Unattractive, unpleasant with emptiness and a jackhammer all mixed into one. If it were a man, you certainly wouldn’t have anything more to do with him. And yet, waking up with a horrendous hangover happens time and time again, no matter how often you find yourself saying ‘never again’.
So why do we do it!? Knowing full well how awful it’s going to feel the next day, we drink ourselves silly and then wonder how it ever happened. Baffled about the moment that a couple of after work drinks suddenly turned into a night of drunken debauchery, and paying for it with headaches and regret.
There’s an old Russian movie in which a drunk man, who’s accidentally ended up on a flight to St Petersburg and crashed out in a strangers apartment on New Year’s Eve (much to said stranger’s anger and dismay) then finds himself outside, in the snow, suffering hangover horror. He hops up and down, trying to keep warm, and says over and over again ‘must drink less, must drink less’.
More and more, I find myself doing the same thing. Minus the snow and Russian accent.
It’s no secret that drinking is the Australian way. Problem drinking and Kings Cross bar brawls aside, it’s part of our culture, and inherent to most social interactions. In fact a new study has shown that Australians are spending as much on alcohol each week as they are on electricity and gas.
Personally, I’m fine with that. Despite the terror the term ‘electricity prices’ inspires, I’d way rather live in a country where money’s being spent on having a good time instead of a warm time. That’s not my issue.
My issue is all about the tipping point. And how to avoid it. So any tips you might have would be much appreciated.
