Dear Queenie,
I’m not an alcoholic, but I don’t like the taste of alcohol or the effects it has on people, so I do not drink the stuff. But some people get insulted if I don’t take a drink when they offer it.
Queenie, what can I say to them without being rude?—Non-drinker
Dear Non-drinker,
Whether you are an alcoholic (“recovering”) or not, my answer is the same: Tell them what you have told me about not liking alcohol’s taste and effects. If they keep pushing you to have a drink, tell them you will happily accept plain grape juice or name some other non-alcoholic beverage.
And, for the record, if anyone pushes you to eat or drink anything you do not want, they are the one(s) who are being rude for insisting, not you for not accepting.
