60 Days Sober, My First Holiday Without Alcohol & Is Ireland's Drinking Culture Changing? | EP4
The Awful PodcastShow Notes
I'm back from Rhodes, and honestly, it might be one of the best places I've ever visited. In this episode, I'm talking about my first holiday without alcohol, hitting 60 days sober, and how different life feels when I'm actually present enough to enjoy it. I get into giving up drink, discovering non-alcoholic beer, and why I'm starting to think Ireland's relationship with alcohol is finally changing. I also chat about spirituality, religion, the universe, and how a few things in my life have started to fall into place lately. Plus, I question whether the next generation might finally break away from Ireland's traditional drinking culture, reflect on how things have changed since my parents' generation, and seriously consider starting my own cult. All I need now is a name and 5% of your income. If you've any stories, questions or topics you'd like me to talk about, send them my way! 📩 Email: [email protected] Chapters / Timestamps 00:00 – Welcome back & the podcast inbox 00:30 – Rhodes: one of the best places I've ever visited 01:00 – The uphill battle to the Temple of Athena 02:35 – Was the temple even worth the climb? 03:05 – Crystal-clear water and getting over my fear of fish 03:40 – My first holiday without alcohol 04:15 – Waking up early and actually feeling rested 05:30 – How easy was it to enjoy a holiday sober? 06:20 – Not wanting to leave Rhodes 06:50 – Hitting 60 days without drinking 07:10 – Non-alcoholic beer and finding a new normal 08:30 – Why sobriety feels sustainable for me 08:50 – Understanding addiction and the cycle of relapse 09:45 – Telling friends and family I'm giving up drink 10:45 – When things finally start clicking in life 11:30 – Becoming more spiritual without becoming religious 11:50 – AA, the universe and asking for help 13:10 – A new job, positive changes and trusting the process 14:50 – Could I start my own cult? 15:25 – Discovering a life outside the pub 17:30 – What if sober socialising was normal growing up? 18:50 – Why I could never just have one or two drinks 19:50 – Is Ireland's drinking culture finally changing? 21:30 – Are the next generation doing things differently? 23:00 – Dublin, rural Ireland and the changing social scene 24:10 – Looking back at my relationship with alcohol 25:35 – Have younger generations been given a better start? 26:45 – Was buying a house ever really easy? 27:40 – Ireland's changing relationship with religion 30:00 – Should religion and education be kept separate? 31:15 – Are all religions looking for the same thing? 32:20 – Would a loving God condemn people for not believing? 32:45 – Could a new religion emerge in modern society? 33:40 – Christianity's resurgence and Ireland's complicated past 34:40 – Finding a more personal relationship with faith 35:40 – Wrapping up and thanking everyone for the support 36:15 – Send me your stories, questions and topics 36:45 – See you next week on The Awful Podcast
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Episode 3 is a bit of a journey. I kick things off talking about Ireland’s recent match against Israel, the pressure placed on the players, Jack Moylan’s celebration and the reaction from Israeli supporters. I then get into the Garvaghy Road dispute and the history surrounding the Drumcree controversy, including the tragic deaths of the Quinn brothers. I also talk about how my own understanding of Northern Ireland has changed and why I think it’s important to listen to people from both nationalist and unionist backgrounds. After getting the heavy stuff out of the way, I have a few things that have been annoying me about social media, before talking about heading off to Rhodes for a holiday. Then things take a serious turn into nostalgia as I go down a massive gaming rabbit hole — from PlayStation 2 and FIFA, to Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops 2, Warzone and the friends I’ve made through gaming over the years. I also talk about losing an Xbox account to a scam, my history making gaming videos, why I consider myself a creator rather than an influencer, and whether GTA 6 could bring me back to gaming content. Basically, episode three is politics, holidays, food, social media, gaming nostalgia and a lot of waffle. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 – Episode 3 begins & heading off on holiday 00:22 – Ireland v Israel 01:32 – The Israeli national anthem & Ireland’s response 01:43 – Daryl refusing to shake hands 01:50 – Ireland score three goals in 12 minutes 02:03 – Jack Moylan’s celebration & reaction from Israeli supporters 03:37 – Israel’s public image and the wider conflict 03:49 – The Garvaghy Road dispute 04:31 – The Quinn brothers tragedy 04:56 – The house fire and the deaths of the three children 05:06 – Garfield Gilmore and the prison sentence 05:20 – Ballymoney, Drumcree and the connection to Garvaghy Road 05:35 – Learning more about Northern Ireland 06:03 – The protest on Garvaghy Road 06:46 – Thoughts on a united Ireland & listening to different perspectives 07:09 – Wanting to speak to nationalists and unionists 07:43 – Moving on from the heavy topics 08:00 – My biggest social media pet peeves 09:14 – Heading to Rhodes 09:53 – The best Eggs Benedict I’ve ever had 10:23 – Trying to enjoy the holiday without going overboard 12:17 – Why I’m giving the podcast 100 episodes to grow 13:07 – My hatred of Apple and the new Mac setup 14:03 – Growing up with gaming 14:31 – PlayStation, Xbox and GTA 16:34 – The nostalgia of old FIFA 17:48 – FIFA releases, Ultimate Team & childhood memories 18:16 – Match Attax and football card nostalgia 19:00 – Gaming as an escape 19:35 – The current drought of good games 20:16 – Assassin’s Creed Odyssey & Valhalla 20:58 – Warzone during lockdown 21:33 – How gaming got me into making videos 22:47 – Realising I’m a creator, not an influencer 23:05 – Making money from content & brand deals 24:19 – Why I stopped making Warzone content 24:57 – Getting way too invested in simulator games 25:35 – Could GTA 6 bring me back to gaming videos? 25:54 – Not wanting to be pigeonholed by social media 26:29 – Why I want to make long-form content 27:01 – Modern Warfare 2 nostalgia 27:54 – The traumatic experience of losing my Xbox account 28:26 – Getting scammed over a Call of Duty hack lobby 29:26 – Getting revenge on the scammer 30:41 – Online friendships that last for years 31:54 – Black Ops 2 and competitive gaming 32:40 – Why GTA 6 could be a gaming renaissance 32:54 – Fortnite, cross-platform gaming & battle passes 33:36 – Minecraft nostalgia 34:15 – Building the new gaming PC 35:16 – What GTA 6 could mean for gaming 36:23 – GTA 6’s delayed online mode 36:58 – Preparing for GTA 6 on PC 37:12 – Why PC gaming feels so different 37:58 – Wrapping up Episode 3 38:16 – Final thoughts
Episode two of The Awful Podcast is here, and this week is a bit of everything. I kick things off with the latest Ireland–Israel football controversy and the fallout surrounding the upcoming match, before getting into the recent rape charge against Clavicular. Then it's time for the **Rant of the Week**, where I finally take on one of life's biggest scams: frozen food cooking times. Why does everything claim it'll be ready in 15 minutes when it absolutely fucking isn't? I also get properly personal and talk about being diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, discovering I was having around 70 events per hour, getting a CPAP machine and how much it has changed my life. From there, I get into why I think Irish culture is actually stronger than ever, Irish music, the obsession with pitting Kingfishr and Kneecap against each other, Irish culture in America, and a bit of mythology before completely losing the plot. It's episode two. I'm still figuring this podcast out. Enjoy. 00:00 — Welcome back: Episode 2 01:11 — Ireland, Israel & the football controversy 03:31 — Should the match be going ahead? 04:17 — Clavicular & the rape charge 05:19 — Rant of the Week: Frozen food cooking times 06:48 — Big Packaging is out to get us 07:08 — The story behind my CPAP machine 08:20 — Realising something wasn't right 08:51 — The GP visit & sleep apnea 10:13 — The sleep study 11:48 — Finding out I had severe sleep apnea 12:26 — Getting the CPAP machine 13:06 — How CPAP changed my life 15:12 — Finding my creative spark again 18:34 — My take on Americans and Irish culture 20:16 — Irish-American identity & the diaspora 21:02 — Why Irish culture feels stronger than ever 22:25 — The Irish language, music & culture 23:04 — Kingfishr vs Amble why pick a side? 24:25 — The current boom in Irish creativity 25:07 — Disney, Irish mythology & cultural preservation 26:03 — Why mythology fascinates me 27:55 — Am I getting better at this podcast thing? 28:29 — Wrapping up Episode 2 28:49 — Send in your stories & topics 29:45 — See you next week
The first episode of The Awful Podcast. This week I’m talking about a bit of everything. Getting back into the gym, losing weight, giving up drinking, trying to get my head right and generally figuring out what the fuck I’m doing with my life at 29. I also get into the housing crisis, living at home, my love for Dublin, why I don’t think I could ever properly leave Ireland, and the possibility of emigrating. There’s a bit of current affairs thrown in too, before I somehow end up telling the story of a trip to America that went completely sideways when COVID kicked off. Basically, just me talking absolute shite for almost 37 minutes and occasionally stumbling across a thought worth listening to. Timestamps 00:00 Welcome to The Awful Podcast 00:34 Making the podcast interactive 01:08 Ed Sheeran, Aaron Rowe & Palestine 03:13 Ireland, Scotland, Wales & self-determination 04:06 Canada and the EU 05:06 One month of the gym, diet & sobriety 06:07 Losing 7kg and changing my relationship with food 06:44 Why I actually enjoy going to the gym now 07:56 The absolute madness of Pokémon card queues 08:38 Sauna, cold baths & the gym buzz 09:45 Learning to enjoy cardio 10:09 Trying to rewire my brain for the long game 12:16 Giving up drinking 13:07 My first sober holiday 13:37 Carl Jung, creativity & doing things you actually enjoy 15:07 Running and getting back into it 16:13 Turning 29 and thinking about the future 16:26 The housing crisis & trying to save for a house 17:35 What it’s like living at home at 29 18:05 Moving out, relationships & having your own space 18:27 Dublin, housing & how much the city has changed 20:06 Could I actually raise a family in Dublin? 20:52 Your 20s, travelling & putting off the serious stuff 22:25 Moving on from your 20s 23:05 Why young Irish people still emigrate 23:46 Why I nearly moved to Canada 24:30 Why I don’t think I could leave Ireland 25:05 Why I fucking love Ireland 26:19 The Lake Bled story 27:08 Somehow finding a load of Irish people in Slovenia 28:12 Living through another strange time 30:18 The COVID trip that went completely wrong 31:12 Boston, Kneecap & the Celtics 31:57 Donald Trump ruins the trip 32:17 Finding out we might not be getting home 33:45 Somehow ending up in Canada 35:27 When the podcast is coming out 36:13 Send me your stories and questions
After years of making videos, I wanted to try something a bit different. Video takes a serious amount of time, and between work, overtime and trying to save for a house, it’s become harder to consistently make the stuff I actually enjoy.