A Dear Friend

This unusually hot weather has clearly got the caring sharing nature out of me. Nope. Not really. I just thought I could convince myself otherwise.

An interesting article in the Guardian (I think) this morning suggesting that coffee is quite beneficial for the liver and prevents damage to it by alchohol. That makes very dangerous reading for some people. A licence to drink more or drink more and more.

I have a dear close friend of mine who I think is the most amazing bloke I know. Kind, witty and an extremely good sense of humour, oh and very well travelled. Without his friendship would be a tragedy without a doubt. He likes a drink. He is famed for his ability to appear sober when one is clearly not and on many occasion have I enjoyed humorous and deeply intellectual conversation throughout the many stages of drunkeness. This friend of mine manages to have the knack of living on coffee, cigarettes and booze, and it is a very rare occassion that he eats. For him its more of an obligation. He shrivels at the very mention of water.

So this article in the newspaper (actually pointed out on the Wright Stuff) horrified me. To the many out there that struggle to keep a lid on drinking and as is the case with this country, pointed out numerous times about the binge drinking culture that is all too common, why on earth would this article be of any use to anyone desperately trying to kick the habit or at least bring it under some control ? Of course for the sensible drinker it would clearly be a benefit. But I'm being selfish here. I worry about my friend. I hope to God that he doesn't see the article. I would like to think that he's going to be around a great deal longer. Cut down. Please.