I think is point (or one of them) is that he discovered he didn’t need alcohol to have fun and that he could have more fun without it. You are different, your experiences are different, and there is nothing wrong (as far as I can tell) with your decisions. I will make one note that you might find helpful someday. Like you, I was a binge-er. However, over time my binges got more frequent, longer, and heavier. You might want to keep an eye on that.