Denial is a big part of being a workaholic and I compartmentalized issues that I should have addressed into places in my mind that I didn’t go to often. The loneliness and frustration kept building as did the drinking.
The first incident resulted in my convertible running into a fire hydrant and telephone pool and a night in jail, three month driver license suspension, totaled convertible, and state sponsored driver’s class. The convertible top flew open, fire hydrant flowing and pole lying over the convertible was something I could make into an ongoing joke and some embarrassment.
Eight months later I left a bar with a buddy and drove my company car into a mail box and driver’s license was lost for a year, more intense driver’s education and had to hire an attorney for help get a middle aged significantly more embarrassed guy through the court system.
Finally, a year later to the date, after leaving a bar late Friday evening after going for a drink after work, I ran my BMW into a flat bed wrecker on a rainy night. Another totaled fun car, lawyer, loss of driver’s license for three years, even more intense driver’s training, total humiliation and something a workaholic has trouble with — a four month vacation to the state pen.
The direct cost of the drinking cost about $20,000 and indirect costs by loss of job cost me hundreds of thousands. Work or alcohol doesn’t run my life now and there will be no crossing of any line anymore. Now I take real vacations.