Alcohol: It's Still Legal!

Careful followers of the news may have seen recently that YouTube has been classifying many videos as "restricted," and therefore not available in restricted mode, which can chosen as an option by individual users. That's all well and good and I'd never dream of telling another person what they should be allowing their kids to watch. However, they're lumping drugs and alcohol in together as a taboo category and that bugs me. It's not that I want underage kids watching our content (and I'd argue that underage kids have zero interest in us), but I get so tired of a martini after a long day being equated with a heroin binge. For one thing, alcohol is legal and has been since 1933. Possibly you can stop by the heroin or crack store on the way home, but I would have no idea how. Addiction is addiction and that obviously isn't good. But illegal drugs and alcohol, while both potentially addictive, just aren't the same. One is LEGAL and the other is not. You know, it's possible to become addicted to food, gambling and shopping, too, but those aren't restricted.

Okay, rant over. Let's have some fun with this, courtesy of 1950's Bar Guide, Published by TRUE, The Men's Magazine. One may or may not approve, but this cocktail doesn't care!

We firmly believe that drinking at home, in moderation, is the best way to stay out of trouble (and, if you plan to drink away from home, I have one word: UBER). However, if you're wondering whether or not you might be blotto (hint: you are), Bar Guide has some guidelines for determining your status:

Drink in moderation, don't drive and make sure you have restricted mode turned off, so you don't miss any of our episodes! :D

Drink 'Em While You Can

Among the many ways we've been enlightened by the news this week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has recently announced that one drink a day for women is considered "excessive" (click here if you don't believe me). They even consider what most of us would call "one drink" more than one drink in some cases! Now, while I myself am against excessive drinking, my definition of such is a little different from theirs. If your lovely libations are negatively impacting your life or your health, that's excessive. If cocktails give you the urge to hop into the car and go for a ride, that's just a terrible idea, period. If a little drinkie (or five) makes you cranky or violent, by all means, put down the bottle! But let's stop vilifying one of life's little pleasures which, when enjoyed by responsible adults, can make a bad day better and make a celebration just a little more celebratory. Fun fact: We could all stop now and never touch a drop again and we're all goners, anyway. No one lives forever, so I want to enjoy my life while I still can.

Or, to quote a friend from the past, "Don't drink and drive - just drink!" It's later than you think.

They probably lived to be 80, unless mobsters got them first.