An Apology to anyone who wants to read
I don't want to flog a dead horse here, but I have the equivalent to 3-4 drinks a night. If I do not I feel irritated. My behavior has not changed. Surely this can not be good for the system. I guess I answered my own question. I should cut it back to one drink. I don't know if this labels me an alcoholic. Does not matter, I should drink less.
But I feel exactly what the previous writer wrote:
"Since moving to Asia however this has changed for me. Not enough things to keep me busy, boredom, personal problems and booze being too cheap, has put me in a cycle that requires me to drink to get to sleep at night."
But I feel exactly what the previous writer wrote:
"Since moving to Asia however this has changed for me. Not enough things to keep me busy, boredom, personal problems and booze being too cheap, has put me in a cycle that requires me to drink to get to sleep at night."
I don't need to drink before I sleep but I find I drink far too much since coming to Cambodia. Simply not enough social life alternatives. I keep it mostly to beer but I am putting on weight a lot (and I was not thin to start with). It's a bad cycle -- out too late -- too much beer -- not enough sleep -- too tired to do much active -- lather-rinse repeat.Frank4 wrote:
But I feel exactly what the previous writer wrote:
"Since moving to Asia however this has changed for me. Not enough things to keep me busy, boredom, personal problems and booze being too cheap, has put me in a cycle that requires me to drink to get to sleep at night."
It's a pattern I need to break. At least in Bangkok there was enough other activities to do.
Taxi, we'd rather walk. Huddle a doorway with the rain dogs The Rum pours strong and thin. Beat out the dustman with the Rain Dogs; Oh, how we danced and you Whispered to me ... You'll never be going back home
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
Well a much wider social circle helped (I know very few people here). Also Bangkok has A lot of cultural things to do because it is such a global city now. I can remember going to an international exhibit on street photography, attending a flea market that oddly featured a lot of antique Americana stuff people had brought over, lots of cultural performances sponsored by various embassies and trade missions etc., lots of touring music acts and concerts, even just window shopping and grabbing a light meal at any of the malls. Also with a much larger population it was a lot easier to meet people and often was being invited to dinners, events etc.RainMan wrote:What activities did you do in BKK that you can't find in PP?
Last edited by Rain Dog on Sun Dec 29, 2013 3:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Taxi, we'd rather walk. Huddle a doorway with the rain dogs The Rum pours strong and thin. Beat out the dustman with the Rain Dogs; Oh, how we danced and you Whispered to me ... You'll never be going back home
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
- Lucky Lucan
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Most people need some sort of occupation or mission or whatever to keep them busy and give their life some semblance of order. I'm not religious, but there is much truth in the phrase "The devil finds work for idle hands", and drinking becomes a sort of "job" in the absence of anything else solid.
Romantic Cambodia is dead and gone. It's with McKinley in the grave.
Needless to say defining "alcoholism" is a complex and inexact exercise. It comes in myriad forms and is not standardized as we as individuals are not standardized either. I am not that fond of drinking per se, but I actually love the effect of 2-3 drinks on my personality on occasion. If I had the option to take a safe pill and reap the exact same feelings I would opt to do so sometimes. Having said that, I do like the taste of high quality alcohol - fine wine, micro-brewery beer, expensive whiskey, high-end saki, etc. I despise all the "soda pop" beer in Cambodia and find it foul smelling as well as tasting terrible. It's very cheap for a reason.
Hence, I have no first hand experience with alcoholism, nor do my 3 brothers. Our parents didn't drink much at all: a beer at a barbeque, a glass of wine with a meal, but we never saw them drunk. I have found that the vast majority of alcoholics I have known came from "drinking families" and saw their parent(s) drunk often. No surprise that this is the case obviously.
Alcoholics have effected my life in many adverse ways. One killed my best friend during high school in a car accident and over the years there have been many negative interactions with people under the influence of extreme drinking. As we all know, the majority of people who drink are not alcoholics. People can drink everyday (only 1 or 2 drinks) and not be alcoholics. So then what defines an alcoholic?
Some possible suggestions:
a) cannot have only 1 drink
b) a discernible change in personality after that 1 drink
c) when drunk are often deluded as to how drunk they are
d) cannot go long periods not drinking at all
e) cannot imagine life without getting drunk regularly
f) when drunk they openly sabotage most every aspect of their life
g) most of, if not all, their mates drink heavily
I have several friends who are alcoholics - a few currently deep into their cups, but most clean and sober now. Phnom Penh has a very high percentage of ex-pat alcoholics. Surprise! It's dirt cheap, there are heaps of like-minded blokes and no one cares what they do - the society, their mates, their girlfriends/wives, the cops, etc. It's very easy to drown yourself slowly here - it's ideal.
But is it a choice really? Is it a moral issue? Is it a disease? Is it inherited? No one can answer these questions comprehensively. First and foremost, it is a form of self-medication. And what is inherently wrong with wanting to do that? Heal thyself. You have to fill that void with something, after all, right?
Hence, I have no first hand experience with alcoholism, nor do my 3 brothers. Our parents didn't drink much at all: a beer at a barbeque, a glass of wine with a meal, but we never saw them drunk. I have found that the vast majority of alcoholics I have known came from "drinking families" and saw their parent(s) drunk often. No surprise that this is the case obviously.
Alcoholics have effected my life in many adverse ways. One killed my best friend during high school in a car accident and over the years there have been many negative interactions with people under the influence of extreme drinking. As we all know, the majority of people who drink are not alcoholics. People can drink everyday (only 1 or 2 drinks) and not be alcoholics. So then what defines an alcoholic?
Some possible suggestions:
a) cannot have only 1 drink
b) a discernible change in personality after that 1 drink
c) when drunk are often deluded as to how drunk they are
d) cannot go long periods not drinking at all
e) cannot imagine life without getting drunk regularly
f) when drunk they openly sabotage most every aspect of their life
g) most of, if not all, their mates drink heavily
I have several friends who are alcoholics - a few currently deep into their cups, but most clean and sober now. Phnom Penh has a very high percentage of ex-pat alcoholics. Surprise! It's dirt cheap, there are heaps of like-minded blokes and no one cares what they do - the society, their mates, their girlfriends/wives, the cops, etc. It's very easy to drown yourself slowly here - it's ideal.
But is it a choice really? Is it a moral issue? Is it a disease? Is it inherited? No one can answer these questions comprehensively. First and foremost, it is a form of self-medication. And what is inherently wrong with wanting to do that? Heal thyself. You have to fill that void with something, after all, right?
I love fish and chips with vinegar in newspaper!!!
While BKK might have more quantity than PP for the activities mentioned above there is a lot here in PP. You have to be very pro-active here. Check out the local papers and websites - every night there is something organized. Culturally there is a wide choice but it won't come to you. I know, I know - there will be many loathed NGO types but they are in BKK as well. So what?Rain Dog wrote:Well a much wider social circle helped (I know very few people here). Also Bangkok has A lot of cultural things to do. A lot of cultural things because it is such a global city now. I can remember going to an international exhibit on street photography, attending a flea market that oddly featured a lot of antique Americana stuff people had brought over, lots of cultural performances sponsored by various embassies and trade missions etc., lots of touring music acts and concerts, even just window shopping and grabbing a light meal at any of the malls. Also with a much larger population it was a lot easier to meet people and often was being invited to dinners, events etc.RainMan wrote:What activities did you do in BKK that you can't find in PP?
I love fish and chips with vinegar in newspaper!!!
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First up congratulations - the first step is always the hardest.
I had the same problem with the weed in my 20s but now I can happily sit around with people toking away without even a twinge.
And on a lighter note :-
I had the same problem with the weed in my 20s but now I can happily sit around with people toking away without even a twinge.
And on a lighter note :-
http://www.isihanoukville.com - Sihanoukville and The Islands Guide - http://www.koh-rong-samloem-island.com
- OrangeDragon
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Big ups to DM for this post and his resolved. Well done.
To the point of the conversation... I'm a binge drinker a lot of the time. In part is use it as a self medication for social anxiety, in part because I enjoy what I drink, and in part because I like being drunk. It's fun. However I only usually drink like this 1 night a week, or even less. The rest of the week I often don't drink at all. This was my alcohol pattern in the US, and it didn't change significantly when I moved here.
However, lately while staying at Charlie Harpers I have found that living above a bar and being friends with it's regulars has had me drinking at least 1-2 beers every single day. Often more. Occasionally many more. Not something I'm used to doing, and something that's been taking a toll on my body. I'm off the sauce as well for a few weeks while I put my body back together, and then returning to my normal drinking patterns, but its easy to see how someone could continue down that path a lot further until the point where going back to the beginning and starting over isn't an option and all that remains is never again or life ruining excess.
Glad you've chosen the first of those.
To the point of the conversation... I'm a binge drinker a lot of the time. In part is use it as a self medication for social anxiety, in part because I enjoy what I drink, and in part because I like being drunk. It's fun. However I only usually drink like this 1 night a week, or even less. The rest of the week I often don't drink at all. This was my alcohol pattern in the US, and it didn't change significantly when I moved here.
However, lately while staying at Charlie Harpers I have found that living above a bar and being friends with it's regulars has had me drinking at least 1-2 beers every single day. Often more. Occasionally many more. Not something I'm used to doing, and something that's been taking a toll on my body. I'm off the sauce as well for a few weeks while I put my body back together, and then returning to my normal drinking patterns, but its easy to see how someone could continue down that path a lot further until the point where going back to the beginning and starting over isn't an option and all that remains is never again or life ruining excess.
Glad you've chosen the first of those.
Those who begin coercive elimination of dissent soon find themselves exterminating dissenters. Compulsory unification of opinion achieves only the unanimity of the graveyard.
Robert H. Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
Robert H. Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
- Lucky Lucan
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Good post Dagenham, and it explains a lot. I come from a family where my father never drank a drop of alcohol in his life, my mother would have one or two glasses of wine or beer on very rare occasions, and none of my siblings drink regularly. I drink a bit too much these days, but can still maintain a normal life and job. I only rarely get stupidly drunk or stay out at a bar later than 10 o'clock. I have drunk quite a bit more than usual over the last year, probably due to some serious changes in my personal/family life. I'll just have to cut down on a bit.
Romantic Cambodia is dead and gone. It's with McKinley in the grave.
This is 100% spot on. My biggest issue ... trying to retire @50. Sounded great on Paper, but FAR too much time on my hands.Lucky Lucan wrote:Most people need some sort of occupation or mission or whatever to keep them busy and give their life some semblance of order. I'm not religious, but there is much truth in the phrase "The devil finds work for idle hands", and drinking becomes a sort of "job" in the absence of anything else solid.
Taxi, we'd rather walk. Huddle a doorway with the rain dogs The Rum pours strong and thin. Beat out the dustman with the Rain Dogs; Oh, how we danced and you Whispered to me ... You'll never be going back home
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
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You can say you're a binge drinking if you don't do it every day.
My posts are just jokes, maybe they're rude, offensive, and politically incorrect. They're not my opinion, viewpoint, idea, or judgement, but they're just fucking jokes so lighten up.
While BKK might have more quantity than PP for the activities mentioned above there is a lot here in PP. You have to be very pro-active here. Check out the local papers and websites - every night there is something organized. Culturally there is a wide choice but it won't come to you. I know, I know - there will be many loathed NGO types but they are in BKK as well. So what?[/quote]Dagenham wrote:
Yes I probably need to make a better effort ... i know of the lady Penh blog that lists events. I admittedly have not made much of an effort other than reading online but what experience I have has led me to feel that this scene is a bit inaccessible --- small groups of people that have known each other for a long time and not terribly welcoming. Bangkok is like Los Angeles --- everybody is from somewhere else and people are much more open.
Taxi, we'd rather walk. Huddle a doorway with the rain dogs The Rum pours strong and thin. Beat out the dustman with the Rain Dogs; Oh, how we danced and you Whispered to me ... You'll never be going back home
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
Partial Lyrics - Tom Waits
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