A break from alcohol

I had my annual wellness checkup with my new doctor this week. Prior to that, I had another blood draw to see if my vitamin D situation got better with the high-potency supplement (it did), and where my triglycerides were. This time, I wanted to control for alcohol as a variable, so I abstained for almost three weeks prior to the labs. In previous tests it any drinks typically came the previous weekend, so likely four or more days. I scored a 250 this time, similar to others over the years, so I don't think that's a huge factor.

I enjoyed quite a bit of sangria after the labs during our staycation, but ended up only having three cocktails over the three days. What I learned during those almost-three weeks was something I kind of already knew, in that my favorite part of making cocktails is more the making them than the drinking part. While I admit that alcohol is a great social lubricant for me, I also understand that it's essentially poison. That's a weird thing to contemplate.

While I admire the people who decide to just avoid it entirely, for various reasons, I don't think that I'm there. I don't think I have the addiction gene that runs rampant in my family, and I still worry about that, but it wasn't a big deal to abstain prior to the labs. In my 20's, I drank a lot of beer, but as that agreed with me less, I shifted to cider, then that appealed to me less and I got into mixology from cruising. When I overdo it on the ships, I know that's contributing to IBS flare ups. But I do love to make drinks for others, and I love getting the mix just right. I suck at cooking, and this is satisfying because there are way fewer variables to deal with. I think my old fashioned is on-point, and the "signature" beverages on our menu I'm very consistent with.

Still, the break did make it clear that I can step away from the hobby and the consumption, and I imagine there will be other times when it feels appropriate to do that. I certainly don't need the extra calories.