There's no way...

[KvHagedorn]

Speaking of drinking.. just got the only Carlsberg product available in my podunk town.. Elephant Malt Liquor. This stuff is STRONG.

[TnT]

According to her she did it because it's a common lifestyle choice in England and wanted to show the damage that it caused.

I know why she did it, but I was directing at those people who do it as their source of entertainment.

Plenty of people who do that here as well. Talking to them when they aren't drinking is usually about how f'ed up they got or how they are going to get drunk. Dull conversations after a while, because stupid drunk antics are only funny in moderation. The people who do it on a constant basis have no idea how to have fun without alcohol.

[Dr Mordrid]

The people who do it on a constant basis have no idea how to have fun without alcohol.

I'll admit to having swam around in the bottom of a beer barrel for a few months in college, but soon I realized how boring and dangerous that existance was and stopped partaking of it. Later in my first rounds in an emergency room I really started to understand the ramifications of alcoholism and binge drinking. After that and to this day our drinking is very moderate.

We drink an occaisional glass of red/white wine or brandy (Armagnac de Fussigny Selection) with dinner when we're not going out. Beer is 90% of the time non-alcoholic and when not it's Bohemia or Corona (both Mexican) or Dark Horse Special Reserve Black Bier Ale (Dark Horse is a Michigan microbrewery).

Hard liquor is used very sparingly, mostly a shot of Highland Park 18 on Years Eve at home (we never go out but celebrate a lot at home ) and on the odd birthday or so.

Dr. Mordrid

[Brian Ellis]

I have a friend who is a binge drinker on about 3 nights/week. She goes to the extent of being paralytic on 2 of them and her husband sometimes simply leaves her in the car to sleep it off. Of course, she has the most horrific hangover the following morning and doesn't really come to life until mid-afternoon. Even when hung over, she will say that she can't wait until the next binge, "she enjoys drinking so much". It is nothing for her to down 2 bottles of wine and several vodkas.

I admit to not understanding her desire to get pissed. I personally do not like having too much. We enjoy a glass of wine with our evening meal (usually one, occasionally with a ½ glass top-up) and a 7.5 dl bottle often lasts us 3 nights. Neither of us go for spirits, except the occasional 10 ml of kirsch on a slice of black forest cake for dessert. Perhaps, on average, we have 2-3 glasses of sherry per month as an apero.

As for binge drinking in the UK, this has been a national scourge for ever (cf Falstaff in Shakespeare was used as an archetype, Hogarth's etchings of gin drinkers in the 18th c, etc.). It is not new, by any means, and I suspect that it may be a combination of genetic and environmental effects.

[Dr Mordrid]

Culture has a lot to do with it. Absent norms that are enforced by parents etc. all bets are off and extremes prevail once the kids get on their own. Once a habit like this starts it seldom improves on its own.

Dr. Mordrid

[Kooldino]

I'm sure she slept less than normal, and I'm sure that was part of the end result.

[schmosef]

I have a friend who is a binge drinker on about 3 nights/week. She goes to the extent of being paralytic on 2 of them and her husband sometimes simply leaves her in the car to sleep it off. Of course, she has the most horrific hangover the following morning and doesn't really come to life until mid-afternoon. Even when hung over, she will say that she can't wait until the next binge, "she enjoys drinking so much". It is nothing for her to down 2 bottles of wine and several vodkas.

Is your friend a full blown alcoholic or does she just like to drink?

I knew a guy when I was in university who, if not yet an alcoholic, was destined that way.

I'll never forget this one time that I casually mentioned that he should drop by my room for a drink sometime (I drank back then but don't now) and he showed up less than 15 minutes later. I didn't have any booze in my room at the time and he gave me this weird hurt/angry look, like "how dare I get his hopes up!"

I tried talking to him about it once but he wasn't interested in discussing it. We weren't that close so I let the matter drop, but I could see that he liked his drink a little too much.

His memory is ONE of the many reasons that I chose to stop drinking.

I miss having a cold beer every once in a while. I keep meaning to try the non-alcoholic variety but always forget to pick some up.

[Jessterw]

The funny thing about alcoholics is that not all of them always have to have a drink, but they do have to partake of something containing alcohol on a regular basis (regular being varied). Usually it's just a beer or such, but I've seen one turn to household liquids that contain alcohol for their fix.

Lived with an alcoholic for almost 14 years (the formative ones) and it's definitely impacted the when, where, and why of my alcohol consumption. Lucky me I'm not a big fan of regular ole American beer (the tasting of hot beer when I was 8 cinched that) and an odd allergic reaction keeps me away from certain red beverages. Give me some Guinness or some cold sake and I'm good, but it's in no way something I thirst after. Hell, I'd rather have a cold glass of sparkling apple cider