None for me, thanks

On Friday night, I consumed the last alcohol that I can have for a good long while. After a healthy combination of tequila at dinner followed by vodka at Arlene's Grocery, I have no doubt that I was annoying and vaguely incoherent. I kept giving people shots of whiskey, probably in the hopes that they would join me down in the depths of intoxication. After all, this was my own personal mardi gras - one final hurrah before the cold, harsh restrictions of the medical community take hold. I cannot have any alcohol in my system for 14 days prior to surgery.

The cruel irony in this, of course, is that I leave for SXSW on Wednesday morning.

In a way, I'm actually glad that I will be making my first pilgrimage to Austin under strict orders to remain sober. My willpower is generally no match for an open bar, of which there will be many, but I don't really have much of a choice. Drinking = no surgery, and I would like to be relieved of The Cancer post-haste, thanks very much.

The Good
- I will be getting very little sleep as it is, and it's probably better than I actually do sleep, instead of passing out into liquor-induced unconsciousness

- Only minor risk that I will say something completely offensive to the wrong person, as opposed to absolute certainty when Johnnie Walker comes to hang out

-More room for BBQ and tacos

On the other hand, I'm also being realistic.

The Bad
-Drunk people (i.e. everyone else in downtown Austin) are insanely irritating if you're sober.

-Finding a way to explain why I'm good with Diet Coke, really, thanks - without getting into the real reason why I'm not throwing back scotch because it's free and in vast abundance.

-Booze makes bad bands better. In terms of both playing and watching.

So it will be interesting.