I’m grateful for a really great trip. I’m grateful my phone can remind me every hour to not lose my new umbrella. I’m grateful for a gorgeous morning walk studded by cups of coffee. I’m grateful for exactly what I have. I’m grateful to be sober today.
Lots to celebrate around Sober HQ—I’m returning from a far-flung umbrella acquisition enterprise and even more important than that—Jane has one year of sobriety. That is such a big, big deal and I say that as someone who took about ten years of try to get one year of dry.1 Jane’s success ratio is a lot better than mine and I’m really proud of her and happy for her. None of us get sober in easy circumstances. It’s easy to forget that whatever the significant-enough event to trigger a stab at getting sober, well, it’s still out there when you come back from rehab or collecting a 60-day chip. I was struck the first time I met Jane by her maturity and her enthusiasm for getting sober. Courtesy of the way-back machine, you can experience that as well—Jane’s first appearance on Breakfast with an Alcoholic:
Speaking of which, there are lots and lots of changes afoot here in 2023 and you’ll start to see them shortly. Coming up very soon, a brand new episode of Breakfast with an Alcoholic, featuring two of my favorite alcoholics celebrating one-year anniversaries. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll love the discussion of Cats.2
The traveling alcoholic is in the Air France lounge having cups of coffee 27-32 and leaving soon for home. It’s been a really, really great time and I have a pretty swanky umbrella to boot.3 You know that saying, “wherever you go, there you are?” I used to hate that saying, because it implied I was always running from myself. Which I was. I just really hated the insipid reminders, that’s why drinking was so important. Anyway, I have a very different view these days: Wherever I go, there I am. Pretty great trip, pretty glad to be heading home.
Thanks for Letting Me Share
I just made that up, right now it seems kind of clever. I’ve had an uncountable number of cups of coffee in the last 36 hours, just so you know.
See what I mean about the coffee?
Not sure there could be a more Parisian experience. It involved a coffee (or two), a long chat and then a visitation with an adorable, pretty well behaved Chocolate Lab.