A New Year with no beer

It's 2013 and it's my new year without drinking. Let's see, since my last post I have experienced the birth of our second daughter, my 43rd birthday Christmas, and New Year's Eve. Anyone who knows me knows I love beer: making it and I love drinking it. I think the hardest time not drinking was the holidays especially with family and friends because drinking beer is part of how I celebrate. This year is about showing that it's not the only way I celebrate and so far it's going pretty well. I will admit it was very hard to miss out on the end of the world beers for 12.12.12 and some of the special releases for the holidays that I missed but there will be different beers for different times later.
Over the years I've heard alcoholic friends in recovery talk about the experience right after they stop drinking. Like they got more energy, how much better they felt and just in general that their life was better. I'm happy to report that I didn't experience those things, So I think that just means that I was not drinking that much.
One of the great things about taking a year off from drinking is that I have received some great gifts of beer to age. For those that don't know, some beer does age very well. And anticipation will make it taste even better. My name is Wally and this is day 130 of my year of living sober.