Flavor, Nostalgia and the Economics of Alcohol

I remember my mother's cooking. Ever hear of something called "Mock Pizza?" If I remember correctly you cook up ground beef in a skillet, spread it over some Pillsbury pizza crust, covered with slices of American cheese then baked. That was the version we knew about as kids. Would you eat that again on a T.V. tray and watch old taped reruns of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom followed by Walt Disney then Columbo or McCloud on Sunday night just that nostalgia vibe?

Who knows, it might awaken some other repressed memories that will leave you in a fetal position on the floor, evacuating your bowels uncontrollably.

I never understood why people pay so much for their favorite beer, gin, rum, vodka, whiskey, bourbon, schnapps or whatever, to get basically the same effect from the same molecule of alcohol they could get from Everclear, which is 95% pure alcohol, or 190 proof, but so much cheaper than those ridiculous special brands.

I think people delude themselves into believing they love a "single malt" whatever, or they're good at "putting on airs." I can't stand any of that. I just mix 50 ml of Everclear with 65 ml of Margarita mix and about 100 ml of water over ice and it tasted delicious.

How much does it cost? Let's do the math:

EVERCLEAR GRAIN ALCH             $18.99   (750ml) / 50 ml = 15 units.
 MSTR MIX MARGARITA                $3.99  (1000 ml or 1Liter) / 65 ml = 15.385 units.
Tax Rate       Taxable Amount   Tax Amount
  Tax 2..8.7       22.98           2.01
  Total Tax:                      $2.01
     "Card used"                    $24.94 / 15 drinks = $1.67 per drink.

Maybe all that expensive beer and name-brand specially distilled whatever brings back memories of fun times, but WTF are you spending for it?

A typical beer is 12 oz and has about 5 or 6 percent alcohol, so 12 x 0.06 = 0.72 ounce of alcohol. How much does that cost?

Some quick notes

I worked for six months in a room populated mostly by women who often forgot that I was there and comfortably spoke their minds. I noticed some interesting differences between men and women after listening for quite some time.

Managing money:

Most of the ladies with whom I worked were married and spoke generously about their nuptial financial arrangements. Their husbands always seeemed to have the same responses during shopping. "We can't afford that."

One woman said that her husband ordered something in the mail and wouldn't tell her what it was. She was furious. Somewhere in the conversation she said "I keep track of every penny so I know exactly what I can spend." That got me thinking.

Men manage money by pretending they don't have any at all, until they see something they really like. Women manage money by keeping track of every cent, knowing immediately if an item they see is affordable.

Which is the lesser of two evils? No clue.

The odor:

My room sometimes has an odor that lingers even after I clean it. Turns out it's my laundry.

I once was lazy and started buying extra underwear on weekends I didn't feel like doing laundry. I accumulated a large quantity of socks and shorts and would neglect them until the dresser drawer was empty.

Just having a laundry basket with more than one week's laundry can be offensive to others even if you get used to it, and believe me, you do get used to it. Throw all your extra socks and shorts out. Don't keep more than will last between one laundry cycle.