Toward the end of the event, my friend and I began to wonder if it was a bad thing when, as each bottle was unwrapped, one or both of us would reply, "I've tried that one."
Clearly, wine is my friend. And I'm obviously not the only one.
When a tough day is coming to an end, sometimes you need a little something to close it out. Maybe it's Monday. Or Wednesday signaling the halfway point. Let's be honest. If you make it through ANY day with most of your sanity intact, it's a cause for celebration.
It used to be my policy only to open a bottle on the weekend. Then I had teenagers. Later, I decided to become self-employed. Then Trump was elected. Jupiter and Mars were in a particularly bad alignment for one month. Clearly, I did not need to look hard for an excuse to ignore that policy.
As vices go, I really don't have many. I don't care for beer or whiskey, I don't smoke, and, even though I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease seven years ago, there are still very few foods I would sell my soul to Satan to be able to eat. Except maybe Oreos, but I digress.
I also know my limits. During the week it's one glass, and I generally stick to a two-glass limit on weekends.I used to feel guilty about opening a bottle during the week until I realized that a weeknight glass of wine is relatively harmless. It improves my mood, and it really can help take the edge off of a particularly tough day. In other words, a good glass of wine is a substitution for a good whine.
As "bad habits" go, this one seems relatively minor. So while everyone else struggles to keep up with their New Year's resolutions to banish those bad habits, I think I will let this one slide.
If you pop in on a weeknight and see me with a glass, don't judge. I'm just having a little whine.
