Vintage Outlandish!

This Content From 2003 (or earlier) see index

Hangovers

" It only takes one drink to get me drunk, but I can't remember if it's the thirteenth or fourteenth."

-- George Burns

The Morning After

I don't want to freak anyone out here, but I kind of enjoy a good hangover. Not a terrible hangover where I start to loose my grip on reality and get sick and want to die just to escape the pain, but a nice little reason to sleep in late if I can and take it easy for a day.

I have found that I'm more inclined to whistful creativity in the light embrace of a hangover. Maybe, say, the slight delerium that comes from just one too many beers (as opposed to 3 or 5). It gives one perspective, a sort of animalistic regression to simplemindedness. Maybe it's just because I enjoy the quietness of the mind.

I also have found other morning afters (pot, ecstasy) to produce similar effects, though each with their own style and substance. In reality, the recovery from taking a chemical into your body is as much an altered state as being under the influence of said chemical. Though often not as classically pleasent or powerful, this is still a time to get interesting perspective on your life and times.

And now for the obligatory list of hangover remedies. For when you take it too far or you don't have time to sleep in, relax, take it easy and enjoy your recovery:

Shower: clean the outside, helps the inside feel better.
Food: if you're a lumberjack at heart and/or you have a hearty stomache, good greasy breakfast food is nice. If that sounds a little tall or repugnant, banannas (and softish fruit) and good bread are also excellent. I also find spice to be nice. Sushi is the mother of all hangover foods: lots of raw energy and wasabi to clean the system from the top down.
Water: hydrate hydrate hydrate!
Coffee: hey, it's the quickest way to get rockin'! Beware it's counter effects on your H₂O levels.
Ibuprophen: pain killer of choice. It doesn't thin your blood as bad as asprin and doesn't conspire to kill your liver like acetominaphen (Tylenol).
Alka Seltzer: not a favorite, but if you can keep it down it can make life livable.
The Toilet: empty your bowels to make room for the processing of more toxins. Don't be afraid of if you get sick. It might just bail you out.