Drinking Diaries: Time keeps on slip’n slip’n slip’n into the future.

Slip’n forward, indeed. Whether it “seems” to be going fast or slow, it is definitely ticking away. There is no stopping time, although, sometimes it “seems” like time has stopped for a moment or a “spell” when we are under some sort of spell of time, sometimes euphoric, sometimes horrific.

Time is time. It doesn’t race for sufferers nor does it slow for pleasure seekers. Time doesn’t discriminate, it doesn’t change it’s cadence for no one. Not for the lovers in room 212 having “only” an hour to embrace and express their passions. Not for the girl getting raped in room 213 having to struggle a “whole” hour against her perpetrator. Time shows no preferences, no mercy. “We spend all our time making money, but we can’t spend all our money making time”. There’s no saving it or buying it. It’s more valuable then money. It’s the most valuable commodity we have. How you spend your time is how you spend your life, your love, your every thing. Spending time with someone or something is how you show your love. Funny, how the word “spend” is used with time, but it is more associated with “money”. But wait… This story isn’t about money so I’ll move onto the real topic. Alcohol. Ha, here we go again. How in the hell do we always end up here? Well, here is how. Alcohol changes our relationship to time. It quickens our perceived perception of time, or it slows it. It definitely alters how fast or how slow it “SEEMS” like time is moving. Here is an example. You’re at a party and you look at your watch and it’s 11p.m. You get another drink, you talk to someone and look again and it’s 1:15a.m. you think “OMG where did that time go?”. Next day, you have church, or an appointment or something where alcohol is not offered from 11a.m.-to- let’s just say 1:15p.m (same amount of time) (and there is a slight hangover in your head) and you look at your watch 10 times because now time is slow, it “seems” like forever. Now, granted, all this could be the same without alcohol involved and still have the same perceived slowing and quickening affect due to the nature of the activity. But, I am seeing a pattern with the desire to hurry time or catch it in our net with regard to using…. Using alcohol. When we drink we dull our experience of time. Drinking dulls details anyway so this is no surprise. If times are hard or you fell on “hard time” then to drink would seem to “quicken” or “soften” that time. Waiting for something seems less of a strain if we have a drink. It quickens the wait, not really, but feels like it. If having to go through a “rough time” gives some folks an excuse or reason to drink, then here is the rub. It’s not a painkiller, it’s a pain “post-poner”. Alcohol gives the feeling of “fast forwarding” to better times, time where pain won’t be there. Unfortunately, pain is waiting at the exit, it is like roll-over minutes, it just keeps building up waiting for it get a turn. Then when time finally slows to the screeching halt………. “hello there” says pain, suffering, depression “I have been waiting here for you, can I have a moment of your time?” Then the whole cycle begins again, building more momentum until it crashes. We “crash” and not like in the good, sleepy kinda crash. We can spend all our time trying to rearrange time so we don’t have to feel things or experience life….. and then there is no time left for the happy life we are trying to live. Speaking of happy.

The hour approaching “happy hour” is a rushed, “pushed hour” trying to get to perceived “happy” then that “happy-ish” feeling is crunched and dulled and never enough so more hour needs to be applied and not more happy comes or if it does (looks like I was happy in pictures) those moments are so blurry that it’s ultimately undecided whether I was, in fact, happy.

If you are considering changing “this time” reach out.

Time flies, time slips, time is of the essence, time is on our side, this time, that time, when? Now.

I hope your time reading this was well spent.

Raven Yoga Wednesday 12p.m and Sundays 4:15p.m