woody, that’s some interesting stuff! i grew up in the north east, was stupid with booze from about 16-20ish and haven’t touched it at all in just over 25 years now.
i used to drink to get hammered, and not really for any other reason, but once i started going out to pubs and clubs i never used to drink in the house beforehand, i’d always wait til i got to the pub. same goes for my mates. i find that whole thing to be odd. oh well.
when i finally decided i needed to quit drinking, a couple of my cousins (who lived on a particularly notoriously tough estate in sunderland) told me that i “must be gay” and that if they ever saw me out in a pub, they’d knock me out!
it wasn’t a difficult decision to move away from the north east. such a blinkered, intolerant place, generally (well, back then it was anyway).