!!!!!!!!!!
Last night I drafted something yammering on about the anti-climacticness of the American 21st birthday because I can count on one hand the number of people I know who waited until they were 21 to drink (great example of this: tonight at Harris Grill in Shadyside I asked the dashing young waiter for suggestions regarding drinks, and he goes, "Well, what do you like?") But I realize now that I was just being a lame-o grumper-pants because all my closest friends are 20 still, and wanted to complain about how I couldn't go out with them because they're not cool college kids with fake IDs, and why would I want to pay twice as much for a drink in a stuffy perv-crawling bar REALLY.
But somewhere around 10 this morning as I sat at work I thought, "I can go buy a bottle of wine after this" and the heavens opened up and rained fermented goodness on the crown of my head.
So anyway. Junked that entry. But none of this really applies to my blog in any way other than setting a really bad example. Because alcohol is generally not great for you, especially if you drink it by the gallon, not the glass. And that's the only way it seems to come in college....... until you turn 21. Then suddenly you are an adult and can drink without painting the walls with vomit. For some at least; for others puke-green is just their shade.
I guess I'm in the former category because the only drink I bought was a cosmo. Tonight at least. Tomorrow I'm going to the very classy bars in Oakland with my older sister and some friends, so I decided to look for a list of the lowest calorie drinks so I don't down my daily intake. Consensus on a bunch of sites: mix with club soda, drink water in between, or have light beer (and only a few). That's fine for normal nights, but tomorrow it is time for highly complicated and fancily named drinks. Except I of course would like to avoid those that are hot fudge sundaes in disguise, so I found something on Forbes.com about the ten worst drinks for you. Click on it for a buzzkill.
Or don't click. Because I'm going to tell you about it anyway. Or at least about the top 5 because the rest are sort of well-duh (like number 8 is vodka and tonic, with 2 shots and 5 ounces tonic, at 200 calories. I mean, I guess that could be a shocker if you are unaware of the tiny sugary discrepancies between tonic water and club soda.)
TOP TEN (five) HIGHEST
CAL COCKTAILS!
1.) Long Island Iced Tea: 780 calories
2.) Margarita: 740
3.) Piña Colada: 644
4.) White Russian: 425 (explains a lot about The Dude)
5.) Mai Tai: 350
Just soak up the top two for a moment. Those are both (large) meals.
So I guess with alcohol, like with food, simpler is better. I just wouldn't advise pounding shots unless you're prepared to wake up in a bush with a penis drawn on your face.
i like that you talk about alcohol in regards to health. I think a lot of college students, and adults for that matter, forget how many calories are in alcohol. I hate when I wake up the next morning from a night out a realize that I've just drank the same amount of calories that I ate that day. ughh. But I've tried to be a little more aware of what I put to my lips, i.e. light beers and liquor with club soda. Also white wine spritzers are low in calories. But I think its a tough reality in college, to choose between a social norm like binge drinking and your health. tricky. i hope you had a good 21st though.
ReplyDeleteThanks, now i'm regretting teh week of margaritas I had at the beach this summer (yes, a week. A margarita every single day. Sometimes two in a day.)
ReplyDeletePerhaps you should do a blog post on the calories in beer. Not only that, but how the calories you get from alcohol consumption stay in your system longer than other calories: http://www.thefactsaboutfitness.com/research/alcohol.htm#