know before you go!
There are places I still feel like a fish out of water, but a bar isn't one of them. Although I don't frequent bars and rarely drink, even at home, tonight I made an exception to the rule. I went out with the guys from work because one of the best workers on our crew, and an all-around good kid was celebrating a new job and his last day with us.
I didn't have my phone but had I had it with me, I would have sent KP a photo of me drinking a Blue Moon (sans orange). Gotta say it was pretty tasty. See, some things do change. I had one. And I had one Budweiser because, well, I'm still me. In an hour and a half. And then I left.
I found a wingman before I did and I told him what my own "kryptonite" was. I had just a small amount of beer left in the glass when I said I had that much time with them, meaning when it was gone and so was I. Then the usual, "oh, just have one more". There is no such thing as one more. I told my boss "I wrote that lie". And then the kryptonite walked out the door onto the patio where we were.
The timing was perfect! I swallowed my last sip of beer, looked at the guys and two of them said to me at the same time as I said it to them. "Yup, time to go!" And I left.
The thing is this; I like the path I'm on and I don't want to wreck my testimony because I had a bad week and I had a few too many beers. I went to celebrate with a co-worker an achievement this kid worked his butt off for. I knew I needed to be accountable to someone, so I picked the guy out of the group I could trust the most and told him what I needed him to do. I set a two beer limit and a time limit. I exceeded neither.
In fact, when the conversation was going where I didn't want it to, I used humor to see if we could go in a different route, like saying in a laughing way, "This is why I don't hang out with you guys outside of work." I didn't get offensive, didn't criticize or act stuck up. And we talked about other things.
It was nice to get together with people today, but the night wasn't nearly as satisfying as the morning was. As I left the bar, I thought to myself about how grateful I was for the narrow path and the life I have. It's not always pleasant and it's often crazy. But then there are days like today when the best gathering I was at wasn't the one I told you about today. I'm saving that for the weekend.
I didn't have my phone but had I had it with me, I would have sent KP a photo of me drinking a Blue Moon (sans orange). Gotta say it was pretty tasty. See, some things do change. I had one. And I had one Budweiser because, well, I'm still me. In an hour and a half. And then I left.
I found a wingman before I did and I told him what my own "kryptonite" was. I had just a small amount of beer left in the glass when I said I had that much time with them, meaning when it was gone and so was I. Then the usual, "oh, just have one more". There is no such thing as one more. I told my boss "I wrote that lie". And then the kryptonite walked out the door onto the patio where we were.
The timing was perfect! I swallowed my last sip of beer, looked at the guys and two of them said to me at the same time as I said it to them. "Yup, time to go!" And I left.
The thing is this; I like the path I'm on and I don't want to wreck my testimony because I had a bad week and I had a few too many beers. I went to celebrate with a co-worker an achievement this kid worked his butt off for. I knew I needed to be accountable to someone, so I picked the guy out of the group I could trust the most and told him what I needed him to do. I set a two beer limit and a time limit. I exceeded neither.
In fact, when the conversation was going where I didn't want it to, I used humor to see if we could go in a different route, like saying in a laughing way, "This is why I don't hang out with you guys outside of work." I didn't get offensive, didn't criticize or act stuck up. And we talked about other things.
It was nice to get together with people today, but the night wasn't nearly as satisfying as the morning was. As I left the bar, I thought to myself about how grateful I was for the narrow path and the life I have. It's not always pleasant and it's often crazy. But then there are days like today when the best gathering I was at wasn't the one I told you about today. I'm saving that for the weekend.
Comments
Post a Comment