I don’t drink. I have never tried it, and I don’t have the urge to try
it. Reason? It’s against my religion.
I remember very clearly being told alcohol is a must in the public
relations (PR) industry. I was told that’s just how you get things done,
especially with media. When I was about to join the PR agency, one of my former
manager at my first job literally said “I give you 1 year in the PR agency, and
you will be drinking”. I told him I’ll prove him wrong.
I don’t agree with that kind of statement. Because I feel there are
other ways to socialise and network. I was sure you can still be a good PR
practitioner even if you don’t drink. I also felt like that statement is like
an insult to the media industry, especially journalists (because they are not alcoholic!).
I joined the PR agency, did my work, and made a lot of friends from the
media industry. I attended hundreds of events, drank a whole lot of virgin
mojito and coke. I eventually took over the agency, and lead the team in negotiation
with many local and international clients. I was fine, with no alcohol.
Fast forward to about 3-4 years ago, I attended a conference where
people from all over the globe were there. During the dinner party, I somehow
find myself hanging out with PR practitioners from Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand
and UK. None of them were Muslim, but all of them don’t drink. I was very surprised.
Before you continue reading, I must state that I do not have any
problems with people who drink alcohol. A lot of my friends, colleagues and
people I know consume alcohol. I get along with them just fine. I don’t mind
sharing a table with them or hanging out with them. The main point is, I don’t have
a problem with it.
And in return, people should not have a problem about me not drinking.
I honestly don’t judge or have a bad perception towards those who drink.
It is a personal choice. But I must say, I am puzzled with a couple of things
involving alcohol:
Alcohol make you sick.
I always see people vomiting after
drinking too much. I googled it and found out that this common reaction occur
because alcohol is actually an irritant and can upset your stomach. In fact,
drinking too much alcohol can even lead to gastritis which is when your
stomach lining gets irritated, inflamed and erodes.
Almost all of my friends
complain about headache the next morning. They often stay unproductive until
very late in the evening before they fully recover.
So, my question is, why do you
want to go through that? Why?
The other thing that I cannot
compute is; when you make your friend literally sick and pass out in the name
of “celebration”.
I once attended a farewell party
where I arrived the venue slightly after 8:00pm. A lot of people were drinking
already although it was just dinner time. And everyone was making sure the
person being celebrated don’t walk with empty glass.
At 10:00pm, the person started vomiting
extensively. Soon, the person was not able to chat with anyone. At 10:30pm, the
person completely passed out. All of the guests who came much later for the “party”
didn’t get to meet the person at all.
I bet the person woke up the
next morning feeling awful, and probably with severe headache too!
I would only do that to someone I
hate.
Alcohol
alleviate negative feelings?
I have had discussions with my
close friends on this topic and I was told that some people value alcohol
because it helps to alleviate their negative feelings. The drinking removes
stress or anxiety – at least temporarily.
The irony is that when people drink too often to cope
with their stress, they usually make the problems they're stressed out about
even worse, like, being addicted to alcohol, becoming too sensitive or aggressive.
Not to mention, alcohol is not cheap, so, it will also affect you financially.
Alcohol
brings out the best, and worst of you
I must admit I enjoyed hanging
out with people who drink, because they do silly and funny things, and it can
be quite entertaining. These kind of people, I love!
However, I cannot tolerate 2
type of people;
The first one is; EMO. I’m sure
we all have seen people who get extremely emotional when they drink. They cry,
they talk and they won’t stop.
The second one, is the worst
kind; BITCH. The kind of person who say mean and bad things to people. The kind
of person who just want to nasty, and are proud of it. I used to know someone
who will turn into a monster when she is drunk. I decided to stay away from
her.
If you have the answers to my questions, please comment. Thanks!
p/s: I am fully aware that alcohol are considered a tradition in some
culture. I also know that in some counties, business negotiations are sealed
over dinner and lots of alcohol.
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