Julie, first off, alcoholics are people who admit they can't moderate their desire for alcohol. If anything, it would be more accurate to call me a drunk/pothead. Anyways, I wouldn't read too much into these posts. I enjoy my beer as much as the next guy, as well as my bourbon, scotch, tequila, rum, wine, etc., I just wanted to add some humor to the thread.
I don't know how many of those stupid "this is what 1 drink is" posters at college, as well as all the other silly "binge drinking" info that was on every wall of every building. I just can't take it seriously anymore. I'm 5'11" and 280lbs, 5 beers in one night just makes me take extra trips to the can. On the other hand, some people can't even drink that much without getting sick. By the "5 drinks at a time" logic, a girl who weighs 100lbs is drinking in moderation if she gets loaded on 3 beers a night, but I would be a binge drinker, for drinking a 6 pack in the same time period, even though I'll barely have a buzz going, regardless of how often or how much I drink, and she'll be completely shitfaced on a nightly basis.
I really hate it when people try to quote statistics like that with absolutely no context, and no concern for the multitude of factors that go into a person's decision to consume alcohol or anything else. Rather than discussing the stupid "5 drinks" rule, I felt like saying something humorous.
And no, I don't hate my liver anymore. It went on strike for a while, but we resumed negotiations and reached a settlement. I agreed to follow a couple of safety regulations and improve working conditions, and my liver agrees to push back retirement until at least 65. And just to straighten things out, I know I'm not preventing the beer from going flat. But it takes 2 64oz beers and a lot of bong hits to reach a level of intoxication where the voices in my head stop, and sleep becomes theoretically possible. Usually I just converse with the voices and drink lots of coffee so I won't fall asleep at the wheel, but every once in a while it's nice to be merry and cheerful and sleep through the night without having flashbacks. By the way, I know you're not trying to preach, I just figured I'd elaborate for the hell of it. I think that substance consumption among program survivors is a topic that merits discussion.