Paul Kelly – Drinking

Paul writes "The best description of a hangover I've ever read is by Kingsley Amis in his novel Lucky Jim.

'Dixon was alive again. Consciousness was upon him before he could get out of the way; not for him the slow, gracious wandering from the halls of sleep, but a summary, forcible ejection. He lay sprawled, too wicked to move, spewed up like a broken spider-crab on the tarry shingle of the morning…'

Poor Dixon. I've felt like him and I never want to feel like that again. But I'm a drinker. For me it is one of the great pleasures of life. A glass of wine or two with dinner, the first beer after hard physical work or sport, a dark ale and a whisky on a cold night. The beaded bubbles winking at the brim of the glass on the surf club balcony looking out over the sea. A little buzz on. The camaraderie of family and friends. Farewells and welcomes and ceremonies."