"There is nothing noble about being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self".

Day 83

I said to a pal of mine in the recent past that one of the reasons I wanted to stop drinking was because I thought that might help me to be a better version of myself. (Inspired by Ernest Hemingway's quote). A simple example; all through 2025 I would regularly pass on an opportunity to go busking because I'd be feeling seedy and worn out from the previous night's drinking. Most school nights it would only be two beers (Craft) but that was enough to make every task seem arduous. A lot of that was due to age. At sixty-one I was no longer able to handle the after effects of even a couple of beers.

On Dec 8th 2025 I decided to quit for a year. I am now on Day 83 Alcohol-Free.

I used to write a lot. Novels, blogs, poetry. In 2019 i had a near death experience. I got to Tallaght hospital in an ambulance with my brain swollen and my organs about to shut down. Dr. Colm Kirby and his team, including two professors, saved my life. That brought an end to my writing. My thought process wasn't at its best. It was strange. I could never write with a few beers on me. I had to be sober when I'd open up the laptop. I feel like writing again and I'm going to do so in conjunction with the daily posts I've been sharing on social media about my attempt to quit the gargle for a year. I have to have a time limit. If I told myself I wasn't going to drink again ever, I'd be back on it at five past ten this morning.

Peace out, Michael.