A Sober Halloween

Cold open Look how gross it looks. Oh, it's delicious. Is it? Is it really? Mm-hmm. Ew, ew. What is it? You should've done that on the air. Oh, my God, it's filled with something. Yeah, it squirts right in your mouth. The Poison Apple mocktail Hey, guys. Welcome to another episode of VDTPT the podcast with Angie and Dave. Um, last week we took uh, sobriety journey to the tailgate, and so part of what we'll tell you today is just a little bit of, uh, what it was like being there sober, especially Dave's first time. And then the rest of today we're gonna talk about kinda the holidays that are starting to come. And believe it or not, Halloween is a huge kind of boozy holiday now. Um, I think it's actually the fifth drunkest holiday. Um, so you've got New Year's, St. Paddy's Day, July 4th, and there's one other that I'm missing. But Halloween came in tied with Cinco de Mayo, if you care. So what we're gonna do is we're gonna drink a poison apple today. We're going with the Halloween theme. So guys, I'm gonna try and make this live on the air. I'm not totally sure, but I'm just gonna go with it. The first thing you need to do is get your glasses Okay, Dave, look a little bit more confident I'm not at all, but we'll see what happens. This is to dip our, our drinks in, okay, for the little surprise. And this is what I was thinking I would do. What if we did that? No? Do whatever... This is your thing. That's a good idea. Hey. That's a good idea. I'm just saying, like, you're supposed to have some on the... I- Finish room temp I know, this is not the- You gotta put sprinkles on it You guys are supposed to dip this, but I don't have an extra plate. Yeah, you gotta put sprinkles. I got 'em. Okay. I got 'em. Okay. No, the bottle sprinkles. Got it. Got it. Got it. Okay. That was the hard part, people. Here we go. We're dipping it. Ooh. Ooh. Ooh. That was so worth it. Look how pretty that is. I actually am glad that we figured that out. Um, you're... Get the ice ready. The first thing you're gonna do is grenadine. So everything that I'm pouring, it's just three, three drinks, and they all get a third, so nothing crazy or complicated. This goes in the bottom. It's supposed to eventually be layers. I don't know if we're gonna have time for that today. Ooh. Um, could you put in, like, three ice cubes per drink? Where's my cup at? Where is your cup? Oh my God, I forgot Kevin's cup. Is yours three or two? Let's go two. Yeah, it doesn't matter. We can set that thing up. Here, you're fine. He's gonna need a little bit more. God, I can't believe I forgot Kevin. That's so rude. All right, so you've got the grenadine. Next comes in the apple juice. Oh, Dave, I'm actually gonna give you a really important job today. All right. You're the eyeballs, okay? Uh, the second drink is apple juice or apple cider, whatever you prefer. Okay. I'll get a little more there. Okay. And then the final ingredient, I actually don't know if ginger beer is the same thing as ginger ale, so I just got ginger ale, but they called for ginger beer. I don't- Ginger beer, you can just diet ginger beer or regular- Oh ginger beer. It's- Well- way more gingery. Oh, this looks pretty. Are you not impressed? No, I am. It's gorgeous. Okay, you know what goes in last. The balls? The eyeballs. Right. Show them. Yeah. Oh, you have to take it out of that thing. Oh. Well, this is where you, you throw me for a loop. Oh, Dave. I don't know. Take it out. Sorry. Oh, shoot. I don't know how to open this. About to one. Got it? All right. They smell good. Ooh, these are nice eyeballs. Ooh. Can you eat these? Ooh. Yeah, they're candy. Oh my gosh, I'm so impressed. Kevin needs one. Yeah, I'll grab it. Okay, guys, we're finally gonna taste them. I'm sorry you had to sit through, uh, a little bit of a awkward making the drink. We didn't know the eyeballs were wrapped in plastic, or I did, but I forgot. Um, Kevin, give that to Kev, and then we're gonna cheers in a sec and taste this. man, Dave. Sure. Thanks, brother. It kind of looks like a hard-boiled egg. It does. I love hard-boiled eggs. All right, so what are we gonna taste, uh, toast to today? We're gonna do our real cheers to that later for sobriety dates, but... Uh, let's toast to your creativity on coming up with this drink. Oh. Hey. Yeah. I didn't wanna toot my own horn. Cheers. Cheers, Kev. Cheers. Like, I guess there's nothing not to like, right? It's a sweet- But it's just very s- refreshing, cold drink. Let's- Is there, is there liquor in this? Not liquor, but is there the fake liquor? No, just maybe the grenadine could be considered that. So, no. Like, if you do just, like, look up a mocktail recipe book, they do 'em without non-alcoholic drinks. Oh. It's just, like- It's very delicious it's a drink without the NA stuff- Mm-hmm for some of the cocktail ones. So- Okay um, one, on a scale of one to five, would you have this at a Halloween party? I'm gonna put some of that fake rum in there. Okay. Could be a little more cocktail. Oh, we should have brought it. Should have brought it. Kev, what do you think? Uh, with real liquor, that's a five for me. Really? Oh, we should have brought real liquor for Kevin. Yeah, real liquor, that's, that's right up- Kevin knows where the liquor store is those are my kind of drinks. Okay, so we got high regards from Kev. And I'm gonna say, I'm gonna give it a four. Uh, it's- Me too really sweet. Yeah. I'll give it a three. It's refreshing. Um, lots of sugar when you eat. Yeah. All right, we're gonna get into Halloween on the next segment. Oh, boo. Dave's sober tailgate review Okay, Dave. So this is what we've all been waiting for, your review of a sober tailgate. So give me your thoughts. Okay, first of all, my thoughts are thank you for the, the shirt. Aw. Angie did our, our Halloween-themed shirts, which is why my shoes do not match my shirt, which is really bothering me. I know it is. But that's okay. I'm in the spirit of things. Um, so yeah, we went to the tailgate this weekend. Um, I... You were correct in that I was making it out to be way more than it was going to be. Mm-hmm. So, as I always do, I- You wrote those thoughts already wrote some, wrote some thoughts down. And also, just as a reminder, this was with both sides of our family, so- Well, we didn't really tailgate with my family No, they weren't there for the tailgating, but- But they, they were there at the game but we did have a whole bunch of family was at the game. The tailgate was primarily just my family. Right. So let me preface by saying, um, this whole tailgate situation, like, started behind the eight ball from the get-go because it, my whole... You know I'm very routine, regimented. Mm-hmm. Um, so it threw my whole weekend off, right? Go into it. Well, no, I couldn't get my hair cut on Saturday. I get my hair... You know I get my hair cut- Mm-hmm at 8:00 every Saturday morning. You are a routine guy. That's like my therapy. Yeah. Like, my 20 minutes in that chair, like, I look forward to it every week. Mm-hmm. Um, so that was out the window, and then I had to do the grocery store on Sunday. Anyway. Yeah, it messed everything up. It, it just messed everything up. Not a fan to begin with. Okay. Okay. So I'll go in order here. I don't know, why I just wrote these down. I have no- Well, let me ask you one question- Sure before you go. Did you feel like drinking at any point during the tailgate? No, not even close. You didn't even think about it? Nope. All right, go. Uh, no. No, no, I didn't think about it. No, I just wanna know because- And, and, and the reason I, I think I didn't think about it was because I was having non-alcoholic beers- Yeah which we've established is one of my coping mechanisms. Now, you drink non-alcoholic beverages. I just drink Diet Coke. Right. Just 'cause I didn't like the taste of that that much. So the first thing I have is, uh, no one cared that I wasn't drinking. I said that to you. Yeah, I think except me. I was the only one that noticed it. Yep. Um, um, I did... I don't know if someone said to or if I just did it on my own. I went and got the fake rum. Um, and then- I feel like I told you to go get it 'cause we wanted your dad to taste it You said did, you said, "Did you have it?" No, your dad was there. Oh, my dad. My dad wasn't at the tailgate, but- Oh, yeah, my dad's there. That turned into a thing when I went to get it because I've, because it actually looks so much like a bottle of liquor. Yeah. Um, like, I think your dad even said, "Look, you better be careful with that, you know, if you're doing the podcast." Yeah, I did kinda- And I was like, "Well, it's, it's non-alcoholic," which tells me he doesn't watch the podcast. Right. Um, but, but that, like... So all of a sudden it was like the spotlight was on me and, and- Because it looked like a real bottle and then I'm, "Well, no, it's not alcoholic." "What do you mean?" "It's 0%..." And, and it was turned into a whole thing that I didn't need to try and do. That you didn't want to. Right. I wanted to inconspicuously just- And then it became focused on Dave not, yeah get a drink. Right, and then it became a thing. It, which, whatever, in the grand scheme of things, that's nothing. I was surprised, like, people actually wanted to taste it. Yeah, yeah. Your, your mom tasted it. I would've never wanted to taste- Yeah, your mom tasted it non-alcoholic drinks- Yeah, yeah if I wasn't sober. Everyone agreed that, that they wouldn't know the difference- Yeah um, i- if they didn't know, so. Yep. So yeah, that's the first thing. No one cared that I wasn't drinking, so that, that was fine. Um, so the... First of all, this whole thing, it, this whole- I love how you're being very careful Because this whole thing may just come down to, and I'm not blowing anyone's mind here, I might just be an asshole. It might just be me. It is. Probably. It probably is. Probably. So I got nothing out of it. I didn't g- and I don't know what I'm suppo- I was supposed to get out of it. I can't s- it was a thing. It wasn't fun. It wasn't not fun. It was just a thing. That, to me it sounds like you kinda got through it. Got through it. It literally didn't affect me one bit. Yeah. If we didn't tailgate, I wouldn't have cared. If we stayed for an extra hour at the tailgate, I wouldn't have cared. Yeah. It was not a thing for me. And I- Can we also clarify that I know you guys are probably thinking, like, you know, Big 10 tailgates and stuff like that. It was a, you know, it's a, it's a smaller school, so it was on a smaller scale. Right. And you're, you're kinda going to where my next point is going, to where it, it was like we were in one of our backyards. Yeah. Because it was all family. Yeah. Like, it was people that- Yeah, yeah, that you know I, we see regularly. We weren't really, there wasn't really a lot of mingling before. Yeah. It, it, there was, I mean, it was just a bunch of family members th- that we see all the time, uh, sitting around. Uh, and, and the God, I'm, I, I think it is me. I'm just an asshole. The conversation, it, it just seemed, it was just, like, noise. And I know that sounds really bad, and so let me just give you an example. Maybe this, this will make more sense. Um, my sister sent me a text, and, and I, I don't know, I don't know if it was serious or not. She's like, "How, how are, how are you doing at the tailgate? Are you getting through the tailgate? Have you gotten the, um, frum?" We were calling it frum, fake frum. And I said, "Ha ha. No." Whatever. Um, and she said s- uh, I said something like, "You know, the conversation is just like noise to me. I'm just kinda, not irritated, but whatever." I forget how I phrased it. And she said she said, "People talking, yeah." She said, "For a recluse, that would be kind of off-putting." Mm. And I was like, she's joking, but not, because I kind of am, but by choice. And so my next point was just that most of the time that I was there, I was just thinking about I wish I was- At home? at home. Hm. Not that I didn't wish I didn't go. See, it's so hard to explain. I, it's not that I wish I didn't go. It's just- Was it just, like- I, maybe it was a letdown. Maybe I was expecting it to be more of a thing. Um Was it just, um Like, I don't know how to explain this, but, like, when I did go to therapy, like, all around, like, quitting drinking and stuff like that, she always told me that my personality, like, had trouble living in the gray, where it was just- Maybe nothing's, nothing super awesome going on, nothing super horrible going on. Most of your life you live in this, like, gray area, and it's boring somewhat. Yeah. You know? Like- It was just, it was just there. Yeah. Um Well, that kinda sucks. You had fun. So here's the, I'm such a dichotomous person. I the best part for me was the drive, driving there, to and back. And this is the, the, the dichotomous part. I hate driving. I hate driving. That was the best part for me. Why? 'Cause you don't have to talk to anyone and you can just, like- Because maybe, because- zone out? No, but we did talk a little bit. Yeah. The music's going, and, uh, I, I don't know. Um- So Rory really likes driving too. Some people like driving. Like, I hate it. I hate driving, which is why- Well- I'm surprised that was the best part for me. Hm. Um, so yeah. Well, obviously Kathy and I were in the car. Well, yeah. That, such a plus. Um, but yeah, the conversation, the music, uh, Sammy was there. Um, you know, getting to the tailgate, you know, we parked. We went in. Um, I, I think I stood around for a little bit, um, before I finally went and got an NA, uh, beer. Um, I think at one point you were sitting next to me, and you, I think you just reamed over and you just, like, hit my leg, and I don't know if that was like a, "You still with us?" Or- "Hey, hello." I don't know. Maybe I was zoning out. But, um, so it was fine. I got through it. Wasn't a big deal. I wasn't triggered. I was not, like, craving a beer. Did you think there was a lot of drinking, not at the tailgate, but at the game? I saw a lot of people walking by with beers. I was gonna say, the thing that I did notice, and I don't know if it's just 'cause I'm, like, an alcoholic person, I watch what everyone's carrying. Yeah. I don't know why. I do too. Like, I still- And I didn't, and I didn't see a lot of people walking by with just one. They all had the Seagull beer. Wasn't everyone drinking it? The Seagull beer, two at a time. Yep. Yeah. Yep, yep. Um- I did. That's, like, the, that is, like, something that I focus on a little. I don't know why. Well, I know why, but. Yeah. So, you know, and the game was cool. Um, that, that was fun to watch. Um, didn't really matter to me. You know, Brian was playing for Montclair. Uh, Tyler was playing for, um, Salisbury. My, my whole thing was I, it, I wish it would've ended in a tie and no one got hurt. Yeah. I'd have been perfectly fine with it. I'm happy no one got hurt. The, the outcome of the game really didn't affect me, but it was cool to watch the game. Um, you know, and yeah, like we said, it, it wasn't a lot of time with my family, though. They got there a little, um, late as we were, we went into our seats a little early, and it just kinda- And it was pretty, like, crowded sitting. Yeah. The timing didn't really match up and, um But it was nice. Like, I got to sit with my parents. I sat with my dad and, you know, sat next to my mom. Yeah. And, you know, we had some good conversation. Like, I mean, as good a conversation as you can have at a football game. But, um- Yeah, it was good Do you think they were, I don't wanna say, like, watching you, but, like, did you feel like they were checking that you didn't have alcohol? Like- No when you were, like... Not checking. I, no. I don't mean, like, like a nag, but, like, just people are trying to, like, figure out, like, "Okay, this is really what's happening. This is real." I don't think so, because I think it's been long enough. Yeah. And I've been out to dinner and lunch with them enough and had, uh, non-alcoholic beers. Yeah. And they've drank around me. That is so, yeah. They, they've had drinks- It's, okay and I haven't. And so I, I think we are... I am at that point where it's not that big a deal. Um, literally no one cares at this point. Um, it's really not a thing, which is good. Um, so yeah, I, I really... I don't even have, like, a rating for the tailgate. It was kind of a big nothing burger for me. I don't- A big nothing burger. Yeah. It's just, I don't know if maybe I had it in my head that it was gonna be a bigger thing than it was. Maybe it's a good thing that it wasn't. Um, yeah, it, it was just, I mean, it was definitely, like, a pretty uneventful tailgate as far as, like, what was going on and- Yeah. I mean, we were sitting around and... I was eating seven-layer dip and stuff like that. It wasn't seven-layer dip 'cause there wasn't black olives. I will die on that hill. Um, I will shoot you on that hill 'cause I hate olives. Well, that's ridiculous. Okay. Well, no olives. Well. So, all right. So overall you hyped it up a lot. Hyped it up a lot. I was not triggered to drink. But the part that- Had I been around more of, like, friends, like high school friends- Yeah, yeah or if I had gone with a buddy, like, to the West Virginia game, that probably would've been- Would've been harder way different, way harder. Um- Well, you know what I was thinking, so let's say that there was eight or nine of us at the tailgate part. I think only two people were, or maybe Brian, three, maybe... So I'm saying it was a small percentage of our group. Yeah. It wasn't... Yeah, no one was passing around shots. I mean, no, there weren't- No, like- like, bottles flying around my mom doesn't drink anymore. Um, I don't drink. I don't think Cathy drank. Yeah, it was not a huge drink fest at all. Yeah. So I think that helped. All right. Well, keep- I would do it again, I guess. I, I... It just really bothered me that it was, that my Saturday, my whole weekend was screwed up. I do think it would be harder for you, like, if you went to, like, an Eagles game and had to tailgate there. Sure. Yeah. Well, I, I mean, I would never- Do that? I didn't enjoy going to those things- Yeah when I was drinking. I, I, I just don't particularly like drunk morons, so. So the bottom line is it wasn't that big of a deal, although you didn't have that much fun there, which I, I do... We'll talk about it not today, 'cause we're gonna jump into Halloween, but I think there is, like, that recluse part of you that- Sure protects you, and I think that'll unfold, like- Yeah as you- I just, I, I would al- I would pr- I was so jealous of Mike 'cause I know he was just sitting home watching- watching football. I'm not jealous of the day he had with his teams, but, um, yeah, I just, I, I would've just rather been at home. But I'm not, I'm not unhappy or mad that I went. I was happy to go. I was happy to drive. Um, all was not lost. We got home in time to watch. I mean, Sammy, all she wanted to do was watch the Ole Miss game, so. All righty. Well, we're gonna end this. Cheers. Final cheers- Cheers to this, and then we're gonna jump into Halloween Halloween and the holidays All right. So let's jump into the topic for today, which is really around Halloween, and it's kind of like the end of, uh, Sober October. But it's also a time where we're about to get real heavy into, like, the holidays, and parties, and alcohol events, and things like that. And, you know, Halloween has really turned into, like, a boozy Halloween for the parents. Um, you've got dads that are pulling coolers alongside with walking their kids. Um, you've got houses. When I was in Tampa, um, and I had... At the time, my kids were, like, two, four, and maybe e- 12. Um, we always, every Halloween, 'cause we had a big porch, was all decorated, but we would have the, like, pre-Halloween party dinner where we ordered, you know, pizza or whatever. People brought chips, all that stuff. And then the adults were just drinking. And, like, for me, Halloween was just like, oh, I can pretty much party and... Not party, but I can drink whatever I want and nobody's gonna say anything on Halloween, basically, is kind of like how I think. Yeah, pizza, pizza must be the thing, 'cause that's what we used to do. Um, we used to get pizza and w- we would... I would be drinking beer on, on, uh, at night anyway. But, but that... When, when the nephews were smaller, when they were young, they would come over and we would all- we would do pizza. Yep. Um, you know, I'd be drinking the whole time, obviously. And then, um, we always just did... I remember taking Sammy and them, uh, around the neighborhood. We just old-schooled it with a red Solo cup. I would just carry my beer in that. I wasn't- But, like, do you agree that it's a drinking night for parents? Oh, yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Because I would always... I would, I would have a beer- Anywhere I've been in any city state- So- that's been like- I, I, so I live in a townhouse, and I'm good friends with, with our neighbor right next door. And, um, you know, we would be drinking beer, and then I would always have, like, a bourbon and diet, uh, behind. Mm-hmm. Like, we would have, like, moms on the stoop or whatever. I would have a bourbon and diet back there or right inside the door. Um, yeah, and I would always ask parents when, when they came by with their kids, "Do you want a beer?" There would be houses that would have Jell-O shots for the kids. Yeah, I would, I would always ask parents. Like I would always ask them if they wanted a beer. I'm not kidding you. E- every, like, always there was stuff like that. Yeah. Um, yeah, it... I, I don't really notice it that much, probably because I was doing it. Um- I was totally the one doing it. I mean- Yeah I guess also, like, 'cause we're a little bit older now, but, like, think about Halloween in, like, a college town. So, like- Yeah there are some... Both of my girls are in college. You guys know that, a sophomore and a senior. Um, there are some massive college parties. I think the biggest one is University of Ohio. It's called, like, Athens. It, it's some real crazy huge thing. University of O- uh, Bobcats? Yes. Yes. Go Bobcats. I didn't know it, but it was something like that. And then New York, the Village parade is, like, the biggest adult one. Yeah, I remember when I was living in Maryland or, like, up around Baltimore in Reisterstown and Owings Mills, it was, um, Fells Point was always the place to go. Mm-hmm. Down, down by the harbor. Down, downtown Baltimore, Fells Point was where everyone went. So in the college scene, they started Halloween parties last weekend, and then they're finishing up with them this weekend. But my daughter had to get four, four Halloween costumes. She went to one party and wore... She, she used two last weekend, and she's using two this weekend. So, um, and they were Batgirl and Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, so. Those are the two I knew about. What are the other two? I don't know. It's this weekend. I haven't seen them. But anyways, like, for college, it's huge. For adults, just in general, it's huge. Um, and then the other thing, um, that I was thinking is it kind of just, like, for me, once Halloween happened and then you're into November, it's almost, like, where you just start the holidays. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. So think about this, and, um, literally just came to me. Uh, I got out of treatment, so I went in October 4th. I got out, like, November... Like I said, the 30th, November 4th or 5th. I think I got out Halloween. Just in time for the holidays. Ju- I just missed Halloween. I think I got out for Halloween. Um, which was fine, but, I mean- And I think we came to your house. Sure. I don't know. Um, but yeah, jumped right into, like, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New um, all that stuff. And I don't remember it being particularly difficult because I think I was still in the, the right mind frame. I think I was still thinking about doing fucking yoga at that point. Um, like, I was still in, in that zone. Yeah. But, uh, so it wasn't that big a deal, but it could've been. It, it could've been a big time, uh, setback. So just the holidays, and we're coming up on Thanksgiving, I'm not gonna get into, like, all the detail, but that's by far my worst relapse, was that first Thanksgiving after I got out of treatment. And I ended up having friends from rehab come with me. We ended up drinking, which I wasn't... You know, I just got out of rehab, but we were drinking at the- So- dinner were, they were just in rehab with you? Mm-hmm. Had they already relapsed? I think so. Or did everyone do it for the first time? No, I think, I think for... I was the only one that hadn't yet. Or the other person had already drank. So, like, that's kind of what I was trying to say in some earlier episodes where rehab is great, but it also introduces you to a lot of people- They're as fucked up as you are that are going to end up drinking again- Yeah because the relapse rate is so high. So you're almost giving yourself a cast of characters. Um, but that's why, like, still to this day, I know, like, 'cause I'm sober and I should feel, like, you know, good about myself, but that's, like, one that I still cringe. I remember my mom being so upset. I remember her when I was leaving, 'cause we were drunk, they asked us to leave, and I remember my mom was like, "You have to take your pie." And she, like, gives me this whole pumpkin pie, you know. You can imagine, take stuff while you're leaving. And as soon as I stepped outside, I fell and dropped it. So no pumpkin pie, no family members. Uh, we left the next day. It was horrible. It wa- it was a bad situation. Um, and so for a lot of people, like, I know we're having mocktails and kind of laughing about tailgates and stuff, but, like, this is a really hard time for people that are sober, especially people that are just trying to get sober. Like you said, trying to get sober around the holidays- Yeah, hard is hard. Um, unless you're a total recluse. So, like, are you worried about the holidays coming up at all? Nope. Nope? Not at all. But you're also not going to the family stuff. No. So. Nope. No, I'm, I, I'm still in that if it's not broke, don't fix it. Yeah. I, you know, see what happens, but, you know, in, in years to come, but nope, not this year. Still not doing it. I think, like, just the things that I would think through if I was going somewhere and I was nervous about the holidays, like, if I was really anxious about going to a Thanksgiving, it's just kind of some of those basic things we've talked about before. Like, the drink in your hand is such a good one. If I was carrying this, no one would ever... Look how pretty it is. Yeah. Nobody's gonna say anything. But, you know, here's the thing. It's, it, the drinking, it has nothing to do with drinking. It's just, I wouldn't have a good time. But that's the whole thing. It never really had to do with drinking. You're drinking 'cause you're uncomfortable in your skin. Yeah. I just know that if I went, I wouldn't have a good time. And I, I, and I don't want anyone else to feel like they can't have a good time, and I'd rather just know where, where I stand a- and- So the, the- do what they want the best option if you're nervous is not to go. You can always not go, right? Even if it's Thanksgiving. Even if it's Christmas. Um, just- Trust me, the holiday is still gonna go on without you. Right. You're not that important. Well, one really good thing is just go for an hour. And you have, like, no one's gonna criticize you 'cause you didn't go. Yeah. They might say you're boring and not fun anymore. You only stayed an hour. But, like, at the end of the day, you, you need to feel good about your holiday, right? Like, it's a holiday for you, too, even if you don't, like, really wanna celebrate it. Um, it's, it's not worth going somewhere that you're gonna feel like shit, especially if it's family and that is a real big trigger for you. I think it's okay to miss big events. Um, and I think you should. Um, the other one about having a dr- a drink in your hand, and then I always would have your car. Yeah, I was gonna say that's a good one. Always have your car. Like, if you only wanna go for, like, an hour, you have a house. Never drive with people- Yeah because that's where you get stuck. Yeah. So I think if you had a drink in your hand, you maybe did a finite time, like an hour or two hours, whatever it is, and then you have your own car, successful. Yeah, not for me. I'd rather be home. Sorry. Catch of the Day and Cheers to That Okay, it's our favorite part. It's time for Catch of the Day. So we're gonna pick a question. We don't know any of these, uh, questions, and- I'm just excited we have an actual fishbowl for Catch of the Day Oh, by the way, and it's glass. Um, so anyways- That'll be broken here shortly Dave's gonna pick it today, and he's gonna answer it first. Yes, it might get broken. Um, and then I'll answer it second. So also remember you have one veto power if you don't wanna answer. Well, if you gonna shake it, I'm gonna grab my one. Should say that at the strip club. If you're gonna shake it, I'm gonna grab my one. All right. Got it? Do I have one? Okay. Read us the question. Oof. Is there anything that while in active addiction you considered normal that shocks you today? Is there anything that while you were in active addiction you considered normal that shocks you today? The first thing, yeah, you... The first thing I'm thinking of, I don't know, is, like, buying and drinking alcohol, like, at 6:00 in the morning. Um, that was happening at the end for me, and that's not normal. Okay. Um, what about you? So I would say, um, I, because it was all I knew, I thought it was normal to drink every day. I thought everyone got home from work and had a couple beers and finished the night with a bourbon or a liquor. I thought that was normal. I thought it was normal, too. Um, now for someone, if someone were to come to me now and say, "Yeah, I have like five beers a night and have like three bourbons before I go to bed," um- Every day because I did it, that wouldn't shock me, but I can understand it, but, like, that's not normal. Like, the volume of alcohol we were drinking, or I was drinking- Yeah, and like, um- is, is normal at the time, right? Like- Yeah. And, like, and it, so I always had a standing rule for myself, like, any time you're in a store that sells beer, you, you buy it. In case you run out. Yeah, just to have. Yeah. Like, why would, for me, like, why would you go into a store that sells beer and not just grab beer while you're there? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Didn't everybody do that? Mm-hmm. I don't know. That, you know, that would, uh, it, it would shock me that people don't do that. I think, too, like, the other thing I think of is, like, it was normal for me to, like, feel bad in the morning. Like- Mm-hmm I just, like, thought everyone kinda had to go through their day like that, you know? Like- Right. So it shocks you to wake up feeling so, so good. I, I remember vividly the first time I got a headache when I was sober, and it sucked. Mm. And I was the biggest baby. Mm. And I had not had any discomfort since I quit drinking, let's say it was two years, I don't know, whatever, or a year. That was really, like, I remember being like, oh, my God, it's just a headache, and that is, like, causing me a lot of problems. And to think what I used to do with my body- Yeah and the amount of alcohol, and I'm sure I woke up with a splitting headache, and it was just normal. Yeah, it didn't seem like that big a deal, 'cause you were just so used to it. And then going to work hungover. That's another thing you do in active addiction that I thought, yeah, some people just go to work hungover. It's normal. And all that stuff isn't really normal- Mm when you stop drinking and think about it. All right. Anything else you would add? No, I'm just thinking about, like, just any time you, like, go out to dinner or go out to lunch, like, I, I would, it would never occur to me to not get a beer- Drink or an alcoholic beverage. Um- So remember- So it would sho- it would, shocks me when people don't do that. Just unless you're i- in recovery or, or, or purposely trying to not drink alcohol, it would shock me that someone would go to dinner and not have a beer. Okay, me too. And then remember when I told you, I remember in early recovery I was in Tampa, and I went to a birthday party for a one-year-old. Yeah. Could not- Yeah fathom there was no cooler of alcohol. Yep. And I remember being like, "What the fuck?" Yeah. There's no alcohol. How are these people my friends? Yeah. So anyways, that's a good question, though. That's a good question. Keep 'em coming. Um, keep 'em coming. Um, and now let's go into our final segment, which is Cheers to That. Um, so normally, guys, we wanna celebrate, um, sobriety dates, anniversary dates. Send them in if you have them. Um, what are we cheering to today, Dave? So we are gonna cheer today, I don't know if anyone saw my Instagram, um, I posted the link in my bio, 'cause that's the only way you can post a link on Instagram. Um- I also put it on Facebook. But I, um, I, uh, so we have a new website. Um, VDTPT.com is the new official website of, um, VDTPT, the podcast with Angie and Dave. Let's not forget the whole reason behind this is you wrote a book. I wrote a book. Right? It's on there. So there's links, there's a link to, to buy the book. All of our episodes, um, a- are up there with little clips, uh, from each episode. Um, you can watch them on the website. You can just listen to them on the website. Um, and I don't want to make this guy's ego- any larger than it already is. Kevin did a fantastic job with the new website. Thank you. Thank you. Kev. So we are going to cheers to Kevin and the new website. Check it out, VDTPT.com. My pleasure. Cheers. Thank you, Kevin. You're welcome. Thank you, Kev. After the show Yeah, we're gonna eat the balls. Ew. Y'all eat ba- ew, look how he's eating the balls. Ew, ew. Look how gross it looks. Oh, it's delicious. Is it? Is it really? Mm-hmm. Ew, ew. What is it? You should've done that on the air. Oh, my God, it's filled with something. Yeah, it squirts right in your mouth. Do you eat it?