I’ve always hated how alcohol commercials play up like a cool beer is the best thing in the world, or a glass of whiskey is what will put hair on your chest. It’s a disgusting narrative that ruins people’s lives.
On social media, there’s a huge variety of it. People posting how they were sober on NYE. Folks sharing before/after as they’ve gone cold turkey. I see people share tips of what type of mocktails to get at bars, and alternatives to having a fun night over getting drunk.
I appreciate that.
And this is not bashing alcohol. Moderation in everything.
I have a zero tollerance policy for alcohol when I know I will be driving the same day or early the next.
It is far easier to just say “no” from the start than trying to calculate and estimate what would be an acceptable ammount at what time to be able to drive.
Yesterday when I drove home from NYE at my parents, road conditions were terrible, it snowed, the council had not cleared it as I drove home (understandable), and I felt my car loose grip a few times. On roads with a limit of 70km/h I drove 35-40, and on a road with a limit of 90km/h you could not drive any faster than 60, I have excellent winter tyers, but it took all my stone sober concentration to get home safely, if I had had any alcohol, trying to drive home would have been utterly reckless, to be fair, it was borderline reckless when as I drove home sober, but it was doable.
RESPECT.
I have the same rule. No alcohol 24 hours prior to driving.
It’s easy for me though, since I can take a bus, Uber, or even walk. And I have no urgency in my life where a car is required like that.
24 hours seems like more than necessary, but I agree with the gist: I don’t drink if I’m not where I’m planning to spend the night.
24h is a simple rule, why make it more conplicated?
Whatever rule works for you is a good rule, sure, but I don’t think 24 is any simpler than 8 or 16. To be clear, I’m not advocating getting absolutely wrecked, taking a nap, and then going driving. I am very much opposed to any form of drunk driving - it’s not safe for the driver or anyone in the vicinity of the driver and is easily avoidable. However, I don’t think a 24 hour division is necessarily required between one drink and a drive.
Oh yeah, I have excellent public transport here, so if I do drink I can still get around safely.
I only got a driving license when I was 35, two years ago, after living in my own apartment for almost a decade, so I am quite well used to public transport.
Yikes. That’s a little extra. I take it you never really drink?
Why is it a “yikes” situation to make 100% sure that you have zero alcohol in you when driving?
As for drinking, it is a very small part of me, while I have an extensive collection if spirits, I hardly ever drink.
You don’t need to have 0 alcohol anywhere in your system to drive. Everyone has their own limits of when alcohol starts to affect them. And how much water you’ve had makes a huge difference.
0 water all day, drank a bunch, then didn’t drink any water afterwards? Yeah you’re gonna want to wait a bit before you drive. But if you’re well hydrated all day, had a few drinks to get buzzed, then chugged some water? Yeah you should be fine after an hour or so. Waiting 12 hours is pretty excessive.
It is known that alcohol reduces inhibitions, making it easier to ignore limits if you start drinking alcohol.
Why you would put yourself in a position where you need to do maths and estimations when you are less suited for it is a dumb decision, when not having alcohol at all is far easier.
Having alcohol when you know you will be driving later is just idiotic. You don’t need to min/max drinking and driving.
It’s not hard to figure out a plan before you start drinking. This isn’t complex algebra. It’s A. What color was my pee B. When do I plan on leaving C. How much food did I have.
I should add that this is all stuff you should think about any time before you drink, regardless of what you’re doing later. Even if it’s just to avoid a hangover.
Or, you can not deal with it at all, and just say “no”, you run zero risk of going over, either by miscalculation or misjudging your condition.
Drinking alcohol is not critical, this defending of it if getting annoying.