Some people mark the different eras of their lives by their hairstyles, jobs, relationships, or music tastes. I use all of those and also alcohol.
This was a challenging song to write. Over the past three years I’ve come to realize how much alcohol has been there for me, and that’s a hard reality to face; sardonic and slightly embarrassing. In music and nightlife I have seen many friends go off the deep end and lose themselves there. I don’t want to be one of them, but I mourn the thought of all the stories I’d miss out on. So this song is my attempt to archive and romanticize some of those stories before I embark on Sober Tober. Perhaps it’s weird to write a cutesy, nostalgic song about alcoholism. It’s also one of the truest songs I’ve written so far.
I do well with time-bound challenges. October feels easy. I have a 10K race at the beginning of November that I’d love to PR, so that’s an easy excuse to use at the club. Plus I’ll be in Korea for two weeks, which will be a lot more enjoyable if I avoid shenanigans and hangovers. After October, we’ll see. I’m hoping to find some middle path where drinking can be fun and intentional instead of a habit with disastrous potential. Maybe I’ll feel so great I’ll want to continue a sober streak through to New Years Eve. I’m ready to see how I feel.
Sambuca
Captain Morgan’s rum and Coke
Tastes like cutting classes
Margaritas take me back
To cast parties at Applebee’s
Extra spicy Caesars
After practice at Jimmy G’s
Chasing post-show Jameson
With Hendrick’s G&Ts
I’ve clinked a lot of glasses and I’ve sung a lot of songs
They tell me life’s too short and I know they’re wrong
‘Cause it’s so, so long
But Jeff Buckley’s version is still my favorite Hallelujah
I still think of you
And I still don’t drink Sambuca
Twenty years, like yesterday
Camping in your minivan
We waltzed on the sandbar
And I threw up in my sleeping bag
Ten shots of recklessness
I used to love black licorice
One bad night, and ever since
I get sick at the scent of it
I’ve clinked a lot of glasses and I’ve sung a lot of songs
They tell me life’s too short and I know they’re wrong
‘Cause it’s so, so long
And even though you’re gone, I’m so happy that I knew ya
I still think of you
And I still don’t drink Sambuca
Now half my friends are sober
While the rest of us pretend that we’re not getting older
But forty inches closer every year
And it’s no longer clear
If we’re living the dream
Or lying between our teeth
At least we’ve still got the memories
I’ve clinked a lot of glasses and I’ve sung a lot of songs
They tell me life’s too short and I know they’re wrong
‘Cause it’s so, so long
And even though you’re gone, I’m so happy that I knew ya
I still think of you
And I still don’t drink Sambuca