My First Dry February

I can’t believe I did it. A whole month. Not one drop and let me tell you it was hard. I never thought I had the willpower to complete a whole month but once I started getting a few days under my belt, I built up some momentum – momentum that carried me through the finish line. And if I can do it, anyone can do it but there were some bumps in road along the way.

After the first few days, I didn’t notice much of a change except for feeling like I had a bit more time to do other things each day. Not sure why, but I felt like I could just hit the ground running each day after minimal prep time before work. Maybe this was the allure to the challenge.

At the end of the first week, I noticed physiological changes happening with my body. My pores seemed to be clogging up…I know that sounds weird but my skin was taking on a different hue, a darker one. Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon? My colleagues at work actually asked me if I had just returned from a vacation down south, like Mexico. I had to laugh at this because it’s not like I can travel or anything.. my ankle monitor would set off the metal detector.

And then there was a distinctive odour that started following me around. By the third week, my wife had asked me to sleep in the basement – in fact, she requested that I stay down there and keep the windows open, even though we were in the middle of a harsh Canadian winter. They say love is blind but a pungent aroma can be a deal breaker.

Thank goodness this wasn’t a leap year because as my 28th day came to a close, I was so relieved my challenge was finally coming to a close. Finally, I can say I completed a dry February!

Unfortunately, I think I overdid it on Mar 1 – it was my birthday after all so I really splurged. But man was it worth it; my first shower in a month! Not sure I ever need to revisit this challenge in the future and for that, my family, friends, and colleagues thank me.

As always, thanks for checking out this post!