A while ago I saw a TV show about meth, and a guy said the single hardest piece of getting off the stuff was not giving it up. Rather, he said the hardest thing was to change every single aspect of his life. Because every single piece of his life was connected to meth.

I thought of that guy yesterday when I was invited to go have lunch. Sounds innocuous enough, except that it was a brewpub, with beer that I love, and a menu full of bar burgers and other forbidden items. The old me would have pounced on a pint and ordered a burger. I liked the old me well enough, and just walking into the place made me wonder if I could make it through the meal without veering off course.

The good news for me is that I did my duty. I ordered a diet Coke and a salad. (Let’s get it out of the way that a salad at that type of place seems to have everything a burger would have on it - cheese, bacon, avocado - without the bun and the burger.) But I ate the lettuce and tomotes in the salad with a tiny bit of dressing. I am here to tell the tale, guilt-free.

Maybe I can make is so that every single part of my life is not connected to the enjoyment of food and wine.