4 ms·

I had a relative that was a high functioning alcoholic, until he wasn't. He could show up to family functions, be completely charming and entertaining, and stil

I had a relative that was a high functioning alcoholic, until he wasn't. He could show up to family functions, be completely charming and entertaining, and still was a degenerate alcoholic drinker in private to the suffering of his family. After many attempts at sobriety, he finally died in a hot tub. He was found much later than one would want if cleaning up was a concern. Think "soup". My relative, his wife, was questioned and presumed a murderer until a full investigation was concluded. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead"... indeed. This author's fetishization of the father's drinking habit creeps me out a bit.

HiroshiSan 9y ago
It's very human to idolize your father, see them more than human, a super hero.
- rabboRubble 9y ago
  For me, the creep factor is a bit more than normal father idolization. Smacks of a alcoholic's family structure enabler / hero archetypes: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/adult-children-addicted-alcoholic-parents/168187-roles-alcoholic-family.html http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/adult-children-addicted-... Don't get me wrong, I'm sympathetic to the author. Just hits a bit too close to home to some farked up family dynamics. There is nothing romantic about remembering your father by cracking a crappy beer and keeping a pull tab.
- coldtea 9y ago
  It's also human to approach life as "we are all gonna die anyway, let's have fun while at it", even if it means a bad liver from alcohol or a broken spine from some extreme sport...
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- rf15 9y ago
  I'd argue idolization itself is a bad habit of people. Doesn't mean you can't appreciate people's work or strive to be more like them in their positive properties, but idolization itself is blind faith, which is not a good thing to have.
  - rf15 9y ago
    I'm surprised I got downvoted for advocating divergent and critical thinking on HN.
    - breakingcups 9y ago
      Please don't comment on receiving downvotes. It's frowned upon in the guidelines. Your other comment stands on its own and doesn't seem heavily downvoted. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

HiroshiSan 9y ago

It's very human to idolize your father, see them more than human, a super hero.

rabboRubble 9y ago
For me, the creep factor is a bit more than normal father idolization. Smacks of a alcoholic's family structure enabler / hero archetypes: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/adult-children-addicted-alcoholic-parents/168187-roles-alcoholic-family.html http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/adult-children-addicted-... Don't get me wrong, I'm sympathetic to the author. Just hits a bit too close to home to some farked up family dynamics. There is nothing romantic about remembering your father by cracking a crappy beer and keeping a pull tab.
coldtea 9y ago
It's also human to approach life as "we are all gonna die anyway, let's have fun while at it", even if it means a bad liver from alcohol or a broken spine from some extreme sport...
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
rf15 9y ago
I'd argue idolization itself is a bad habit of people. Doesn't mean you can't appreciate people's work or strive to be more like them in their positive properties, but idolization itself is blind faith, which is not a good thing to have.
- rf15 9y ago
  I'm surprised I got downvoted for advocating divergent and critical thinking on HN.
  - breakingcups 9y ago
    Please don't comment on receiving downvotes. It's frowned upon in the guidelines. Your other comment stands on its own and doesn't seem heavily downvoted. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html