Ireland has a terrible drinking culture, and by Irish standards I'm basically a non drinker. However I do drink. I have the occasional Rum and Coke/Orange, Irish Cream or Fruity Cider. Rum and coke is when I'm around friends or family and being social. Irish Cream as an after dinner treat (on special occasions), and Ciders during hot weather events like social barbecues.
Never drink alcohol on my own. I could live without drink altogether, but there are certain flavors that I like and I have no qualms doing so. Never been drunk though I have at points noticed a dulling effect after drinking several glasses of Rum and coke (I usually switch over to minerals or water after 2 glasses though).
Don't smoke, though I lived around smokers (only member in my entire family who doesn't smoke, including extended, bar young cousins) so I'm probably not clean in the purest sense. Don't take drugs bar ones for medicinal use, have a few friends and family members who use Marijuana, but no hardcore drugs. I have an extremely low caffeine intake, only on meet ups with friends a coffee shops do I ever drink caffeine... though I did have a stint in collefe where I drank a less then healthy amount of Energy Drinks.
I didn't start drinking until I was 19 but, as I said already, I'm hardly a "drinker" by Irish standards.
Reasons:
I didn't like drink when I was young. I thought Cider (the one most people drank here) tasted like piss and I still think Lager of all kinds take like piss. When I was old enough to be critically aware of things I started to detest drink and those that drank. My mom is a miserable drunk and she had a seriously bad habit of mixing drink with medication. My dad was a lot more conservative, but back then nobody was really conscious about their drinking habits and he would be prone to drink himself silly to avoid arguments.
The youth culture around drink was just as bad if not worse. People drinking themselves to a hospital visit to get their stomach pumped was freakishly frequent. Vomit stained taxis and fast food joints. Fights breaking out EVERY night there was an event for youths... all started by drink.
So for the longest time I despised the stuff. Eventually, after my school years, I went on a holiday with my 2 best mates and I had my first drink with them. They had a much healthier drinking habit and I felt more relaxed and comfortable drinking with them. As of late I have developed a new found disdain for Irish drinking culture, mainly because I have learned to enjoy it without abusing it, but can't seem to enjoy it around friends (bar the 2 I mentioned already) or family without seemingly encouraging them to make absolute prats of themselves. So much crap... because people can't say enough is enough.
I'm paranoid about losing control. This is one of the reasons why I'm reluctant to get drunk. I've seen people fall into paranoid states as a result of smoking weed and I'm not willing to feed my own paranoia. I have no moral or ethical standing to reject drugs, to each their own, but not a bone in my body is curious enough to try it. Harder drugs are a no... anything that has an overt affect on my personality is a no.
I get what seems like a minor Flu when I drink too much caffeine and the stimulation of caffeine seems to hit me real quick, but then I feel ragged after only an hour or so. Worse yet, though I feel like hitting the bed at these lows the mental stimulation keeps me awake for hours. So I never drink coffee in the evening, even as an after dinner treat. So I hardly touch the stuff outside of socializing with friends (and when I really need a brief surge of alertness).
