Tee Total Time Up

My challenge to go without alcohol for a month was finally completed yesterday and celebrated, appropriately (or perhaps quite inappropriately), with a drink. As I gulped the bitter sweet amber nectar out of the strangely comforting pint glass (which I have sorely missed) at the Captain’s Cabin in central London, I reflected upon what I have achieved.

In the grand scheme of things, one month’s abstinence from alcohol is nothing. Some people renounce alcohol for the rest of their lives whilst others relinquish consuming meat. Some even sacrifice all sex related acts for the sake of religious leadership - although a few do break this and get caught up in a tangled web of controversy involving under age individuals [cough Catholic Church].

But as a personal challenge, this was a commendable achievement. For a month, I could not reach for a beer at home when I was bored or depressed. I also had to contain my alcoholic appetite whenever I went out with people to bars or pubs. Whilst I was noticeably more quiet in social situations, I was however more sensible and measured with the way I conducted myself. Rather than my conversations descending into drunken laddish banter (often perceived as rude and incomprehensible to those around us) I maintained a composed and I daresay more mature way of conversing with other individuals.

However, with new acquaintances I was markedly more self conscious in my demeanour and I’m quite certain a fair few people picked up on this. This was a side of me I have been hiding with alcohol for a very long time.

As I progressed through I month, I realized I was replacing alcohol consumption with playing football. Any kick about that I was invited to, I would attend. Although already part of an 11-a-side team, I also joined a 5-a-side Power League team as well. My sessions in our home gym also intensified and became more frequent as I no longer had days where I was too hungover to get off my arse to lift weights. I felt as though I was more focused on achieving targets I set myself. As a result of all this, I feel as fit as a fiddle.

Furthermore, my bowel pains and headaches also disappeared and I no longer got heart palpitations. Additionally, my bank account suffered a lot less although it was brought back to its knees last night at the pub.

So have I have changed after this one month self-denial of alcohol? Well, a complete transformation is out of the question. Alcohol will always form the core of my social life. However I will endeavour to make changes to the way I approach it. Restraining myself from drinking it by myself when I’m sat in front of the television or computer. Spending a more sensible amount on nights out and aiming to not to get as ludicrously intoxicated as I have done in the past, and instead, focusing on trying to speak to people more sensibly.

To say I cannot live without alcohol would be a pathetic statement to make. However, the enjoyment that I have experienced whilst under its spell has been memorable and I foresee many more years of drinking, although less frequently and more perhaps more prudently, to come.

So there’s a General Election in two months…does anyone care?

So Gordon Brown has finally penned in 6^th of May as the date for the next General Election – or, if you prefer to be cynical, the end of Labour’s promising but ultimately stuttering reign. I say this because it almost seems a certainty now that come May, David Cameron will be our new Prime Minister. And it’s not because he’s hugely charismatic or possesses a wealth of exhilarating new ideas and policies. No, it’s because the British public have quite simply had enough of Labour’s drivel and crave some sort of a change. Although change is said with the tongue firmly in the cheek.

And herein lies the problem with British politics these days. EVERYTHING IS THE BLOODY SAME. The three main parties are so anxious about losing votes that to propose any sort of policy that strays too far from what the others have pledged would be considered political suicide. No one sticks to principles anymore. The Conservatives are no longer the right wing toffs us lefty students love to hate – they’re simply a reworking of Labour with a few environmental policies thrown in. Even my supported party, the Lib Dems, have joined this middle ground bandwagon. The British political scale is getting so crowded in the middle that it’s beginning to sag and bulge.

We no longer have the parties fighting their claimed corners. No Labour pledging for socialist rights and no Conservatives standing up for traditional Tory values. Every party just wants that media friendly leader who knows how to say the right things at the right time to get the masses on their side. Gordon Brown – dull. David Cameron – tiresome. Nick Clegg – dreary. There are no characters left in British politics. No charismatic leaders who will stir a crowd into a passionate frenzy or drive them to a chorus of boos and hisses.

I watched a program the other day which highlighted how in the 1950s, hundreds of people would turn up to political rallies to question the leader of the party in question directly – often resulting in heated debates. This no longer occurs – we are all too happy sitting on our sofas watching them spout out the same middle ground nonsense to us on television.

No wonder voter turnout is so low. And no wonder the BNP are gaining votes. The disenchanted and frustrated are turning towards this extreme right wing clap trap because they see it as the only real alternative in these ruthless economic times. Nick Griffin and his cronies are the only party that are not afraid to speak their mind – and unfortunately some sections of British society like that.

Quite simply, British politics needs an overhaul. There is no point offering change if it is simply a repackaging of what was once sold to us before in the past.

Personally, I will be unenthusiastically casting my vote on the 6^th of May in what will be one of the most uninspiring general elections for a very long time.

AND IN OTHER NEWS – NO MORE DRINK FOR ME.

Whilst the election campaigns hot up or, for want of a better phrase, creak slowly into life, I have decided to give up alcohol. For four weeks. Easy for most people but when you are a bordering alcoholic like me, this will be a challenge of monumental proportions.

I will go to clubs and bars realizing how over rated some of these places are and how appalling the music is. I will have to overcome my self - consciousness in these places by actually working on my confidence instead of reaching for a beer. I will have to learn to dance properly, instead of simply wriggling like a worm trying to escape a hole, in a bid to show that I’m vaguely attractive to the opposite sex. I will no longer believe I am the life of the party. I can no longer down my wine and post outrageous statuses on Facebook whilst on a dreaded downer. These are all things I will have to overcome.

On a more positive note, I will save a huge amount of money. My health, both mentally and physically, will improve significantly.

This is a challenge that I WILL complete. And if I complete it, I will consider extending it to 5 weeks. Then possibly 6 weeks and so on.

Wish me luck.