Drinking Culture!

with jobs as well it seems to be accepted. Back when I worked for a very large insurance company,  during our lunch breaks, the manager would take us all to the pub and everyone would drink loads then go back to work. A lot of people go to the pubs on their lunch break and drink,then go back to work. and its oddly accepted to do

No way would this be accepted in the US.

Drink Loads? I've worked at some hefty banks in the city and no way would it have been acceptable to "drink loads", drink one pint or possibly two, unless it was a Friday and we were celebrating something. One pint of cider and I'm still sober and perfectly able to work in the afternoon.

I don't drink any more really, I go to the pub, I get a coke, I still buy rounds for everyone , not had any negativity, yes sometimes people say "Are you sure?" and I say "yes thanks, I'm not drinking today" and it's fine.
If people you know are pressuring you unduly to drink, then you should have a quiet word with them when they're sober.
If people are excluding you from conversations because you're not drinking, stop being friends with them.

I agree that drink driving seems far more acceptable in the US than in the UK, I've never known anyone who would dream of drink driving here, but my DB's friends would do it "in  the suburbs" or they'd drive out to bars in the middle of nowhere.

Ultimately it all just really depends.  I have worked at places in the US where people would come in hungover and talk about it and laugh and it was fine.  I have worked in places in the US where people might have a drink at a lunch meeting.  I worked at a place here in the UK where we had a lunch meeting and it was specified that we could not drink, but that's because we were handling priceless objects and you would be stupid to drink anyway!

I think it's fairly safe to say that the US being as vast as it is allows for a lot of varying pockets of what people find acceptable.

I'm sure there are just as many underage teenagers getting drunk in the park or on the beach in the US as there are in the UK.  I know I was one of them! Many people were!

I'm sure if someone is being weird about you not drinking, that person is just awkward to begin with and would probably be weird about other things in life.  I've had people in the states be weird when I refused a drink.  I think it was mostly because they wanted to have someone else drink so that it justified their drinking.

It just depends! 

In the US it seems far more acceptable to drive to a bar, drink alcohol and drive home. One of my visits we went out with people and I was astounded to see the person who was driving to be knocking back the beers. The bars were in the middle of knowhere and the car parks were packed.

I think this has to do with accessibility to bars and access to public transport.

I've heard stories about how Americans drink and drive constantly, but I lived in New York City where there is good public transport as well as lots of taxis so I never knew of people drinking and driving.

I can imagine that if the only bars were in the middle of nowhere, with no public transportation available and no way to get a cab, then there would be driving.

Another issue is that in the US, as far as I know, there are no bars in residential areas, so you have to travel to get to a bar, whether that is by car or by public transport.

In the UK, there are neighbourhood pubs, so you don't have to travel very far to get to a pub.

In both of the places that I have lived in York, I could get to a pub from my home without even crossing the street.

I've also noticed that couples seem more accepting of their SO going out drinking in the UK.  My circle of friends in the UK and the US are very similar (same age group, all married with children, etc.).  But several of the SOs of my UK friends have gone out of the country for a week for a stag do and they were perfectly OK with this...whereas in the US, most of my friends would give their husbands grief for going out with the guys for a few hours.    

I've found that, in general, couples do more things separately here than has been my experience in the US.

I used to think it was weird that DH would go to the pub without me, but now I like the time to myself.

Interesting thread I think.

Maybe its because I grew up in a circle of knowing lots and lots and lots of musicians, roadies, hippies, bikers, mockers, rockers, and parties galore- but almost everyone I know in the US drinks-  unless they're a recovering alcoholics.  Its certainly a drinking culture where I come from! 

Here, its also a drinking culture and it makes me feel perfectly at home and at ease. I love pubs, I love live bands, but I hate clubs/loud techno music, so I avoid those places.  I don't go out until hours of the night because I'm a morning person, but I love that its OK to go out here and drink and no one bats an eye at that.  I love the "rounds system" , and I love nursing a few a pints of good real ale over a couple of hours, or ooops, the occassional overindulgence.    However, no one gives me or anyone else crap if we don't drink or treats us like we've got the plague if we'm on J20s because we have to drive or we're not feeling well or we're just not keeping up with the others or if we just feel like drinking diet cokes.

So, I suppose it all depends!!!

I think this has to do with accessibility to bars and access to public transport.

I've heard stories about how Americans drink and drive constantly, but I lived in New York City where there is good public transport as well as lots of taxis so I never knew of people drinking and driving.

I can imagine that if the only bars were in the middle of nowhere, with no public transportation available and no way to get a cab, then there would be driving.

Another issue is that in the US, as far as I know, there are no bars in residential areas, so you have to travel to get to a bar, whether that is by car or by public transport.

I would agree with this completely.  I lived out in the country and besides the local Pizza Hut, the only place that served alcohol was a 26 mile drive down the highway.  80% of the people I know in the US have driven while drinking.  When I lived in Italy, it was the same story.  In the UK, aside from DH's alcoholic brother, I don't know anyone who has.

The media seems to support the perception of Brits being bigger drinkers. I'm thinking of sit-coms like "As Time Goes By", where they're always having a "swift half" and they have all the bottles set up in a fairly prominent place in the sitting room.  All very civilized -- but you would not see that in US telly.  Compare "Friends" to "Coupling" -- one lot are in the coffee shop and the others are always in a pub!    I know it's got to do with what's allowed on US television but still ...

DH has worked in banking in London and NYC.  the people he knows/works with in London drink lots more than  in NYC.  in the UK it is acceptable to go out during the week at lunch for 3 or 4 pints.  in NYC that was unacceptable, so if anyone did it they hid it well.  desk nights out routinely happen on wed or thursday night, and the whole gang stays out till all hours, some all night, and are quite proud at work the next day to be smelly and hungover.  DH gets teased for coming in at midnight, but has learned to live with it he has worked at 2 major banks in london, and one in nyc. 

I would agree with this completely.  I lived out in the country and besides the local Pizza Hut, the only place that served alcohol was a 26 mile drive down the highway.  80% of the people I know in the US have driven while drinking.  When I lived in Italy, it was the same story.  In the UK, aside from DH's alcoholic brother, I don't know anyone who has.

I have witnessed people drinking and driving on several occasions in the US - it happened 4 times in the space of 6 months when I was there in 2008. In the UK, I have never seen anyone drive home after being in a drinking establishment.

I do have to admit that I did it once in my life (despite the fact that I swore I never would) and what happened? I got stopped by the police, lost my licence, had to pay a fine and I now have a criminal record. At the time it happened, I had already arranged to stay at someone's house (otherwise I would never have touched a drink), but about 4 hours after my last drink, we were walking to their house and we passed my car. Stupidly I decided I was fine to drive... it was the worst decision I've ever made and not one I will ever make again.

As a result, I don't drink a drop anymore if I have my car with me ... and most of the time I do, since I live 15 miles from the city (according to the doctor who did the blood test for my US visa, apparently it's a criminal offense just to have your car keys on you when you are drinking - but I always have my car keys on me, even if my car is hundreds of miles away!).

No one looks at me weirdly for not drinking much and I have a couple of friends who don't drink at all - their choices are respected and no one says anything about it. One of my friends is and always has been tee-total - so much so that she refused to serve alcohol at her wedding dinner a few years ago... everyone had bottles of sparkling grape juice on their tables instead of wine.

Ultimately it all just really depends.  I have worked at places in the US where people would come in hungover and talk about it and laugh and it was fine.  I have worked in places in the US where people might have a drink at a lunch meeting.  I worked at a place here in the UK where we had a lunch meeting and it was specified that we could not drink, but that's because we were handling priceless objects and you would be stupid to drink anyway!

I think it's fairly safe to say that the US being as vast as it is allows for a lot of varying pockets of what people find acceptable. 

This.  And oh yeah - I once worked (in the US) for a boss that came to work all coked up on a regular basis (back in the 80s) to the extent that he was wearing his sunglasses inside the building, and drooling & could barely speak because his bottom lip was numb (he owned the company!).  Also worked for another boss in the US who came to work drunk. 

While I tend to avoid the vomit strewn streets of city centre on a weekend night (I'm almost 46 years old! ) - myself, I appreciate the more relaxed attitude about drinking here, in a general sense.  Then again, I grew up in a somewhat 'dry' area of the US & all my family are by & large teetotalers, so I'm quite happy to be among people who are a bit more relaxed about having a drink.  DH and I typically split a bottle of wine with a meal a couple of times a week, and it's not uncommon for us to have a cocktail or a beer on an evening after work.  (I'm having a glass of wine right now!  Heeee!)

Neither of us has any issues if the other wants to go out after work with mates for some drinks - we both have done that & it's no problem whatsoever.  We don't do it very often because we would rather be with each other, and leave work at work - but it's fun to socialise every once in awhile like that too.  In the six years we've been together, we each might have come home pissed after a night out (separate from each other) maybe once or twice each.  The only issue is feeling rotten the next day, which is enough to put you off the idea.    So usually when we go out with work mates, it's just a drink or two and then home.

Where I work, drinking on our lunch breaks is strictly discouraged to the point it's written into the employee manual/guide produced by HR.  Not saying people don't sometimes have a drink (one) on their lunch break, but it'd be bad to come to work drunk.

Where DH works, it's not uncommon for his whole team (really a sort of boys club) to go to the pub for lunch, often on a Friday, following which some of them just stay there for the duration (including his bosses) - DH usually goes back to work.  They all got to leave work & stay in the pub for the afternoon awhile back during one of the England World Cup matches.

I went for a girlie weekend in Amsterdam once (a couple nights) & he was fine with that.  A year or two later he had the chance to go on a work mate's stag do, to Ireland - and 'begged' me to say that he wasn't allowed to go, because he really didn't want to, but wanted to be able to tell the guys that 'his wife wouldn't let him' - lol! 

Drink Loads? I've worked at some hefty banks in the city and no way would it have been acceptable to "drink loads", drink one pint or possibly two, unless it was a Friday and we were celebrating something.

My idea of what constitutes a lot of alcohol has changed considerably since I moved to the UK.

There have been many times when DH would just have a half pint, then drink soda the rest of the night or whatever because he had to drive us home, and no one ever said a word about it, though they might have teased that I needed to learn to drive.  Now that I have my licence, I imagine we will be taking turns on this. I haven't heard of anyone driving drunk here in the UK, but sadly, a lot of my friends in the US do it all the time (and I did several times, as well, something I am not proud of) and a few of them have paid the price. But I also blame a lot of this on the fact that areas of Dallas are "dry" which means that people would have to take a taxi thirty miles each way to go to a bar or even a beer store if they need to get more, which is very expensive and no one wants to deal with it. Granted, I know people still make the choice to drive drunk, but I think the city is actually causing more people to choose to drive drunk. Here, there are many pubs within walking distance, so everyone just walks over to them. Sometimes they take a quick taxi home if they don't want to walk in the rain, too drunk, high heels, or whatever other reason. Also, there are several other villages which are close by and would be cheap and easy cab fare. No one here would ever drive the 30 miles to Newcastle, get ripped, and then drive home, I don't think. If the people here want to go there for a night out, they usually get a room for the night. I guess in Dallas, people see that as a silly thing to do, even if it takes an hour to drive from one end of the city to the other.