Weekly drinking budget

[Ulysses]

After much deliberation, some friends and I in NYC have come up with a drinking budget. The plan is, Sun-Sat, this is our limit. Once we hit it, no more drinking 'til Sunday. The number we've arrived on is 20. Which kinda sounds like a lot. But then you think about going out for happy hour Friday (2-3 drinks), going to dinner (2-3 drinks), and going out after (3-4 drinks) and you've hit 8-10 drinks without really doing anything crazy. Do that a couple of times a week and maybe go for beers after work one day and boom, you're at 20. So, put that way, it doesn't sound like that much. Anyway, we were wondering what people thought.....

Along with your answer, I'd be interested in hearing how old you are, what you do for a living, where you live, and whether you're single/married/have kids/etc.

[FishNChips]

I voted: "reasonable number" ... however, its 10 - 20 times more than I drink in a week. I'm 30-something, married, 9month old baby at home. Work a 9-5 type job in SoCal... so I don't get out much and when I do, its not to drink, its to play "cards".

If I'm a 20-something single guy not in a 9-5 job without a kid then 20 doesn't seem out of the ordinary. Expensive if you're drinking all of them at a bar/restaurant, but not excessive drinking.

If I misunderstood and the question was "for your place in life how does 20 drinks/week sound" then I have to vote for RAGING ALCHOHOLIC or whatever that choice was.

F&C

[IndieMatty]

27, currently single.

I have some questions -some are actually serious:

Can I carry over these drinks into next week?
Can a bottle of wine count as one drink?
Can I switch to Long Iced Teas which is effectively (3-4 "drinks") and still have it only counted as one drink?

There are too many loopholes to do this sort of thing. And if you plan on drinking more then twice a week, the number itself is unreasonable.

[ChoicestHops]

Im a pretty big binge drinker, I can drink 20 in one night sometimes. Im only 20, and Im too scared to try my fake at the bars as I only have one left. Im sure if I could go bar hopping I would spend alot more.

With that fact aside, I probably spend about 50/wk on alcohol. Usually two fifths of something like Evan Williams and a 30 pack.

[IndieMatty]

[ QUOTE ]
Im a pretty big binge drinker, I can drink 20 in one night sometimes. Im only 20, and Im too scared to try my fake at the bars as I only have one left. Im sure if I could go bar hopping I would spend alot more.

With that fact aside, I probably spend about 50/wk on alcohol. Usually two fifths of something like Evan Williams and a 30 pack.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is not a $$$ question.

[nothumb]

I'm not thrilled with the answer choices, I guess I would say that 20 drinks a week is, technically speaking, very bad for you, but I know plenty of people (including myself) who have functioned or do function perfectly well on as many or more.

The figure I always hear as a sort of line to keep is 14. Don't know how medically accurate that is since I think I originally read it in Maxim. Just speaking in liver-regenerative terms here.

Your weight is obviously a factor. I assume you're a normal sized male.

I guess my answer is, if you're young, single, and want to party, limiting yourself to 20 is a weird number. I'm just envisioning how it wouldn't really blend with the lifestyle. I certainly drank probably double that during college at times. (I was also able to drink on the job... daytime drinking is a major factor here and it doesn't sund like you are into this.) If you are trying to find the right blend between a fun, single lifestyle and more responsibility as you advance in years, 20 isn't a bad start. If you're looking at it strictly medically, in order to allow your liver to regenerate (which it does, remarkably well) you want to cut another few drinks out of there.

BTW I am 22, I am a social worker and live in the Berkshires, and I'm coming up on 3 years with the same lady friend.

NT

[partygirluk]

What counts as a drink? Over here we use "units" - so a pint of beer is 2 units, whilst a 25 ml shot of whisky is 1 unit. So are you breaking down drinks into some kind of unit, or does vicious cocktail = shandy as far as you are concerned?

[DeezNuts]

Single in Los Angeles, go out Friday and Saturday every wknd to various bars and clubs, but usually no happy hours. apprx 5-8 drinks per night on the wknds and maybe one drink(usually a glass of vino) on the wkdays. Used to go out on Thursday nights, but just got sick of feeling like crap at work on Fridays(but will still occasionally do it). 20 drinks is definitely reasonable, although I am trying to cut it to more like 14-15/wk.

I would say I spend apprx. $500-$600/month on alcohol(buying drinks for others included).

DN

[ChoicestHops]

You're right, I need to get some sleep. To answer the question 20 a week isn't much at all. Usually when I get really drunk I'll have a fifth which is 17 shots, but that's in a period of 8 hours.

I dont see it as a big deal at all drinking 3-4 at a time.

[The Dude]

For somebody who drinks regularly throughout the week, this seems pretty reasonable to me. However, if your MO is to only drink on weekends, I can't imagine this is healthy. From what I gather from your posts, I think for you this is the former.

Edit: I'm 23, single, and eat out at restaurants a lot. If I cooked at home more, I would probably be down around 5-10/ wk, but as it is, I'd say more like 15-25, depending on if I have a night where I decide to get drunk.

[wacki]

haven't read thread... working.

genetic history is pivotal in making a budget

[thatpfunk]

22, single, very little responsibility job-wise.

I don't think 20 is enough. I think 28-35 is more fair.

As long as I don't have anything extremely important to do the next day, I will usually have a drink or two before, during, or after dinner.

On the weekends, if you're planning on going out, drinks add up way too quickly. I imagine I average about 35 per week.

[Slacker13]

[ QUOTE ]
The number we've arrived on is 20.

[/ QUOTE ]
I wouldn't make it most weeks. I drink two nights a week, once with the boys on wed and me and the wife on Fridays, so if I do not stray from that routine I may only go over by a few. I can easily put away 12-15 Heinekins on a Friday night alone (also explains the beer gut i have). But if it's one of those days where you start drinking at noon then forget about it 20 would never be enough. And Heinekins are a hearty beer, if I switch to Quervo Sunrises then the number goes way up.

late 30's, own an investmen/business consulting firm, Fort Lauderdale, and married with an 8 year old.

[miajag81]

[ QUOTE ]
Im a pretty big binge drinker, I can drink 20 in one night sometimes. Im only 20, and Im too scared to try my fake at the bars as I only have one left. Im sure if I could go bar hopping I would spend alot more.

With that fact aside, I probably spend about 50/wk on alcohol. Usually two fifths of something like Evan Williams and a 30 pack.

[/ QUOTE ]

Wait till cnfuzzd gets here, he once did 900 jello shots, drank two handles of Everclear, five full kegs of Sam Adams, and three gallons of latex paint in one night and was none the worse for wear.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
Can I carry over these drinks into next week?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
Can a bottle of wine count as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. We fudge and count a bottle of wine between two people as two drinks each (really 2.5).

[ QUOTE ]
Can I switch to Long Iced Teas which is effectively (3-4 "drinks") and still have it only counted as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

We just account for things reasonably here. I imagine we'd agree a big Long Island in a pint glass we'd probably count as 2. This is not a science, though. And we're too old to drink Long Islands anyway.

[miajag81]

To answer El Diablo I think 20 a week is pretty reasonable. It only averages out to 3 drinks per day. I usually do not have that many drinks in a week but occasionally I will go way over. I'm 24, steady girlfriend, graduate student.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
What counts as a drink? Over here we use "units" - so a pint of beer is 2 units, whilst a 25 ml shot of whisky is 1 unit. So are you breaking down drinks into some kind of unit, or does vicious cocktail = shandy as far as you are concerned?

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, we count a 12 oz bottle or a pint of beer as one drink, so I guess you can "stretch the budget" by getting pints instead of bottles. A glass of wine is one drink. One cocktail is one drink. If we were to drink things like Long Island iced teas (like 3 or 4 shots) we'd count those as, I dunno, 2 drinks. That doesn't really come into play, though, as we pretty much stick to basic drinks. This is not a scientific process here, just a guideline of sorts.

[StevieG]

33, married. I average a glass of wine or beer with dinner every night. So I probably drink at a rate of 10/week right now.

We have a kid on the way, but I don't think that will make much difference one way or another.

20/week is a good steady pace, but not anywhere near what an alcoholic would do.

[Diplomat]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
What counts as a drink? Over here we use "units" - so a pint of beer is 2 units, whilst a 25 ml shot of whisky is 1 unit. So are you breaking down drinks into some kind of unit, or does vicious cocktail = shandy as far as you are concerned?

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, we count a 12 oz bottle or a pint of beer as one drink, so I guess you can "stretch the budget" by getting pints instead of bottles. A glass of wine is one drink. One cocktail is one drink. If we were to drink things like Long Island iced teas (like 3 or 4 shots) we'd count those as, I dunno, 2 drinks. That doesn't really come into play, though, as we pretty much stick to basic drinks. This is not a scientific process here, just a guideline of sorts.

[/ QUOTE ]

Considering how much smaller a regular bottle of beer is compared to a pint, you really should only count it as 3/4 of a drink.

-Diplomat

[nolanfan34]

With money not being a significant hinderance, I don't think 20 is an unreasonable number.

I'm 28, married, no kids. The past two years while my wife has been in school, I've cooked about 99% of our dinners, and my usual MO is to have a beer while I cook and watch TV. Then maybe every other day I'll have a 2nd beer with dinner itself.

That combined with an average weekend, means I'm probably in the 10-12 drink range per week. But now that my wife is going to be working soon, I think when we go out on the weekends I'll be a little more likely to order that 2nd or 3rd drink since cost won't be as much of a deterrent.

All of that assumes I'm not paying $45 for two glasses of wine, of course.

[phage]

Given that you seem like a rather reasonable person, I wonder why you feel the need to limit yourself to a specific #...
That said I don't think that 20 is too high.
My consumpution is only 5-10/week. Oh and I am 38, married without children, work as a biomedical scientist and live in San Francisco.
(During grad school 20 would have been a very small #...Damn those were good times) /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[Ulysses]

BTW, I'm 33, work in software business (a variety of things involving starting and advising startups). I am single and live in SF, but lately I've been splitting my time between SF and NYC.

In SF, I'd average less than 10 drinks a week. Go out one of Thurs/Fri/Sat and have maybe 5-8 drinks and maybe have a couple of drinks one other night. Part of the thing here is that many people who go out Fri/Sat nights here are kinda lame. Of course, some weeks I'd go out to dinner every night and go to a couple of parties and end up drinking a ton, but that's not the norm. SF is just not much of a drinking town.

My first week in NYC, I had over 40 drinks. Ditto for the second week. In addition to feeling like crap, this also resulted in skipping a lot of workouts and eating all kinds of crappy, unhealthy bar food. It is unreal how easy it is to go out from 6p-3am every single night in NYC, even when you're hanging out w/ a bunch of gainfully employed successful senior-level people who work on Wall Street. NYC has a very big drinking culture.

Anyway, a friend and I decided that we should be able to maintain a very fun lifestyle without drinking/going out quite so much. Many times now, it just means skipping the 6-9p segment of the drinking and replacing that with a workout and good dinner. Not surprisingly, we then end up drinking much less in the 9p-midnight segment, and while others are then really geared up for the midnight-3am segment, we are more ready to go home unless things are really fun (read: lots of chicks).

[fnord_too]

I'm 35, maried, 2 kids.

I put a reasonable amount, which if I were still in having fun mode that seems like a decent amount. The working then staying out til 2-4 am every night, though, I don't know if I could handle anymore.

[Alobar]

20 is a ok number if you are just a chill after work drinker or have a couple beers with your meal drinker. For the binge drinkers among us, its not very high.

I dont drink often, but when I do I get pretty [censored] up. And The 20 would be about one nights worth. I prolly get drunk once every week or two weeks tho, depends.

Anyway, im rambling. This number is prolly good for social drinkers, waaay to low for your typical college partier.

[STLantny]

20-30 per week is about what i drink, and i drink a lot. I would also say that is probably unhealthy, or at least not healthy, to have more than 2 drinks per night.

[SomethingClever]

I've heard that, for an average sized man, up to 3 drinks in a day is beneficial for a variety of reasons. Over 3 drinks and it gets more and more -EV from a health standpoint.

Not sure if this is total BS or not, and I can't remember where I read it, so, grain of salt, etc...

[STLantny]

[ QUOTE ]
What can I do to stay healthy?

Limit how much alcohol you drink if you drink. This means no more than 3 drinks a day for women and 4 drinks a day for men, not more than 12 drinks per week. There should also be at least one day per week when you do not drink any alcohol. One drink is a can of beer (12 oz), a 4-oz glass of wine or one jigger (1 oz) of liquor.
Too much alcohol can damage the liver and contribute to some cancers, such as throat and liver cancer. Drinking alcohol during pregnancy should be avoided, just as most drugs, because of the unknown possible effects. Avoid alcohol when driving or operating machinery


[/ QUOTE ]

http://www.cfpc.ca/English/cfpc/programs/patient%20education/healthy%20living/default.asp?s=1

quick google search, taken from a canadian medical site, so also take it with a grain of salt (burn, ty, ty).

[IndieMatty]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Can I carry over these drinks into next week?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
Can a bottle of wine count as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. We fudge and count a bottle of wine between two people as two drinks each (really 2.5).

[ QUOTE ]
Can I switch to Long Iced Teas which is effectively (3-4 "drinks") and still have it only counted as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

We just account for things reasonably here. I imagine we'd agree a big Long Island in a pint glass we'd probably count as 2. This is not a science, though. And we're too old to drink Long Islands anyway.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ok your plan still sucks. Don't limit your fun. And yes, drinking = fun.

Or, smoke more pot.

[asofel]

Interesting post, and I'm glad you set it up rather than the one I was thinking of (which would have had far less replies). I actually had a pretty serious talk with my girlfriend about this today. Sunday is often a fairly big drinking day for me as I play in a dart league with a good amount of drinking involved. That compounded by the fact that I was up at 10 to play in a pool tournament (we won and we're going to vegas!), makes these numbers somewhat skewed.

But anyway, I had 2 24oz miller lites and 2 becks over the course of the tournament and barbeque afterwards. Then at night I had one vodka redbull and 12 miller lites. After that we went to another bar, so tack on another beer and a shot....about 21 drinks throughout the day.

I of course don't think this is normal or healthy. 20 in a week though is reasonable in my mind as happy hours, dinners, a night out etc can slowly run up the number.

I'm 24, live in the DC Metro area, and dating someone who's not much of a fan of this lifestyle. I smoke as well, which is also great for me...My job's a 10-7 programming job where I don't have to appear early or well dressed, which makes it easy to close down bars late night.

[bholdr]

For some people, having 20 drinks in a week means alcoholism. for others, it's just haveing a beer with lunch and one with dinner, with a couple extra thrown on saturday night. It all depends on the person, the drink, etc...

If you're 250 lbs and you drink 20 cans of bud light in a week, there is obviously no problem there, and i would categorize that as a very low-level habit.

If you weigh 125 lbs and are drinking 20 long islands or 20 bourbons in a week, that makes you a boderline drunk.

it also depends on how one does their drinking:
personally, i have easily 20 PBRs in a week, and often many more, as well as some mixed drinks on the weekend, but i almost never even catch a decent buzz. If i hang out at the bar for ten hours a week shooting pool and having two beers an hour, obviously that's no problem, but if i don't drink all week and then down a fifth of Makers Mark over friday and saturday nights, that's probably very unhealthy.

so, it's situational. instead of that 20 drinks a week limit, I'd tend to want to say 'only catch one buzz per week and get drunk once a month' or something along those lines.

Though, i do have a recovering alcolholic freind that says anytime a person feels it's necessary to set a hard limit on their drinking, they have a problem. Ideally, he says, the non-problem drinker should never have to ask himself if he's drinking too much. I think he's just a little jaded by his experiences.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Can I carry over these drinks into next week?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
Can a bottle of wine count as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. We fudge and count a bottle of wine between two people as two drinks each (really 2.5).

[ QUOTE ]
Can I switch to Long Iced Teas which is effectively (3-4 "drinks") and still have it only counted as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

We just account for things reasonably here. I imagine we'd agree a big Long Island in a pint glass we'd probably count as 2. This is not a science, though. And we're too old to drink Long Islands anyway.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ok your plan still sucks. Don't limit your fun. And yes, drinking = fun.

Or, smoke more pot.

[/ QUOTE ]

I just find that when I don't think about this stuff at all, I often just end up by default going out and drinking all night in NYC. Trying to keep some level of awareness of how much I'm going out and drinking tends for me to actually increase my overall level of fun because I feel so much better drinking even just a little less. Of course, I'm a lot older than you kids and don't have quite the recuperative powers of my youth. Right out of school I was in technology consulting on out-of-town projects all the time aka professional drinker. Then I was part-owner in a bar.... Anyway, letting things "just flow" often ends up with me hanging out w/ friends at Luna Park on Sunday afternoon saying "man, I can't believe we ended up going out so much last week, I feel like crap. Ready for another round?"

[IndieMatty]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Can I carry over these drinks into next week?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
Can a bottle of wine count as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

No. We fudge and count a bottle of wine between two people as two drinks each (really 2.5).

[ QUOTE ]
Can I switch to Long Iced Teas which is effectively (3-4 "drinks") and still have it only counted as one drink?

[/ QUOTE ]

We just account for things reasonably here. I imagine we'd agree a big Long Island in a pint glass we'd probably count as 2. This is not a science, though. And we're too old to drink Long Islands anyway.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ok your plan still sucks. Don't limit your fun. And yes, drinking = fun.

Or, smoke more pot.

[/ QUOTE ]

I just find that when I don't think about this stuff at all, I often just end up by default going out and drinking all night in NYC. Trying to keep some level of awareness of how much I'm going out and drinking tends for me to actually increase my overall level of fun because I feel so much better drinking even just a little less. Of course, I'm a lot older than you kids and don't have quite the recuperative powers of my youth. Right out of school I was in technology consulting on out-of-town projects all the time aka professional drinker. Then I was part-owner in a bar.... Anyway, letting things "just flow" often ends up with me hanging out w/ friends at Luna Park on Sunday afternoon saying "man, I can't believe we ended up going out so much last week, I feel like crap. Ready for another round?"

[/ QUOTE ]

Ok I agree. And am the same way...27 and after 10+ years of drinking I feel 37. That being said. It's not that bad to have fun. Because you definitely only have a few more years to do this.

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
Of course, I'm a lot older than you kids and don't have quite the recuperative powers of my youth.

[/ QUOTE ]

As an aside, anyone under 25 might have a hard time believing this, but I agree that once you hit the slope after 25, it's amazing how much harder it is to recover after a hard night of drinking. Which is another reason the drink budget is probably a good idea for an elder like El D.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
Which is another reason the drink budget is probably a good idea for an elder like El D.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're perilously close to getting out of line, whippersnapper.

[Alobar]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Of course, I'm a lot older than you kids and don't have quite the recuperative powers of my youth.

[/ QUOTE ]

As an aside, anyone under 25 might have a hard time believing this, but I agree that once you hit the slope after 25, it's amazing how much harder it is to recover after a hard night of drinking. Which is another reason the drink budget is probably a good idea for an elder like El D.

[/ QUOTE ]

No joke, I dont even think I ever had a hangover till I was around 25. Getting old sucks.

[mason55]

I said not very much. I play poker with friends every tuesday and drink a 6 pack over ~6 hours of playing. On nights I don't go out I usually have a couple beers while I hang out at home, which puts me at about 14 from S-R. I almost always go out both saturday and friday where I'll have anywhere from 6-15 drinks each night. Generally the number is around 8 though, which puts me a 30 in an average week. I only ever get drunk on friday and saturday and if I have 8 over the course of an 5 hour night out then I won't even get drunk then.

I don't know, 20 doesn't sound like very much to me. I'm 22, single, living in NoVa. I'm a computer programmer, however I pretty much set my own hours, so if I do go out to a bar and drink a lot on a weeknight I can go into work at 11 the next day.

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Which is another reason the drink budget is probably a good idea for an elder like El D.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're perilously close to getting out of line, whippersnapper.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, my comeuppance may come this next weekend, because it's going to take my years of drinking experience to effectively plan my attack and survive Vegas with all of the young'ins who will be there.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]

My first week in NYC, I had over 40 drinks. Ditto for the second week. In addition to feeling like crap, this also resulted in skipping a lot of workouts and eating all kinds of crappy, unhealthy bar food. It is unreal how easy it is to go out from 6p-3am every single night in NYC, even when you're hanging out w/ a bunch of gainfully employed successful senior-level people who work on Wall Street. NYC has a very big drinking culture.


[/ QUOTE ]

I have friends in NYC, all in the 23-25 age range. They all work for Ernst & Young and probably go to "company functions" at bars three times a week where the company covers the tab for everything (and once a week or so even picks up all the Blue Label they can drink). They probably average 40 during the week. I know when I go visit them (where I dont' have worry about driving from DC back to NoVa) I can easily put away 30 in a weekend.

[IndieMatty]

ditto. my whole body aches sometimes.

[IndieMatty]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

My first week in NYC, I had over 40 drinks. Ditto for the second week. In addition to feeling like crap, this also resulted in skipping a lot of workouts and eating all kinds of crappy, unhealthy bar food. It is unreal how easy it is to go out from 6p-3am every single night in NYC, even when you're hanging out w/ a bunch of gainfully employed successful senior-level people who work on Wall Street. NYC has a very big drinking culture.


[/ QUOTE ]

I have friends in NYC, all in the 23-25 age range. They all work for Ernst & Young and probably go to "company functions" at bars three times a week where the company covers the tab for everything (and once a week or so even picks up all the Blue Label they can drink). They probably average 40 during the week. I know when I go visit them (where I dont' have worry about driving from DC back to NoVa) I can easily put away 30 in a weekend.

[/ QUOTE ]


haha. I must owe Unlce Ernie thousands of dollars because of [censored] like this.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]

haha. I must owe Unlce Ernie thousands of dollars because of [censored] like this.

[/ QUOTE ]

Haha... what'd you do at E&Y? Still work there? My friends all work doing computer security auditing. Soudns like an awesome place to work.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
Haha... what'd you do at E&Y? Still work there? My friends all work doing computer security auditing. Soudns like an awesome place to work.

[/ QUOTE ]

I can't imagine you'd find very many E&Y employees who seriously think of their company as "an awesome place to work."

[gonores]

[ QUOTE ]
As an aside, anyone under 25 might have a hard time believing this, but I agree that once you hit the slope after 25, it's amazing how much harder it is to recover after a hard night of drinking.

[/ QUOTE ]

You posted this while I was writing a post very similar to it, although it was more of the "drink budgets are gay for 95% of the people who read this" tone. I dread the day when my friends and I have to tell each other with a straight face that it might be a good idea to curtail the drinking a bit.

[nolanfan34]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
As an aside, anyone under 25 might have a hard time believing this, but I agree that once you hit the slope after 25, it's amazing how much harder it is to recover after a hard night of drinking.

[/ QUOTE ]

You posted this while I was writing a post very similar to it, although it was more of the "drink budgets are gay for 95% of the people who read this" tone. I dread the day when my friends and I have to tell each other with a straight face that it might be a good idea to curtail the drinking a bit.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, at a certain point, you either curtail it on your own, or you go the route of one of my friends and have a doctor tell you that certain levels of antibodies in your liver are dangerously high, so you have to stop drinking for a while. That way is also quite effective.

[IndieMatty]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

haha. I must owe Unlce Ernie thousands of dollars because of [censored] like this.

[/ QUOTE ]

Haha... what'd you do at E&Y? Still work there? My friends all work doing computer security auditing. Soudns like an awesome place to work.

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh no, my friends worked/used to work there. Accounting sucks IMO.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Haha... what'd you do at E&Y? Still work there? My friends all work doing computer security auditing. Soudns like an awesome place to work.

[/ QUOTE ]

I can't imagine you'd find very many E&Y employees who seriously think of their company as "an awesome place to work."

[/ QUOTE ]

As I said in my post, everyone I know is in the computer security division, where the rules are very lax and the company is very giving. I wouldn't want to be in the financial side of it.

[stankybank]

budget for drinking sucks. just don't get drunk every night.

[IndieMatty]

And to add to this, even some of the accounting peeps think it's great, like the ones whose job it is to make sure Derek Jeter actually signs the baseballs and what not. Seems like a cool job to not be on the tax side and what not;

plus Derek's dreamy.

[offTopic]

[ QUOTE ]
Ok I agree. And am the same way...27 and after 10+ years of drinking I feel 37.

[/ QUOTE ]

hahahah...FU. /images/graemlins/cool.gif

Anyway, at 27 + 10 years of drinking, I'm guessing you still feel better than 37.

---

BTW, I voted "quite a lot, but not crazy". 37, single, steady GF.

I'm a Silicon Valley cubicle monkey, and probably average 1-2 drinks/week, though consumption is sporadic. I'll occasionally tie one on with some friends, and then not have a drop for a month. This thread has made me thirsty, though, so I'm going to go have a beer.

[ElSapo]

In weeks where I'm out a lot, I probably have 30+ drinks in a week. In weeks where I don't, it's probably about 20 or so, and most of that is from drinking wine with dinner.

If I'm "going out," then 10 drinks in a night is pretty normal. Twice a week, and there you are. And I'm out more than twice a week...

28 years old, journalist in D.C. No kids. Not married. Girlfriend, yes.

[edtost]

19, college student/caddy/hedge fund intern, nyc suburbs

i voted 'not very much', but get the feeling i may not think that way in a few years...

[Lazymeatball]

My only recomendation for this plan would be change the week from sun-sat to something like thurs-wed. It would suck to be over budget everytime saturday night rolls around. Whereas if I went bust by monday I could suck it up knowing thursdays right around the corner.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
It would suck to be over budget everytime saturday night rolls around.

[/ QUOTE ]

Needing to plan for Saturday night is a key element in this plan.

[The Dude]

[ QUOTE ]
Needing to plan for Saturday night is a key element in this plan.

[/ QUOTE ]
Why don't you just start the week on Friday?

[PokerFink]

I'm a single, 20 year old college junior (in the fall) at a major party school.

I would have a difficult time staying under a 20 drink limit. And I don't even consider myself a heavy drinker compared to my friends.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Needing to plan for Saturday night is a key element in this plan.

[/ QUOTE ]
Why don't you just start the week on Friday?

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, that plan would just be "don't drink Sun through Thurs."

[CCass]

quite a lot, but not crazy


I am 38, married with 3 kids, and I live in the first notch of the bible belt (TN). I have done way more than 20 in a weekend in my day, but that was then. 20 sounds like a good over/under for Vegas this weekend.

[Dubra]

recent college grad, 21, have a girlfriend.
20 drinks would not be out of line for a long night for me let alone a week. if i had to guess i would put the average drinks for my friends and i at about 85-90 a week. but then again several of us are budweiser promoters = free drinks at the bar all night. i think 20 may be reasonable if you are drinking lightly for 2 nights or social drinking during meals.

[Schneids]

Perfectly reasonable.

Cut out some of the drinks at meals, add in a few of the drinks at nights. Then you're rolling.

[CardSharpCook]

If you're drinking 20 drinks a week, "drinking" has likely become your primary recreational activity. It....doesn't have to be this way. You can do a thousand other things that don't involve alcohol (or mj, for that matter). Go bike riding, play basketball, tennis, hiking, baseball games (yes, you can watch without drinking), dancing, movies, cards (woops, wrong crowd), reading, etc etc.

I think a small segment of 20-somethings (and surprisingly, yes, you all are in the minority) make drinking their #1 recreational activity. This isn't particularly healthy (for the reasons El D mentioned).


CSC

oh BTW, 25, poker player/cook, 0-4.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]
If you're drinking 20 drinks a week, "drinking" has likely become your primary recreational activity. It....doesn't have to be this way. You can do a thousand other things that don't involve alcohol (or mj, for that matter). Go bike riding, play basketball, tennis, hiking, baseball games (yes, you can watch without drinking), dancing, movies, cards (woops, wrong crowd), reading, etc etc.

I think a small segment of 20-somethings (and surprisingly, yes, you all are in the minority) make drinking their #1 recreational activity. This isn't particularly healthy (for the reasons El D mentioned).


CSC

oh BTW, 25, poker player/cook, 0-4.

[/ QUOTE ]

When I played Ice Hockey I practiced 5 times/week, played 2-3 games/week, and still found time for dating and 30+ drinks/week. If you drink two drinks with each dinner, you're already at 14. Go out ONE night/week and you can easily hit 25.

[CardSharpCook]

Mason, you don't think that 2 drinks with EVERY dinner might be a bit much? Are there really no non-alcoholic beverage options? 11 drinks when you go out is normal and "ok"?

Outside of Hockey practice, how did you spend your freetime? Physical activity definately tempers drinking, but it can still become your primary recreational activity. I reached a point in my life where I thought that seems somehow wrong. There are better things out there. There are better ways to spend your time. Don't think that I don't love people, and socializing, but it doesn't always have to be over a beer, does it?

CSC

[mason55]

i don't see how drinking a couple beers at each dinner means i have nothing better to do than drink? i just enjoy the taste of beer. some people like soda, i like the taste of beer.

[Ponks]

20 drinks is nothing. When at school I'd say I prob go through 60-80 on an average week.

20 years old.
Play Poker.
Single.
Live north of chicago, or go to school at UIUC.

Ponks

[Nepa]

[ QUOTE ]
recent college grad, 21, have a girlfriend.
20 drinks would not be out of line for a long night for me let alone a week. if i had to guess i would put the average drinks for my friends and i at about 85-90 a week. but then again several of us are budweiser promoters = free drinks at the bar all night. i think 20 may be reasonable if you are drinking lightly for 2 nights or social drinking during meals.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds like you should join the 100 beer weekend club.

Myself, I did go though a period where I drank over 1000 days st8. Kids have lowered my drinkin' budget to 1/10 of what i use to drink and yes I do have irish in my genes.

[Blarg]

That's a little less than a six-pack every other day, just by numbers. Not excessive in my book. All those guys a generation or two ago who were drinking three-martini lunches were getting close to that before they even went home in the evening, where the first thing they would do on coming in the door was pour a drink -- maybe a double if it was a hard day.

We drink a lot less these days and think a lot more of it. It's not really good for you, but I don't think many people kid themselves that it is.

Ever see any of those Do You Have an Alcohol Problem? type questionnaires in magazines, though? Kind of like the Do You Have Untreated Depression? or whatever ones. Anyway, according to the measures of people who make their living if you say yes to any answer, it's pretty easy to come up with a yes. From those quizzes doctors consider "heavy drinking" a really low amount -- definitely less than 20 beers a week. More like two a day, if I recall correctly.

So if you ask a doctor, your plan is terrible, pretty dangerous, and probably shows that there's something really wrong with you. Not that a lot of them aren't on drugs. /images/graemlins/smile.gif Basically having half a six-pack a day definitely makes you a drinker, but I bet your average Frenchman drinks that much or more.

It doesn't seem that bad to me, but I'd probably take some time-outs to give your liver a break, and definitely you should research vitamins and supplements that help protect your silver. Sylmarin(milk thistle) is a very good one, and cheap and easy to find in any drugstore. Vitamin B-1 is another. If you're even asking if you're drinking might be too much, you probably know it's less than ideal for your health.

[Zeno]

Simple Twist of Fate


They sat together in the park
As the evening sky grew dark,
She looked at him and he felt a spark tingle to his bones.
'Twas then he felt alone and wished that he'd gone straight
And watched out for a simple twist of fate.

They walked along by the old canal
A little confused, I remember well
And stopped into a strange hotel with a neon burnin' bright.
He felt the heat of the night hit him like a freight train
Moving with a simple twist of fate.

A saxophone someplace far off played
As she was walkin' by the arcade.
As the light bust through a beat-up shade where he was wakin' up,
She dropped a coin into the cup of a blind man at the gate
And forgot about a simple twist of fate.

He woke up, the room was bare
He didn't see her anywhere.
He told himself he didn't care, pushed the window open wide,
Felt an emptiness inside to which he just could not relate
Brought on by a simple twist of fate.

He hears the ticking of the clocks
And walks along with a parrot that talks,
Hunts her down by the waterfront docks where the sailors all come in.
Maybe she'll pick him out again, how long must he wait
Once more for a simple twist of fate.

People tell me it's a sin
To know and feel too much within.
I still believe she was my twin, but I lost the ring.
She was born in spring, but I was born too late
Blame it on a simple twist of fate.

by Bob Dylan

[mason55]

Wanna tell you a story,
About the house-man blues
I come home one Friday,
Had to tell the landlady I'd-a lost my job
She said that don't confront me,
Long as I get my money next Friday
Now next Friday come I didn't get the rent,
And out the door I went

So I goes to the landlady,
I said, "You let me slide?"
I'll have the rent for you in a month.
Next I don't know
So said let me slide it on you know people,
I notice when I come home in the evening
She ain't got nothing nice to say to me,
But for five year she was so nice
Loh' she was lovy-dovy,
I come home one particular evening
The landlady said, "You got the rent money yet?",
I said, "No, can't find no job"
Therefore I ain't got no money to pay the rent
She said "I don't believe you're tryin' to find no job"
Said "I seen you today you was standin' on a corner,
Leaning up against a post"
I said "But I'm tired, I've been walkin' all day"
She said "That don't confront me,
Long as I get my money next Friday"
Now next Friday come I didn't have the rent,
And out the door I went

So I go down the streets,
Down to my good friend's house
I said "Look man I'm outdoors you know,
Can I stay with you maybe a couple days?"
He said "Let me go and ask my wife"
He come out of the house,
I could see it in his face
I know that was no
He said "I don't know man, ah she kinda funny, you know"
I said "I know, everybody funny, now you funny too"
So I go back home
I tell the landlady I got a job, I'm gonna pay the rent
She said "Yeah?" I said "Oh yeah"
And then she was so nice,
Loh' she was lovy-dovy
So I go in my room, pack up my things and I go,
I slip on out the back door and down the streets I go
She a-howlin' about the front rent, she'll be lucky to get any back rent,
She ain't gonna get none of it
So I stop in the local bar you know people,
I go to the bar, I ring my coat, I call the bartender
Said "Look man, come down here", he got down there
So what you want?

One bourbon, one scotch, one beer
Well I ain't seen my baby since I don't know when,
I've been drinking bourbon, whiskey, scotch and gin
Gonna get high man I'm gonna get loose,
Need me a triple shot of that juice
Gonna get drunk don't you have no fear
I want one bourbon, one scotch and one beer
One bourbon, one scotch, one beer

But I'm sitting now at the bar,
I'm getting drunk, I'm feelin' mellow
I'm drinkin' bourbon, I'm drinkin' scotch, I'm drinkin' beer
Looked down the bar, here come the bartender
I said "Look man, come down here"
So what you want?

One bourbon, one scotch, one beer
No I ain't seen my baby since the night before last,
Gotta get a drink man I'm gonna get gassed
Gonna get high man I ain't had enough,
Need me a triple shot of that stuff
Gonna get drunk won't you listen right here,
I want one bourbon, one shot and one beer
One bourbon, one scotch, one beer

Now by this time I'm plenty high,
You know when your mouth a-getting dry you're plenty high
Looked down the bar I say to my bartender
I said "Look man, come down here", he got down there
So what you want this time?
I said "Look man, a-what time is it?"
He said "The clock on the wall say three o'clock
Last call for alcohol, so what you need?"

One bourbon, one scotch, one beer
No I ain't seen my baby since a nigh' and a week,
Gotta get drunk man till I can't even speak
Gonna get high man listen to me,
One drink ain't enough Jack you better make it three
I wanna get drunk I'm gonna make it real clear,
I want one bourbon, one scotch and one beer
One bourbon, one scotch, one beer

[turnipmonster]

2 things that constantly amaze me about nyc are how many fine women there are walking around, and how many bars manage to stay in business.

what's the magic number for getting buybacks at the places you've been going? generally in brooklyn it's buy 3-4 and the next one is free, although this varies a lot by neighborhood and bar. I rarely get buybacks in manhattan, but am not usually at buyback type places anyways.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]
2 things that constantly amaze me about nyc are how many fine women there are walking around, and how many bars manage to stay in business.

what's the magic number for getting buybacks at the places you've been going? generally in brooklyn it's buy 3-4 and the next one is free, although this varies a lot by neighborhood and bar. I rarely get buybacks in manhattan, but am not usually at buyback type places anyways.

[/ QUOTE ]

Generally I drink in 2 places: East Village and Williamsburg. I have never gotten a buy back in the village and I almost always get 4:1 everywhere in Williamsburg.

[turnipmonster]

8-10 drinks for me, more if I have a gig that involves free booze. 28, software+music, recently married, brooklyn, no kids.

[turnipmonster]

I have tied one on in billyburg quite a bit, and never gotten worse than 4:1 except at greenpoint tavern, I'm a lightweight and couldn't drink more than 4 of those styrofoam buckets anyways /images/graemlins/smile.gif.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]
I have tied one on in billyburg quite a bit, and never gotten worse than 4:1 except at greenpoint tavern, I'm a lightweight and couldn't drink more than 4 of those styrofoam buckets anyways /images/graemlins/smile.gif.

[/ QUOTE ]

Such a dilemma. I always stay in Jersey City which makes the trip from Williamsburg a bitch at 5am but it's such a better deal than drinking in the villiage.

Ahhhh... the dilemmas of being a rich white American male.

[Alex/Mugaaz]

Sounds like early alcoholism to me buddy. Mom was a huge alcoholic. It looks like you at least see that you're overdoing it a bit. I'm a bit biased however, so take it with a grain of salt. I just think alcohol is hard to actually enjoy when you partake on a regular basis, if you do that it's just a ritual, and the only difference between you and an AA member is repetition.

[x2ski]

[ QUOTE ]
20/week is a good steady pace, but not anywhere near what an alcoholic would do.

[/ QUOTE ]

I once heard that alcoholics aren't defined by how much they drink over time, but the compulsion to get drunk.

The example was that a person who only drank once a year (birthday, New Year's Eve what have you), but HAD to get wasted, would be considerd an alcoholic.

When I worked at a Subway restaurant in my late teens my manager told me she never drank (but puffed like crazy) except on her birthdays, when she would down to bottles of Asti.

[Blarg]

I think for alcoholics it can become a lifestyle, to a great degree. Being drunk becomes their normal state, and they don't really want to live any other way.

I think they often enjoy it, but that enjoyment isn't the real reason they drink anymore. And they probably drink when they don't particularly feel like it.

[mason55]

[ QUOTE ]
I think for alcoholics it can become a lifestyle, to a great degree. Being drunk becomes their normal state, and they don't really want to live any other way.

I think they often enjoy it, but that enjoyment isn't the real reason they drink anymore. And they probably drink when they don't particularly feel like it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Interesting thread about alcoholism (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=exchange&Number=2059767&Fo rum=All_Forums&Words=%2B"drinking%20alone"&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Main=2059767&Search=true&wh ere=bodysub&Name=18222&daterange=1&newerval=1&newe rtype=y&olderval=&oldertype=&bodyprev=#Post2059767 )

From a couple months ago.

Edit: I don't know what's going on with my post, I used the URL link.

[IggyWH]

I voted for "not very much", but it really all depends on what you're comparing it to.

For me, I'm comparing it to this past weekend. Our friend was in from Boston so it was just a crazy boozing weekend. Starting Friday for Happy Hour and ending when we passed out Sunday morning, I can't even begin to count how much I drank. I can guarantee I had over 20 drinks in that short time alone and that's not even counting when we kicked things off Thursday night.

That was extreme, but I don't see 20 being all that much on a normal week either. There's always Friday Happy Hour, there's always Franzia Friday after Happy Hour and before the club, and then there's $1 drinks at the club. Then there's bar hopping after the club and then there's after-hours club. Then, it's pretty much a repeat on Saturday and that's not including if we get together Saturday afternoon for something. Add in a couple drinks at the club Thursday night and going to wing night at the local bar and 20 drinks gets blasted out the water for me in a week.

This is a good reason why I'm giving up drinking for the next month. I'm far from being an alcoholic, but sometimes you just got to ease up on things so you don't go over-doing it.

As for the stats you wanted, 24/civil engineer bitchboy/pittsburgh/single and no kids

[deacsoft]

I voted that it's a reasonable number. I used to drink a lot (40+ a week). Then I cut waaaaaaaaay back for about a year (<5 every couple weeks). Now that it's nearly summer and the weather has been great I find myself drinking and partying quite a bit.
I'm coming up on 25.
I play poker and write for a living.
I live in Shawano, WI (but am moving to Bloomington, MN in Aug)
I'm single.
I have a 7 year old daughter.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
2 things that constantly amaze me about nyc are how many fine women there are walking around, and how many bars manage to stay in business.

what's the magic number for getting buybacks at the places you've been going? generally in brooklyn it's buy 3-4 and the next one is free, although this varies a lot by neighborhood and bar. I rarely get buybacks in manhattan, but am not usually at buyback type places anyways.

[/ QUOTE ]

It shouldn't matter whether you're at a dive or swanky place if you're cool to the bartenders. Depending on the place 2:1 to 4:1. At places where I'm a regular it usually turns into more of a "pay whatever."

[Richie Rich]

According to a reliable source, "men who drink 14 or more drinks per week are 'High-Risk Drinkers'".

Men on the next level are classified as "Problem Drinkers".

[WEASEL45]

what is a buy back?

[Richie Rich]

[ QUOTE ]
I probably spend about 50/wk on alcohol.

[/ QUOTE ]
You can expect to spend much, much more "on alcohol" when you start buying drinks at bars.

[mperich]

I must be a HUGE problem drinker. Oh well, I'm 20 and play poker 20 hrs a week. Tough not to drink in my scenario, or so I tell myself =O

-Mike

[karitek]

Not crazy. I drink at least that I'm sure. I'm 27, living in NYC too (where I think all people do is drink - it's such a bar culture), work as a event producer and am single/no kids.

[karitek]

[ QUOTE ]
I have tied one on in billyburg quite a bit, and never gotten worse than 4:1 except at greenpoint tavern, I'm a lightweight and couldn't drink more than 4 of those styrofoam buckets anyways /images/graemlins/smile.gif.

[/ QUOTE ]

i actually forgot about buy-backs. over the past couple years I've found that I don't end up staying at one place long enough to accrue them.

Ah greenpoint tavern....the dive of all dives. good stuff.

[Shajen]

I voted a reasonable number. You're single right, mid-20s? (I'm totally guessing here, I have no idea) This would be considered moderate, but if you are also looking to shed a few lbs, then this is certainly doable.

I'm 30
Married
telecom industry (IT)
no kids

[razor]

[ QUOTE ]
Edit: I don't know what's going on with my post, I used the URL link.

[/ QUOTE ]

Links generated by the search function contain characters that mess up the URL link.

TinyURL.com (http://TinyURL.com) is your friend.

[sfer]

Typically 3-4 to 1 for me, and this is in the East Village or near my apartment where I know the bartender.

[turnipmonster]

[ QUOTE ]

It shouldn't matter whether you're at a dive or swanky place if you're cool to the bartenders.

[/ QUOTE ]

at a manhattan jazz club, you'll never get a buyback.

[Jersey Nick]

[ QUOTE ]
Anyway, we were wondering what people thought.....

Along with your answer, I'd be interested in hearing how old you are, what you do for a living, where you live, and whether you're single/married/have kids/etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

In my late thirties in Jersey, Financial IT, married 9 years to the bride, and one child.

In Jersey I have to drive everywhere which definitely means no after work cocktails. 1 or 2 a day at home is more than enough for me. Back in the day as a single 27 y.o. Chicagoan, 30-40/week was average.

20/week for you sounds very reasonable.

[Freakin]

Seems like a lot to me. I guess I got bored of drinking sometime after my sophomore or junior year of college... It doesn't look like you are going out with getting drunk as the end goal, so I'd just say stop when you feel comfortable. I think it's probably hell on your body to drink that much in 2 or 3 days, but 20 is better than 40.

Freakin

[anonymous_acct]

What, are you 18? No need to live your life by a silly set of rules, just have some self control. One idea: stop going to happy hour, the chicks suck at that time of day anyway. Start your evening w/ dinner at 9/9:30. Then you're at the bar from 11 until you find a hot chick, which is maybe 5 drinks average for me. Sometimes you'll say [censored] it and go drink 20 drinks in a night, so be it. That's what being an adult is all about--you get to make your own decisions.

[Ulysses]

[ QUOTE ]
just have some self control.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds good in theory.

[ QUOTE ]
Start your evening w/ dinner at 9/9:30.

[/ QUOTE ]

Good idea. As I wrote later in the thread, that is something I have started doing. Makes a huge difference.

[Stellastarr]

My friends and I use to go out on weekends and we would have the "Long Island Tour". Everywhere you go, thats all you would drink. We would be so F'ed up by the end of the night. I miss the good ol' days. Now he's married. lol

[KaneKungFu123]

the only time i drink is with the intention to get completely [censored] faced.

i dont really get having one or two drinks here or there before dinner; sounds like sometihing middle aged stock brokers do, but maybe you are drinking nicer stuff then Beer Chang.

20 seems a little short. i think 25 is more reasonable.

[NorCalJosh]

i said that 20 was not very much. i am 21, just got out of a long term relationship, living in san francisco alone, managing a cingular wireless store. i tend to go out at least friday and saturday, with thursday thrown in as well on occasion. heavier drinking weeks i easily end up more than doubled the 20, and i dont consider myself a heavy drinker at all.

[samjjones]

[ QUOTE ]
My friends and I use to go out on weekends and we would have the "Long Island Tour". Everywhere you go, thats all you would drink. We would be so F'ed up by the end of the night. I miss the good ol' days. Now he's married. lol

[/ QUOTE ]
Is your friend gay as well? J/K.