Ye Olde Rad Blog

• Abstinence. You know what Augustine said about abstinence.
• Moderation. You know what Aristotle said about moderation.

• Avoid colored spirits, such as whiskey and bourbon. They contain higher levels of toxins. Bourbon is the worst. You have a better chance of surviving New Years eve if you drink clear spirits, such as vodka. I treat myself to Polish volka every New Years eve. (I know it's trendy, but I was drinking Polish vodka before it became cool.) Vodka is the spirit lowest in toxins.

• Drink quality stuff. Spend a little extra and get the premium booze. If you're going to drink a bottle of El Cheapo rot-gut tequila, you will wish you were dead. Trust me. Been there, done that.

• Don't drink on an empty stomach. Have a good dinner. The greasier, the better. It slows down the absorption of alcohol into your system.
• Take a multi-vitamin with your dinner. Vitamins B & C help the body eliminate toxins. Vitamin E helps protect your liver, which is about to get a thrashing.

• Drink plenty of fluids. It takes your body 5 parts water to process 1 part alcohol. So keep the fluids coming.
• Drink a pint of Gatorade before bed. Gatorade has electrolyes, which will help restore balance.

• Don't mix. I'm sure you've heard the age-old maxim: "Liquor before beer, you're in the clear. Beer before liquor, you've never been sicker." [I first heard this from Lani.] And "Don't mix the grain with the grape." (don't mix anything with wine)

• Get plenty of fresh air. Step outside and take deep breaths. Alcohol turns into a gas at body temperature. That's why police are able to use breath analyzers, and don't have to rely on blood tests. The alcohol gas displaces oxygen in your lungs and suffocates your brain. Which is why people do stupid sh!t when they're drunk.

• After your body processes it, alcohol turns your blood into a basic (pH >7) solution. In other words, your blood chemistry gets whacked out. Drinking tomatoe juice, or any other acidic drinks (pH <7) such as Coke, can help restore you blood's pH to normal levels (pH = 7 = neutral). This is the science behind the Bloody Mary. Better living through chemistry, baby.

• If you feel like crap the next day, Alka-selzer has been known to help. Plop, plop. Fizz, fiizz. Oh what a relief it is.
• Drink lots of gatorade the next day. The electrolyes help restore balance.

• Remember that alcohol is a poison. It contains toxins. (They don't call it inTOXICation for nothing.) It makes you liver work hard to process it.
• If you're in *really* bad shape (got the shakes), nothing works better than a little hair of the dog that bit you.

• My own remedy? The day before New years (today), I make (in a juicer, remember this is Southern California) 2 quarts of a juice concoction from fresh apples, carrots, parsley, ginger & beets. I drink 1 pint before i go out. Another pint before bed. A third pint when I wake, and the last pint throughout the day. I like sushi for my New Years eve dinner. Seems to work.
••• Last, but not least (and most importantly): don't drink & drive.

A similar guide is posted here.
HAPPY NEW YEAR.