Is New York City Boring Without Booze? An Illustrated Investigation.

I'm not drinking, I'm in my 20s, and I'm afraid of the answer.

(AKA other moments of courage big and small)

• Continuing this break: I have not missed drinking this summer. That doesn’t make living without a social lubricant easy or comfortable. Frankly, doing hard things is harder. Showing up is scarier. But pushing forward is so much more fulfilling on the other side. Without booze, I feel more aware. More awake. More me. I keep coming back to what my friend, Brynn, who is now two years without drinking, told me when I profiled her during Dry January:

• That buzz is why I want to keep this non-drinking experiment going. Without booze, you begin chasing the buzz of real life. I’m living it and loving it and want to keep chasing it.

• Enduring a heat wave without air conditioning: It’s currently 90-something in New York and my apartment’s AC is broken. The humidity is horrifying. The sweat is far from sweet. But here I am. Saluting summer. You searing sun of a beauty.

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Tatiana Gallardo is a writer, illustrator, and part-time investigator. When she’s not dropping it down on the dance floor, you can find her sweating and seltzer-ing across New York City.