TL:DR An alcoholics rewards programme for dealing with daily life, uncovered.
Tonight I met a close friend, and he told me something I'd never heard before, even though we've talked about our lives, warts and all, ever since we met. He's not hidden it, just for some reason it didn't come up.
His late mother was a lifelong alcoholic. He accepted that during her lifetime, and has been a big drinker himself on and off. I told him tonight I am quitting. He knows full well I'm an alcoholic.
We have a frank relationship and so this story was received and responded to by me in what some might see as an insensitive way. But it was taken as intended because we see the funny in the darkness.
So, it turns out, towards the end of her elderly life, his mother, by this time living alone, had developed an entirely self imposed rewards system for doing basic chores. She would leave strategically placed miniatures (tiny bottles of spirits/liquor, the kind you get in hotel mini bars) dotted around the house, in locations associated with said tasks.
One next to the washing basket, one in the laundry cupboard, one next to the ironing board etc. She basically created a boozy treasure hunt to lead her through the things she needed to do to remain independent.
She was quite a chaotic individual apparently, and this level of organisation was highly unusual, particularly as she could just buy big booze and drink it whenever she pleased (which she also did).
This only really fully came to light after she died. When clearing her home they found dozens of tiny booze bottles dotted around in cupboards and drawers and wherever. Often quite unusual or unexpected places. She wasn't hiding booze, she had no need to. She literally created a trail of tiny rewards for doing everyday shit.
What was slightly interesting was they found half consumed mini bottles. She'd just had a nip, but not downed a whole shot sometimes.
As an alcoholic myself, and someone who hates household chores, I actually found this whole thing both hilarious and endearing, as weird as that sounds. We laughed about it together.
I've no idea if she had read any Socrates, but she certainly embraced his maxim "know thyself".
Mat B
npub1sn…t2gsh
2026-01-17 02:20:52 UTC
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2026-01-17 02:20:52 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "TL:DR An alcoholics rewards programme for dealing with daily life, uncovered.\n\nTonight I met a close friend, and he told me something I'd never heard before, even though we've talked about our lives, warts and all, ever since we met. He's not hidden it, just for some reason it didn't come up.\n\nHis late mother was a lifelong alcoholic. He accepted that during her lifetime, and has been a big drinker himself on and off. I told him tonight I am quitting. He knows full well I'm an alcoholic.\n\nWe have a frank relationship and so this story was received and responded to by me in what some might see as an insensitive way. But it was taken as intended because we see the funny in the darkness.\n\nSo, it turns out, towards the end of her elderly life, his mother, by this time living alone, had developed an entirely self imposed rewards system for doing basic chores. She would leave strategically placed miniatures (tiny bottles of spirits/liquor, the kind you get in hotel mini bars) dotted around the house, in locations associated with said tasks.\n\nOne next to the washing basket, one in the laundry cupboard, one next to the ironing board etc. She basically created a boozy treasure hunt to lead her through the things she needed to do to remain independent.\n\nShe was quite a chaotic individual apparently, and this level of organisation was highly unusual, particularly as she could just buy big booze and drink it whenever she pleased (which she also did).\n\nThis only really fully came to light after she died. When clearing her home they found dozens of tiny booze bottles dotted around in cupboards and drawers and wherever. Often quite unusual or unexpected places. She wasn't hiding booze, she had no need to. She literally created a trail of tiny rewards for doing everyday shit.\n\nWhat was slightly interesting was they found half consumed mini bottles. She'd just had a nip, but not downed a whole shot sometimes.\n\nAs an alcoholic myself, and someone who hates household chores, I actually found this whole thing both hilarious and endearing, as weird as that sounds. We laughed about it together.\n\nI've no idea if she had read any Socrates, but she certainly embraced his maxim \"know thyself\".",
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