A Midsummer's Freetime

Today, I got the opportunity to help a local business. The local business is Diamond Bear Brewing Company, Little Rock's only brewery. This small brewery does not employ enough people to easy run their bottling line, so they get volunteers (such as myself) to come in and help out. During the three hours that we ran the line today, we bottled close to 400 cases (24 bottles per case) of ale and lager. My specific job was to load new, empty bottles onto the conveyer belt. While this job was most definitely not mentally taxing, it did afford me something we studious-types all too often neglect: manual physical labor that allows the mind to wander. I found myself thinking about the people who would be drinking this libation from the very bottles I placed onto the line. Will they be enjoying this brew with friends while watching a sporting event? Will they be sipping it over a stay-in dinner and a movie night with a significant other? Or will they be using it to drown out some bad memory or unfortunate circumstance? I can only hope it's not the latter. Which brings me to my point: alcohol in and of itself is neither good nor bad, in much the same way that food is above (outside) such moral evaluations. Too often in the recorded history of Western Man, moral depravity has been attributed to the presence of alcohol. Alcohol itself does not lead to good or bad actions any more than food does. Yes, the misuse and abuse of alcohol can be harmful to more than just the drinker, but so can the misuse and abuse of food. Those who abuse food can harm family finances (both through direct food expenditures and food-related health problems), harm themselves, and kill romantic relationships. While food abusers typically don't become physically violent, they can be unbearable to be around. There are many people throughout the world who use appropriate judgement where alcohol is concerned, enjoying it without harming anyone. However, there are some for whom alcohol becomes the most important thing, and some who find it near impossible to use moderation where alcohol consumption is concerned. Just as with those who cherish their midnight ice cream pint more than their spouse, these people harm those who care about them. It is my personal belief that many (if not all) of the temperance movements have had as their catalyst a relative of the alcohol abuser who could not admit to himself (or herself) that the blame lay with the abuser, not the substance. And now, having completely strayed from my original topic - my enjoyment of the infrequent bout of manual labor - and found myself in the middle of an only slightly coherent rant, I leave you with a quote from Benjamin Franklin: "Beer is proof that God loves us, and wants us to be happy."