#no wine

[curvymommy70]

[mari-musing]

Dry July: The Next Step

feabhsu

You're doing so well Mari! Also great cause... 

Thanks Laura! I feel proud of myself. The confronting truth is that for the entire first six months of this year, I probably had fewer than 20 alcohol-free nights, so it is a big deal for me.

beyourowntailwind

Do you think that you'll begin drinking again Mari? Or was this the beginning of cutting alcohol out completely?

I’m really not sure about cutting alcohol out completely Joey, but I do know I want to be very sparing with alcohol consumption in future. I certainly do not plan to rush to the bottlo on the 1st of August. There’s no doubt abstinence would be the best thing to do, particularly with my IBD. Societal pressure to drink is immense; the alcohol industry is gargantuan and powerful; and alcohol is integrated into the fabric of our culture at every level, so one must be very determined. There have been a few - not many - times when I fancied a wine or a beer this month. But staying strong for a finite period is relatively easy. Long term will be harder, particularly once the shield of saying I am doing Dry July is gone.

It’s a hard fact that people are uncomfortable around non-drinkers; they go to great lengths to make a sober person join in and drink. People don’t want to argue with supporting a cancer charity but once the official period is over, Dry Julyers will be fair game for judgement and ridicule.

You save a lot of money if you don’t drink alcohol, and you really notice how seriously it blunts the manners and wits of people (although they think otherwise). What is hilarious and clever when you’re drinking appears boorish and stupid when you’re sober - and you realise you are probably just as bad when you drink too much. And that’s at the mild end of negative behaviours - at the other end is risk-taking, aggression, violence, drunk driving, which all can lead to death and destruction.

Abstinence comes with a ton of recognised mental and physical health benefits. My health has not been great this month so I may well have been feeling a whole lot crappier had I been drinking (actually, booze is like a sledgehammer on the bowel, so I mean that literally as well). The benefits of not drinking have crept up I think, so I can’t say, “oh wow, I look so fabulous and feel so sharp!” July is our most miserable and blustery Winter month, and the height of the cold season - no-one looks that great! But I suspect if I suddenly had a few wines tonight, I would feel like shite in the morning.

No-one likes to think alcohol has a grip on them. But it does. On millions of us. Quite scary really.

[onionchoppingninja]

My friend wants to make the wine jelly, but she avoids alcohol. Would it still work without the brandy and using a red juice such as grape or cranberry?

Hi! I’m sure it would still work, as long as the mixture is warm and the gelatin dissolves properly! You could even add in a little bit of rose syrup to the cranberry/pomegranate juice to make it fit the rose theme instead of the wine theme. (Since non-alcoholic wines are kind of expensive). Best of luck!

[mari-musing]

4 Weeks Dry! 4 Days To Go! 28 July 2017 This post is mostly for my Australian friends, as Dry July is an Aussie charity. It’s Friday and social media soon will be awash with photos of beer, wine and cocktails. How much will you spend on booze tonight? Maybe you can spare the equivalent to help ease someone’s cancer burden? Please help me fund support services for cancer patients by following the link below to donate. . https://www.dryjuly.com/users/marianne-garvey . Back story: I have IBD and I drink too much (stupid). I had planned to do Dry July as a private challenge for my own health. But then the 20yo daughter of friends died of a brain tumour. At her memorial service, her dad spoke of how much support services helped. I work with people battling cancer too. So I decided to sign up to help others while doing myself some good. Seven wonderful individuals have donated, but when I think about how much my real life friends spend on booze, I had hoped for more support.

🚫🍷🚫🍺🚫🍸🚫🍹🚫

[mari-musing]

Raining But Dry 31 July 2017 I made it! 🎉31 days dry🎉I confess this is the longest stretch without an alcoholic drink in years. I feel even better about it because I have been fund raising for cancer support services. I havent quite met my fund raising goal so have boldly stated my intention to stay dry until I do. (I could be waiting a long time.) Still hoping my Aussie friends will throw some of their beer money at me. 🍻 https://www.dryjuly.com/users/marianne-garvey

[mari-musing]

Let’s crush this wine habit. Day 5 with 26 to go.

[ask-hetalia-ivan]

Have you ever tried sangria?

I have never had sangria before. But it is made with wine, and I do not like wine. I feel I may not like sangria.