Sober

[MichaelC]

This thread evolved beautifully. I cringed, I laughed, I sighed. And as for addiction .... well, this bloody website is becoming addictive!

[tager]

Well my experiment is going quite well. I guess quitting drinking revealed to me how little I enjoy drinking! Now when I drink a beer, it doesn't make me feel happy or uninhibited, it just makes me feel stupid! I don't really think it is for me now that I have had this opportunity to see it from a totally sober point of view.

I have been 100% sober save for some caffeine for over a month and a half.

[Bill Lee]

" I guess I picked the wrong week to quit smoking"
" I guess I picked the wrong week to quit cocaine"... Airplane - the movie
As the Old man used to say: "Son...everything's ok in moderation". I'm excessively moderate about some vices...

[Starbuck]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Starbuck
The other major stimulant in tea is theobromine, a cousin to caffein,

Then flysci, he say:
Actually in tea the caffeine cousin is Theophillin; Theobromine is found in chocolate, which is why IT is the elevator of moods.

After a quick search, it turns out that tea contains both substances: I guess we're both right.

[flysci]

Wow, thanks, Starbuck. I love to learn new things.

[mintyspilot]

Originally Posted by tager

Well my experiment is going quite well. I guess quitting drinking revealed to me how little I enjoy drinking!

Well, if you don't like something then don't do it.

I frequently go weeks without a beer, but in hot weather a nice *cold* crisp danish or german lager is delicious. I never drink Miller or Budw even though the UK version is meant to be better than the US version (so my USA visiting buddies tell me. I've never been)

[unbusted67]

Originally Posted by mintyspilot

Well, if you don't like something then don't do it.

Sorry man but addiction is not that easy.

[capt_douglas]

I am trying to get away from caffeine, but it's not been easy. I like the fresh smell of a morning cup, the delicate taste and magical conversion of sun tea, and that warm hot chocolate on those late night cold watches.

The others aren't a problem (as are meds, either OTC, UTC, or script) for me. I can't afford to drink or smoke on my cruising budget.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by tager

Is anybody here absolutely 100% drug free?

No caffeine, no alcohol, no cigarettes, no pot, no other consciousness altering substances?

I am just wondering, I have recently given up on most of these, and I sincerely wonder if there is anyone that does none of them!

Reminds me of a Russian joke:

A man goes to a doctor, quite agitated, and asks the doctor how long he can expect to live.

The doctor says -- I can give you a rough estimate, but first you have to give me a little basic information.

First of all, how many packs of cigarettes do you smoke a day?

Why, none at all! I have never smoked, and never will.

OK. How many bottles of vodka do you consume every week?

Why, none at all! I have never touched any kind of alcohol.

OK. How often do you have sex?

Why, never! I'm not married, and have never had anything to do with women.

OK. [Thinks for a little while]. Well, tell me this. Why do you even care, how long you still have left to live?



Seriously, cruising is about enjoying life, and alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine can enhance the bliss of being alive, when used properly and in the right dosages.

So two (exactly two, and not more) martinis (or gin tonics in hot weather) at cocktail hour, a good dinner, and an evening cigar, are sacred rituals on our boat. Even though I have almost completely given up cigars "in real life", that is, when not on the water. And why in the world would you give up the morning cup of coffee?

One of the many joys of cruising is the physical exertion involved, and the enhanced feeling of being alive from that. So we sleep much better (except at anchor). My experience is that when living well, being physical, working hard, sleeping hard, that there is much less tendency to overindulge in anything. Alcohol, in particular, gives a great rush of pleasure, for a small dose, and there is no desire to continue drinking. Ah, if all of life, were only like life on the water.

As to pot: that is a drug which works by making you stupid. The last thing you want on the boat. Besides that, it's illegal. So we don't touch that with a barge pole (on land, either).

[rebel heart]

I was thinking about this thread in the shower the other day (too much information, I know...)

Basically I started thinking of the "chemicals" that I would try to avoid in my life, and for the most part they're not the classic list. I think the medical literature is pretty clear that a lifetime of consuming high fructose corn syrup is far worse than the ocassional beer, joint, or even line of cocaine to be honest.

If you want to do a thorough review of "chemicals" to keep out of your body, don't start the list with ones that are currently outlawed or under popular scrutiny. Just last week a study came out showing a link between popular pesticides and ADHD ( PhillyBurbs.com: *Research links pesticides with ADHD in children).

I guess where I'm going with it is that the box of Oreos and an apple sprayed with pesticide that you have somewhat washed off is going to do more damage than someone drinking a glass of wine every now and again and lighting up a j.


edit:

I'm not talking about operating a vessel, car, or potato peeler while under the influence of anything, nor am I commenting on the illegality. Although what's made legal and illegal in the United States often has as much to do with fiscal interest as public health (ala DDT, tobacco, etc).

[Jetexas]

I'm a caffeine addict. I start the morning with black coffee, switch over to Diet Coke around lunch, back to coffee for a bit after lunch, back to Diet Coke at dinner.

Unfortunately as I'm getting older it's starting to noticeably raise my blood pressure. The trouble is, I have terrible allergy sinus problems, and the caffeine sure helps to keep the sinus passages open and to dull the headaches.

[tager]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

As to pot: that is a drug which works by making you stupid. The last thing you want on the boat. Besides that, it's illegal. So we don't touch that with a barge pole (on land, either).

Have you ever used it?

It seems that alcohol has that effect on me!

Also, apples, pears, and the like do not usually have pesticide sprayed on the surface. The pesticide is sprayed during the budding stage, so the most pesticide laden part of the fruit is right in the center, near the seeds.

Organic fruit is said to be safer, but I have an uncle who was a farmer, and he claims that pesticides used in organic farming are often just as bad.

I guess there isn't much we can do to avoid pesticides, short of growing your own!

[ConradG]

Alchohol in any amount definately affects your judgement. It also is "proven" benneficial to health at the rate of one drink per day...

Cafine doesn't really pose any health risks unless your heart is shot and tea and even coffee have all those good for you antioxidents. Cocoa is loaded with good stuff.

The killer drugs that are costing society tons are things like sugar, salt and all the additives to comercailly prepared supermarket foods (let alone the ways in which they are grown). Researchers say that for the first time in history it appears that our children's generation is most likely going to have a shorter life expectancy that ours and it is primarily because of empty calorie sugar intake and the huge obesity epidemic and other related problems. The problem is that there just isn't any "drug" free food available in the supermarkets because we keep buying the stuff the give us. People get addicted to salt, sugar, high fructose corn syrup and come to expect even something such as tomato sauce to taste like salt and syrup instead of tomatos. Try not eating salt for a while and see how it makes you feel. Get rid of the sugar addiction and the crashes after the highs go away! (After the withdrawl dissapears)

As for doing something about the pesticides or anything else, it seems the only way to achieve things is with the wallet. If no one buys the stuff they shouldn't the producers will give you what sells.

[flysci]

ConradG,

Lots of assumptions in your post. I'd say ...

- The jury is still out on antioxidants. In a study where heart patients were given them, they actually had no effect or made their condition worse.
- Cocoa is loaded with the sugar you say is so bad.
- There's no evidence salt is bad for you unless you already have high blood pressure.
- There's a lot of good evidence now that the obesity epidemic is due to the public being sold the fat-free diet. It's more likely all the carbs we eat today that contributes most.

Too many times, scientific findings are rushed into the headlines, misrepresented and turned into recommendations long before the final results are in. Like "margerine is good for you, butter is bad"; "don't eat anything containing cholesterol, it's bad for your heart"; "sugar makes kids hyper". All proven wrong in later studies.

Best just to take all things in moderation, stick with what's fresh, and stop worrying.

Margo

[sarafina]

as a subject near and dear to my heart...

Cocoa, a powder derived from the cacoa bean when most of the naturally occurring fat is removed, contains no sugar, and is mostly comprised of dietary fiber.

Hot chocolate on the other hand, particularly when made using a premixed powder, has large amounts of sugar added.

Make your own mix of cocoa powder to taste and you will find you use much less sugar than most cocoa mixes.