Alcohol doesn't make you social. It just makes you think it does.

A few weeks ago I was on my daily A1A walk — wearing a CSC tee, naturally — when two women stopped me and asked, 'So what exactly is the Club Soda Club?'

Their names were Deb and Kate, visiting from Cape Cod. And what I thought would be a quick elevator pitch turned into a 20-minute conversation about drinking, getting older, and the lie we've all been told about alcohol and socializing.

We swapped stories. They loved the Jamo Fund idea — Deb said she's going to use it for art supplies instead. That's a power move. Deb, if you're reading this, let me know how close you are to your goal!

But the thing that stuck with me most was something Kate said. She told me that as more and more of their friends hit retirement, she's watching them use alcohol as a social crutch. It's become the default way to go out, meet people, and fill the time.

And I thought… I know that feeling. Different chapter of life, sure. I was 36, not 65. But the lie was the same: without a drink in my hand, I didn't know how to show up.

The silver tsunami is real. And nobody's talking about the drinking part.

Right now, about 10,000 Americans are turning 65 every single day. That's roughly 4.2 million people a year hitting retirement age, the biggest wave in history. They're calling it the "silver tsunami," and it's not slowing down until at least 2030.

From what I've been reading and from conversations like the one with Deb and Kate, here's what seems to happen when people retire: the daily structure disappears. The built-in social circle (coworkers, clients, the lunch crew) gone. The identity you carried for 30 or 40 years? It shifts overnight.

And for a lot of people, the thing that fills that gap is a drink.

Not because they have a "problem." But because the bar is familiar. The wine at dinner is easy. The happy hour is the one place that still feels social. It becomes the default. And defaults are dangerous when nobody's questioning them.

In the UK, the 65 to 74 age group now has the highest rate of hazardous drinking of any age group. In the US, nearly 3 million adults over 65 meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder. And here's the kicker: it's massively underdiagnosed because the symptoms (fatigue, memory issues, low mood, balance problems) just get chalked up to "getting older."

It's hiding in plain sight.

Before I started the Club Soda Club, I was convinced that without alcohol, my social life would be dull. I thought the bartenders would be annoyed. I thought my friends would drift. I thought I'd become the weird guy sitting alone at home on a Friday night.

Couldn't have been further from the truth.

I still go to McSorley's in Fort Lauderdale almost every day. Club soda on the rocks, fresh lime. And the staff doesn't just tolerate it — they're rooting me on. Same thing at the Clevelander in downtown Cleveland, where I spent almost every day last summer while building the Club Soda Club brand and writing the first blog posts and newsletters. Same seat. Different glass.

If alcohol was my social crutch, then how come I'm out and about more than ever? How come I'm meeting more people and making more friends now than I did when I was drinking?

Because alcohol was never the thing making me social. It was just the thing I thought I needed permission from.

The real move is simpler than you think.

Step one was swapping the drink. Club soda on the rocks, lime wedge, rocks glass. You'd be surprised how little anyone cares and how much better you feel.

Step two was getting more active. And I'm not talking about becoming a powerlifter or running an Ironman. I'm talking about walking more. Learning how to play pickleball. Showing up to things that don't revolve around a bar tab.

I wrote a post about replacing Happy Hour with what I call Hobby Hour and it's one of the most-read pieces on the blog. The idea is simple: take that 5pm-7pm window and fill it with something that gives you energy instead of draining it. A walk. A game. A class. Even building Legos. The point is that the time slot doesn't belong to alcohol. It belongs to you.

That's what the Club Soda Club is for. For a night, a month, or a lifetime. No age limit. No prerequisites. Just a better option.

If you know someone who might need to hear this: a parent, a neighbor, a friend who just retired and seems to be reaching for a drink more often then send them this email. You don't need to make it a thing. Just forward it and say "thought of you."

Sometimes that's all it takes.

produced by Scott Nixon

Sim's been alcohol-free for almost 3 years. In this week's episode, he talks about waking up one day and just knowing it was time, learning how to stop hiding behind a crutch, and why his order is always the same: club soda, no fruit.

Four colors: Lagoon, Terracotta, Butter, and Watermelon.

Whether you're heading into summer travel mode or just living in them daily down here in South Florida — they're built for it. Shop Tank Tops

If you know someone who's been thinking about drinking less — or even just curious about what that looks like — send them your personalized link. They subscribe for free. You earn rewards. Stickers, tees, and more depending on how far you take it.

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Let's grow this thing together.

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