In two minds? I'm not sure...

To all those of you who are wondering about my sanity, I have little to say other than keep reading my stuff regularly, all will be revealed. Or, at least, you will form your own opinion on the subject, assuming you can be bothered in the first place!

And why do I mention this? Largely because my post on improving one's health using exercise was followed closely by one on how to learn to appreciate and enjoy alcohol - wine, actually - which  many consider detrimental to health.

Before the health police and the politically correct mob beat a path to my door, therefore, I will attempt to clarify this: the two are not mutually exclusive provided one treads a middle way and not the way of excess. There is such a thing as 'too much of a good thing', both to do with exercise and wine, as with so much in our lives.

If you read my scribblings carefully you will note that I advocate careful and correct use of exercise in order to improve health, with professional advice when necessary, and a conservative and defensive approach. This applies equally to youngsters as to wrinklies like me, though a younger body is far more resilient and recovers more quickly. The effects of abuse are cumulative, however, and will present themselves later anyway; youth merely postpones the day of reckoning.

The same to a large extent applies to wine abuse, something which if done on a regular basis detracts from the enchantment and magic that wine brings to our tastebuds and renders it just another alcoholic drink, a way to get blotto, a high of sorts. It is not an approach to wine that I approve of - there's plenty of near-tasteless alcohol that can be imbibed in order to achieve that - and wine, you must understand, has so much more to offer.

Is the occasional lapse allowed in wine or exercise, an exaggeration that may lead to a sore head or sore limbs? Of course it is, especially as a reminder of what the 'right' way to go is. Have your fun, whether it's drinking another bottle of something or running the extra five miles but expect consequences and accept them, get over them and know the short-term price. Repeating your 'fun'
(whatever it is) too often will inevitably lead to long-term cost in more ways than one, something definitely to be avoided.

So get on out there and indulge in both exercise and wine, though if you are beginners you may have to wait for my next post, at least on wine, before you can extract maximum pleasure. Be diligent, be patient, be joyous - you have the rest of your life to fill with the pleasures.