Closing Time
“Closing time, open all the doors and let you out into the world
Closing time, turn all of the lights on over every boy and every girl
Closing time, one last call for alcohol, so finish your whiskey or beer
Closing time, you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here”
Alcohol has always played a big part in my life — not always good, not always bad, but definitely… involved. I love the taste, I love the social aspect, I love the whole vibe of it. I NEVER set out to get drunk, but somehow that was usually the result.
When I met my husband, drinking was just part of our thing. It’s how we had fun and opened up to each other. And then COVID hit and we were all working from home, and suddenly it was part of our everyday thing. Bailey’s in the coffee. Happy hour starting at 3 p.m. Summers full of hot days and Labatt Blue Grapefruit Shandys. My favorite Old Fashioned on the rocks with extra fruit — my mouth is literally watering just typing this.
But of course, it caused its fair share of problems. Enough that I had to start paying attention to how much and how often I/we were drinking. A few years ago, we started doing Dry January. And honestly? It was not a hassle for us. The first year we actually went 108 days without drinking. Dry Q1 if you will.
And here’s the thing: I thought I’d feel something. Better sleep, clearer skin, weight loss, glowing from the inside out — all the things people swear happen when they stop drinking.
For those 108 days? I didn’t notice a single thing. In the words of Stephanie Tanner: How rude.
Then spring and summer rolled in and we went right back to cocktails. Floating in our “drinking pool,” sipping Deep Eddy’s citrus spirits — some of the most dangerously drinkable things on earth when the days are hot and long. It’s embarrassingly easy to get carried away. Around mid‑July we decided to dry out again, and for the rest of the summer we cut alcohol completely. Still no noticeable improvements, but I was trying.
The following year we just did Dry January. Nothing extra, because why do more if there were no additional benefits. The year was fine. We were more aware, more intentional, and didn’t let things get out of hand.
Then mid‑December 2024 hit, and my social algorithm suddenly decided I needed to see every sobriety video on the internet. People going longer than a month, longer than 90 days… some going a whole year. One creator stood out: MissKat (@katieflorence). Her backstory wasn’t exactly mine, but there were enough similarities that I paid attention. She talked about her dry year as a test of respecting her own boundaries — proving she could honor the limits she set for herself.
That hit me. Like… hit me.
I started thinking: Could that be me?
I floated the idea past my husband, my family, my friends. Their reactions were all basically the same: “That could never be me.” (Me being them.)
Good thing I wasn’t asking them.
I didn’t even ask Bryan to do it with me. I just told him what I was thinking. He winced — understandably — but eventually he bought in. And so we set off on this journey together.