Dumb Question About Drinking

[guptasa1]

Hey all,

 

I only drink occasionally and socially, and I had a question that I know's pretty dumb, but I apologize ahead of time and chalk it up to inexperience. I think it's smarter to ask and be sure than not to.

 

I may try out a gay bar about a half hour away from me tonight I recently found out about, but since I'm driving, I need to be careful. Assuming I have only one strong drink (probably a Long Island Iced Tea or something), is two and a half hours to three hours sufficient time to be completely sober for the drive home?

 

Thank you (and no flames please - it's a legitimate question).

[bigguyinpasadena]

It would depend on your body weight,your tolerence,would this be on an empty stomach?

Without taking any of this into consideration,It would be hard to say.Long Island Ice teas tend to be more than one oz. of alcohol-why not something less potent ?

If you are really hyper concerned about driving under an altered state-get a hotel room near the bar and take a cab.

If you are moderatly concerned-and IMO you should be fine-drink something with a known level of alcohol.The rule of one oz. booze/one regular size beer/one six ounce glass of wine per hour for a person on normal weight/tollerance. should be ok.

[JamesK840]

I've been dealing with this myself. I'm not much of a drinker, but enjoy the atmosphere at my local hustler bar, and don't mind a drink to loosen me up. Can be too shy and quiet otherwise.

 

The thing is, and from what I've heard it's common at many gay bars, they're rather generous with the alcohol, especially compared to a buttoned-up, just for profit bar. So you may get more then "one drink's" worth of liquor. Plus there are many other variables: when was the last time you ate, your body weight, tolerance, etc, that have a big effect.

 

So the answer is, take it easy and don't drive if you're not sure. At a bar worth going to there seems to be nothing wrong with having a few Cokes, in fact after you've paid for a mixed drink the bar may give them to you free, or coffee, it's the same to the bartender if you tip him each time, and a great way to lessen liability for the owner. If you go from a mixed drink with Coke, for example, to just Coke, nobody will even realize you're not drinking, not that they care from my experience. Sit there as long as it takes for you to feel safe and steady, eat some if you can, get a bottle of water too, and when you do drive be extra careful. Those that live reasonable distances from 'their bar' also have the easy luxury of a cab, but I don't have that option either.

[guptasa1]

I'm about 175 lbs., will have eaten dinner (but probably not something right before going), etc. I think my tolerance isn't too bad. Maybe I'll just stick with a beer to be on the safe side. Thanks for the response - I've just never driven when going somewhere like this before.

 

(As to the hotel thing, going's not worth that much to me frankly - lol. Good advice normally though. I just mostly want to check it out.)

[guptasa1]

Oooh...one beer to loosen up a bit and then a few cokes. Actually, that's sounding perfect - thanks.

[Guest YFSC]

>Oooh...one beer to loosen up a bit and then a few cokes.

>Actually, that's sounding perfect - thanks.

 

And an advantage of beer or wine over a mixed drink in this case is that you know how much alcohol is in it.

[guptasa1]

Cool - makes sense. Thanks all - better to be safe than sorry.

[Flower]

Assuming I have only one strong drink (probably a

>Long Island Iced Tea or something), is two and a half hours to

>three hours sufficient time to be completely sober for the

>drive home?

 

Generally speaking, 1 oz of hard liquor or 12 oz of beer will burn off or metabolize from a 150# man in 1 hour. If lighter, then longer and heavier, not as long.

 

These of course are averages, but experts testify to these figures. I have no idea how many oz your LI Ice tea is, but once you know, the calculation is simple.

 

If you are 150# and the LIIT has 2 onces of hard liquor in it, it should be totally metabolized in 2 hours, if you chugged it. It will metabloize even as you are drinking, so if you pace yourself and have an oz an hour, you will be totally metabolized at the the end of one hour after you stop drinking.

 

Hope that helped.

[JamesK840]

Not sure about the hot pink, kinda hard to read against white...

 

Keep in mind these calculations are primarily about legal impairment, not actual impairment. If you drink your reaction time goes down and you get more drowsy. It also affects your judgment, hence us drinking to loosen up. So you are more likely to get in an accident, it's as simple as that. Your car can end up just as totaled, people just as injured, regardless of passing the blood alcohol test.

 

More a general warning/reminder, not directed at anybody specifically.

[guptasa1]

Yeah, I think that one beer and cokes is still the plan. I appreciate the actual figures, but I want to be COMPLETELY sober by the time I drive home with no negative effects (and I can't imagine a beer still affecting me 3 hours after consumption).

[KY_TOP]

>Yeah, I think that one beer and cokes is still the plan. I

>appreciate the actual figures, but I want to be COMPLETELY

>sober by the time I drive home with no negative effects (and I

>can't imagine a beer still affecting me 3 hours after

>consumption).

 

Good Plan.

 

Have you ever pulled a young 20 something mother out from behind the steering wheel of her car dead, while here baby is crying in the car seat next to her? I have. One dead young mother and one baby who will never know her. All because the guy that hit her decided to Drink and Drive.

[guptasa1]

Believe me, I have no intention of Drinking and Driving, hence the question in the first place. I've never had any actual experiences with a drunk driving tragedy, but I know they're all too real unfortunately.

[CT Dick]

When I'm looking to hook up with someone and don't want to have so much alcohol that it might interfere, I alternate real beers and non-alcohol beers.

 

Dick

[+ glutes]

Not a dumb question at all! Stay out of jail, save yourself a nightmarish night in the pokey, as well as lawyer fees & court costs.

Two suggestions:

-Brookstone and some of the other high-tech companies sell over the counter breathalysers (sp).

-Most States send a alcohol influence chart with your drivers license, or vehicle registration, renewal. It is a good guide.

[guptasa1]

Just thought I'd say thanks for the tips. Back safe and sound. Had one beer and then a bunch of diet pepsis and was absolutely fine before leaving.

 

Interesting place. Met some nice people there too (and learned the basics of playing pool). I just wish I could relax more in a setting like that.

[Flower]

>Not sure about the hot pink, kinda hard to read against

>white...

Yeah, I agree--I really liked the green this "fushia" lol came up from "dark Blue" that's a little easier to read

 

As far as the burn off rates above, they do in fact deal with IMPAIRMENT, not just "legal levels." A 0.0 BA means there is NO alcholol in your blood to be in your brain and thus the higher brain functions, such as judment and reaction time are no longer impaired by alcohol.

 

Personally, I don't drink at all if I'm gonna be driving--just my preference.

[CT Dick]

> I just wish I could

>relax more in a setting like that.

 

I suspect that as you go to places like that you will become more comfortable/desensitized. New experiences are often intimidating.

 

Did you find anyone there for rent? They are often the guys hanging around the pool table, BTW.

 

Dick