'm constructing an answer to the question of:

• Why I don't drink alcohol
• Will I ever drink alcohol?

My Upbringing

My negative connotation with alcohol stems from seeing my father's past relationship with alcohol, and my mother's reaction to it.

There are a few incidents I can recount that cement this negativity for alcohol. But I do not want this article to be a hating on his past behaviour.

(He's quit alcohol. Thank God.)

I will say though, it's largely to my Asian upbringing from my mother. Also, my father's encouragement to not drink during his time drinking.

As they saying went in our house,

Only tea, coffee and water for you boys.

That's another thing I have to work out. I find being drunk embarrassing, especially if it's from my own family.

I would remember trying to bring up this fact to my father. I always felt brushed off. That, I shouldn't be embarrassed for my family's drunkenness.

I don't know where it stems. Perhaps wanting to protect the family reputation. This is why I don't feel embarrassment when my friends get drunk.

Because in the grand scheme of things, they're not a large extension of my identity unlike my family. That's why I can comfortably sit with myself with my water or soda watching them make a fool of themselves.

In saying that, do I think you're a fool for participating in the act of drinking?

(Making a fool of yourself vs being a fool are two different things)

I'm not naive to the fact that drinking lubricates the kind of experience you would have: especially social occasions.

End of the day, I don't want my family or myself being a fool.

To My Future Family

To not drink is for my future children.

I've sort of observed it's all too common occurrence of people's dads getting drunk.

Just, I don't want them to go through that as a part of their childhood. Whether it be an absent father that used alcohol as his escape from reality.

Another observation, I find it stupid that my fellow peers who've seen their own parents go through their problems of drinking decide to go down the same path.

It's almost like a naivety of thinking you will take more control from you forefathers. I will admit some more so than others can.

Goes against the principle of wisdom. To try improve the next generation of humans.

To drink after knowing the glaring problems of taking up such habit is dumb.

(To not drink signals my readiness to go down the path of fatherhood and marriage)

I think of when Bill Burr was asked why he stopped drinking.

"I also like the idea that my kids were never going to see me drunk. That's not a good thing."

I can't remember the exact clip, but he mentioned about getting robbed.

Along the lines of,

"When I have kids, I'd be alert when I'm getting broken into. Rather than being drunk on the couch."

Advice From A Mentor

My mentor taught me to not drink. It's a hole, financially.

I will not know the prices off the top of my head. But I think of the cost of a night out at the clubs.

Guys in my group will be saying they drop $300 bucks on drinks alone.

What else can that $300 bucks get me?

Chuck it into an investment calculator, that $300 can turn into $1723 in 30 years.

So you're not spending $300, you can say you've spent $1723 of your future's money.

You'll Fuck Up Your Academics

Sort of think the top academics what could have played a large part of the game. Not drinking alcohol. The brain is still developing.

I'll say this, I understand if you drink while studying in university. It isn't as cut throat as high school per se.

But if you're locking in, alcohol should be the last thing on the table to help you with your score.

My Appearance

Health-wise, I think my lack of alcohol helps with maintenance of my appearance.

Call it controversial, I think women can get away with drinking in terms of altering their appearance than men.

(Stay with me here)

I'd had this argument back in high school where if you compared the female and male body at the same level of body fat percentages what is deemed conventionally attractive is not the same.

Men with lower body fat percentages are more attractive than men with higher body fat percentages.

However, the inverse is true for the woman.

The plumper woman with higher body fat percentages were preferred over their lean counterparts.

And how does this have to do with alcohol?

IF you don't know, drinking excess amount of alcohol causes fat.

And if you're like me who is a young male, I'd rather focus on activities that can maintain my health and attractiveness.

I remember, a guy from the jazz band I played back in high school. Something happened between Grade 9 and 12 to make him fat.

You know what it was? Drinking excess booze on the weekend.

Can't Drink If I Don't Go To The Clubs

This leads me down to one of the best decisions I make when I get asked to go: I don't go to the night clubs.

In the same conversation, my friend (back in the intro) made a great point:

What about in a new city or place? Will you go to the clubs, then?

My town is small. I've already went to the main clubs. As a non-drinker, the occasion is quite boring. What it actually is quite annoying.

People yelling at you. Incoherent speech. People fumbling around.

I want to have successful marriage. What I've observed in Australia is the amount of families that...

Then, What?

Not even a sip? A glass of wine with a steak?

Yeah, I've had a negative relationship with alcohol.

So I never begin the addiction in the first place.

The best kind of relationship with a vice is none at all.

Then I think of a clip of Elon Musk And Joe Rogan,

As a litmus test, insert the activity or item into the blank.

"[Blank] made me a better person."

[BONUS] Diary Entry

I was going back through my writings. Including the one I did with Jordan Peterson's self-authoring program. This section involved writing about my present self back in 2023.

This was a reflection of the trait, "Am stable in my moral beliefs"

Again, I don't think you're a bad person if you drink alcohol. This is more my self moral judgement.

"Not drinking alcohol, I think, for the rest of my life. When I go to parties, I am always pressured to take 'just one sip.'

I am always firm and say no. No matter what. I think it stems from the fact that one of my moral beliefs is I refuse to escape from reality, cause hurt to others through my drunkenness, and breaking the cycle of becoming my father.

My father is a bitter, nihilistic, negative man when he is drunk. Seeing him argue, yell, punch walls, pulling out a knife to his neck makes me refuse the thought of drinking.

Even if I am tempted, I remind myself the man I refuse to become. Because, I myself am afraid of the person I become when I drink.

And I don't believe it is morally right to attempt to escape the problems of life by coping rather than tackling the real problem itself. Becoming drunk is not right.

Instead of facing reality, you escape it. I have learnt that best from my father and my mother. So, because I don't drink, I am in the best physical condition possible. Best mental condition possible. And generally, I think I enjoy life more than those who do drink."