Three years ago I made a decision that has been, for the most part, a smart choice–I quit drinking.

I love drinking, and whiskey is my drink of choice (I prefer Jameson Irish Whiskey.) I stopped drinking for a significant reason. I was using drinking as a way to keep the demons at bay. What was worse is that I drank in secret. I always had at least one bottle on my writing desk.

I was never much of a social drinker unless I was on vacation. Some of the funniest “James’ drinking stories” always ended with me not remembering what I had done. I would get blackout drunk. I always said it was “because I was young.”

The truth is, I got so used to the numb feeling that blackout drunk got me. It meant that for a while I could forget about the million things that went through…