I spent much of early recovery unable to access a pink cloud or any semblance of the pristine happiness that clear-eyed sobriety was supposed to bring to the fore. Over time, though, those early days, initially dry and mundane, days I believed could only be made extraordinary by tons of exotic drugs to make them sparkle again, became more special the more sober I became.

Some years, I remember those days—I’ll journal about them or share them in a meeting. But this year, I figured I’d share one with you, in hopes that you’ll share one of your own that sticks out. No need for exact dates, no need for these to be extra special—I’m mostly looking for quieter moments, not the time bungee jumped over an active volcano in Italy. They don’t have to be long either—mine clocks in a little more than 300 words. But if you just want to include a sentence—”Last summer I went to a water park by myself and ate a banana split” or whatever—that’s great as well.

Okay, here’s mine.

I was back in New York City for around 40 hours to interview the guy from Phish for the TSB podcast. It was one of those not-yet-chilly autumn days, where the trees were turning, Halloween was everywhere, and other people’s cigarettes smelled amazing. I met friends for both planned (coffee at a flower shop) and random (bumped into another special person on the sidewalk I’ve known for more than 20 years). Then I did the Trey thing, which went about as well as anyone could have hoped for.

Afterward, I walked from midtown to downtown, texting and talking about the interview the whole way. I got two slices at East Village Pizza (one pepperoni, one white) and drank an orange soda. I was buzzing with those happy-to-be-alive vibrations.

That night, a former Gawker colleague was having a birthday party at a bar in Brooklyn, and, despite my nervousness about attending, I went. There were more people—mostly noisy NYC media people—I hadn’t seen or met before, and some of them were sloshy, but I was fine, still happy to be alive.

And then—the best part—I got home on time. No delays, no turbulence, and I even slept a little in an aisle seat towards the back of the plane. I was home before dark, and everyone was all excited to see me, exclaimed “Daddy!” when they saw me in a way that was truly unfathomable ten years ago, when I was in my 40s and thought moments like this were not available to scumbags like me. That day was a good reminder of how beautiful my life had become. —AJD

And now—tell me about yours:

EMAIL US HERE: [email protected] SUBJECT: BEST DAY EVER

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