Running on Empty

Don't panic, I told myself.

I knew that I was running low on beer in the days leading up to our Peru trip but I didn't worry. I was going to be away for more than two weeks so I would order more when I returned.

Usually, my beer fridge that I keep in the basement is full. Not that I consume a lot: it's just that I stock up and never have to think about it for a couple of months.

It's a far cry from early 2020, when the pandemic kept us at home and, worried for my local craft breweries, I ordered weekly and drank far too much beer for my gut. I've seriously cut back but still liked to see a full fridge.

About a week after we returned from our vacation, my parents came over for a visit and I pulled four of my remaining cans of beer from that fridge to share. I don't know why but I didn't think about it right there and then, didn't place an order from one of my favourite breweries, but I didn't.

And besides, the fridge wasn't completely empty. There was still a can of non-alcoholic beer, a can of non-alcoholic radler, and two cans of cider, though those belong to DW.

I suppose she deserves some space in my fridge, though we do have a larger mini-fridge below the tiny one that I use to keep my beer cool.

Last week, after spending some time working on Dark Water, I thought I'd crack open a cold brew and went to my beer fridge, only to find the aforementioned cans of non-alcoholic beer and ciders. And I gasped.

Don't panic, I told myself.

And, in truth, I didn't. I wasn't desperate for a beer but thought one would have been nice. The weather was still not nice enough to sit on the front porch, as I often did after work during the late spring, early summer, and early fall months in previous years.

Kid 1 had prepared a meal, last week, that required a cup of white wine. I remembered that the remainder of the bottle was sitting in the kitchen fridge. It needed to be consumed before it passed its peak, and even though I'm not a big fan of Pinot Grigio, I hate seeing wine go to waste.

As of yet, I still haven't ordered more beer. Honestly, my consumption at home has been so low that the last time I ordered beer was in January; and, in March, some friends gave me some beer for my birthday, which, added to what I already hadn't consumed, made my beer fridge packed to the gills.

What my father and I had consumed, after my return from Peru, was beer that had been around since the beginning of the year and my birthday. That just goes to show how little I drink these days.

Every Thursday, when I join my singing friends at karaoke night, I'll consume one or two pints of IPA. If DW and I treat ourselves by going out for dinner, I'll usually order a beer. But other than that, I don't feel like drinking through the week.

Maybe it has something to do with age. Maybe my body no longer feels the need to end the day with a cold brew.

So, for now, I'm going to hold off on ordering beer, with my apologies to my local craft breweries. I won't forsake you; I'm just going to run on empty in the house for a while.

The last drink I had was on Saturday, when I finished the end of that Pinot Grigio bottle. It was past its prime but still quaffable. I'm curious to see how long I go before my next one. Maybe, I'll make June a dry one.

Who knows?