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The Zen of Drinking Alone

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Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#91

Post by ameminator »

version_five wrote: post #20
akprasad wrote: post #3

I wish I could source it, but I recall reading an anthropological study of drinking that mentioned that solo drinking is universally shunned across all cultures. There's also something perverse about associating this with Zen given that abstaining from intoxicants is the fifth precept ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_precepts#Fifth_precept ). I would never say there is no insight that could be gleaned from this -…

I think being a loner is generally seen as unusual though isn't it? I enjoy drinking alone, exercising alone, traveling alone, sitting alone, working alone. I don't really think I'm that weird by objective standards, there are also things I like doing with people (I'm married and have a family), but as a sometimes introvert, I definitely value time alone, including relaxing with a beer. Related, when I went to univer…

As a fellow loner, who agrees with the majority of what you just said - let's not meet.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#92

Post by fernandotakai »

redisman wrote: post #51
jayski wrote: post #14

there are far better and stronger drugs you can do alone for introspection. a night by yourself on shrooms could change you more than 100 nights drinking alone, without the hangover or liver damage

Weed is 100x better alone or with maybe one person you’re very comfortable with. It’s kinda fun out in a group but I much prefer listening to music on my headphones and writing and playing games alone.

i hate getting high alone. i get super paranoid -- it's never a good vibe (for me).

i prefer to have a few cocktails/glasses of bourbon by myself while listening to some music and writing some code.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#93

Post by newbie789 »

AndyKelley wrote: post #28

This is poetic, but if you break it down into a syllogism, it's clear that this is totally stupid. Removing the flowery language, here are the claims and supporting arguments, along with my rebuttals. * Drinking alone helps you understand yourself better. - No it doesn't. It distracts you from that endeavor. If you sit at a table with no TV or phone and do nothing, you will have a significantly more interesting and h…

> * Drinking alone helps you understand yourself better.

- No it doesn't. It distracts you from that endeavor. If you sit at a table with no TV or phone and do nothing, you will have a significantly more interesting and honest dialog with yourself if you are sober.

I don’t think that the fact that you disagree with a statement qualifies that statement as a syllogism.

I read those three statements as being distinct (for example “preferred cocktail” is a different subject from “comfortable silence”) though I will concede that all three statements do share a general theme of “the author enjoys drinking alone.” However, discussing various reasons for enjoying something does not qualify a statement as a syllogism.

While I also do not generally agree with the author, I’m not a big fan of “things I disagree with are Wrong in terms of fundamental logic. Anything I don’t like but Others do is wrong because those Others lack the fundamental Brain Power to Understand The World(tm) like me. To disagree with me is to commit an Aristotelian error of the highest order.”

It’s honestly an incredibly depressing attitude to come across, and it’s pretty much universally held by people that spend a lot of energy being “Not Mad” at not getting invited to parties.

Maybe you might feel differently about who is the arbiter of logic if you cracked open a nice beer?

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#94

Post by almost_usual »

donw wrote: post #49
Aloha wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have very strict rules I follow for alcohol consumption, if for no other reason than I'm the son of a man who was a functioning alcoholic for most of his life. I've read the big book, and consider it a source of wisdom, even if I perhaps don't follow all of the tenants contained within. The serenity prayer, which is AA adjacent if not (now) directly part of the AA wisdom is my personal lodestar, it's great wisdom o…

What tools do you, or other HNers for that matter, have to share about breaking alcohol addiction? Especially covering the hard parts: what are the major hurdles to overcome?

reddit.com/r/dryalcoholics has a decent community

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#95

Post by fernandotakai »

unemphysbro wrote: post #75

i like having a drink and doing mechanical coding or math. put on a good record, pour some choice tequila, and grind away. :)

ha same!

either that or listening to audiobooks/podcasts. i sit down by my balcony, and i drink while enjoying the view, the book and the taste of the whiskey (currently, glenfiddich 15).

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#96

Post by Bellend »

glogla wrote: post #65

My only drinking alone is I have a glass of Glenfiddich when someone I care about passes away. I'm in the middle of second bottle since I started.

Sorry to hear that matey, the farewell time is difficult. Try to avoid the third one sir and with my remaining Glenfiddich, here is to tomorrow and better days.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#97

Post by nemo44x »

jjulius wrote: post #35
Aloha wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No one shuns reading alone, listening to music alone, or watching a movie alone. Drinking alone is more dangerous than drinking with friends.

>No one shuns ... listening to music alone, or watching a movie alone. Hi! I'm an avid music and film lover who has been shunned for going to live music, or movie theaters, by myself. :)

It’s weird too, right? Why do people even go to these things together considering you can’t socialize during them. And I don’t necessarily want to talk about them after as I haven’t had time to really form my thoughts.

I had a job where I was on the road often and although I loved being back home I did quite enjoy doing things alone.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#98

Post by empressplay »

okareaman wrote: post #8

I agree with everything in this article. Drinking alone is the best, particularly if you like to write while listening to music. The flights of fancy I used to go on! I wish I could still do it, but I found myself waiting for the liquor store to open up at 7:00 am to get rid of the shakes. Then when I tried to stop I couldn't. Long story short, after several rehabs, more stints in mental health lockup than I care to…

Gabapentin + Clonidine

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#99

Post by [deleted] »

Waterluvian wrote: post #83

I’ve repeatedly tried utilizing alcohol for fun or relaxation and it just simply doesn’t work for me. It’s never an enjoyable sensation by any measure. I’m curious how common this is and if there’s many others readily available with the same story?

[deleted]

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#100

Post by colechristensen »

okareaman wrote: post #8

I agree with everything in this article. Drinking alone is the best, particularly if you like to write while listening to music. The flights of fancy I used to go on! I wish I could still do it, but I found myself waiting for the liquor store to open up at 7:00 am to get rid of the shakes. Then when I tried to stop I couldn't. Long story short, after several rehabs, more stints in mental health lockup than I care to…

We’re not all alcoholics. Substances affect people in vastly different ways. A key problem is that people do not understand this, that substances and substance abuse don’t work the same across the board and one person’s experience does not extend to the rest of humanity. It is more like there are tribes that don’t understand each other.
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