I'm not going to go out and form a temperance union and hack up saloons with a chain saw. Giving up alcohol was strictly a personal decision, and believe me, I don't fault anyone who wants or needs alcohol to have a good time. But therein lies my problem. I've personally passed the point of being jealous of my drinking friends to just dreading being around them on a holiday when Moet bottles get drained like swamps and funnels overtake paper cups as the most popular fluid receptacle. Any sober person who doesn't think New Year's Eve is the most insufferable holiday of the year is either lying or not really sober.
Normal parties are difficult enough for sober folks.
I know the shame of sneaking upstairs to the kitchen sink with your paper cup and, when no one's looking, filling it with tap water to fit in. New Year's Eve borders on sheer torture, simply because you know everyone is going to be drinking. You can't call someone up on New Year's Eve and ask them if they'd like to go see a movie or shoot some pool. People only have one thing on their minds that day. Not that there's anything wrong with that, because there's not.