I am quite saddened by this news. I hope he recovers.

So yes, I have made a foolish decision. I have given up alcohol for Lent. And yes, I am miserable. I have been to Glasgow and not drank. I have been out to friends' houses for dinner and not drank. I have gone out on the university expense account and had no bottle of wine, no port with cheese, no single malt. And I still have to get through a physics away weekend (boy will the H have fun when he realises he too has given up booze and won't be having pints while talking ions), the Ireland-Wales rugby match and the away day and dinner. All completely dry. The truly ironic thing of it all is that it because of the born, reared and at heart, true-presbyterian H likes the idea of sacrifice and Lent. Which begs the question of why I, the hardly ever darker the door of a church person that I am is doing this and well, I think there are three reasons:

1) What inspired the H was listening to thought for the day one morning in traffic and a muslim was on discussing Rammadan. He explained that a person is made up of physical, mental and spiritual needs. And that religion should work in harmony will all the types of needs. But at Rammadan the bodily needs are kept in check by the spiritual needs and this shows that man is different from animals and the primacy of the spirit. And I can see the need and usefulness of this. And well right now my need to be a more spiritual person is making me physically miserable because there hasn't been a glass of red wine in my hands for weeks.

2) I remember reading an article in The Observer several years back (alright it was a column, actually) where the writer bemoaned how christianity had become all happiness and joy with its holidays. That the darkness and mourning of the Lenten season had been forgotten and instead we had lots of creme eggs. And I personally think there is a lot to this. Perhaps it is an extension of reason 1. But I have always found the most spiritually moving holiday to me personally has been Yom Kippur (and to a lesser extent Rosh Hoshonna). And Yom Kippur is hard. You have to suffer for the day. Well, this year I am suffering for Easter. I'd like to think it builds character.

3) Definitely falls under 2 and more than likely 3 too. I remember one lunch-time, sitting in the HoneyBaked Ham store with a friend wearing a lovely star of david (from Tiffany's) and as she ordered her ham sandwich (this was all her idea. I can take or leave ham myself. I am more of a tunafish girl) I just gave her a look and she looked down at her star and laughed. As we ate, she talked a bit about the whole keeping kosher thing and she pointed out that one of the aspects that the Rabbis would stress that kosher meant that you had to think about your choices every day. Well, giving up the drink makes me think about the whole Lenten thing rather more regularly than I expected.

4) Of course, I now remember a fourth reason that has nothing to do with spirituality or identity or choice. Well, maybe choice. As a yank, I always worrying that my drinking is problematic. Which makes those of a more Irish persuasion around me laugh because we are talking maybe two bottle of wine a week. So, I am just trying to prove I don't have a problem.

For the record, it is easier to give up drink than the giving up meat that we have tried in the past. I did get tired of the tuna sandwiches and wanted the ham ones.