In a perfect world, teenagers would not SAY "I don't drink."
Okay, that sounds sort of wrong. But let me explain. So, at Inglemoor (or at least the IB faction thereof) there aren't really problems with drugs. Except occasionally Ritalin abuse, but that's complicated and quite rare. There aren't many who are highly sexually active. However, some IB-ers drink. And they are very open about it too. And state it as normal behavior. I know that some of my friends drink. I'm not going to name them, because even though I discourage the behavior, they're still my friends and I don't tell everyone on earth who is drinking and who isn't. They know that I won't drink--at least I think they do. They've never asked me, but I'm kind of a notorious goody-goody, Molly-Mormon (which isn't a bad reputation to have, may I remind you).
So, today in French class, the subject of Scotch came up (because that's the French word for that type of tape. Just plain "scotch.") I was sitting with two boys while we wrote paragraphs, and one of them stated that he could use some scotch right then (speaking French and not speaking of the tape--yes I already knew he drinks). I said that I'd never tasted scotch, and that I don't really have any desire to ever have it. The other boy said, "I don't drink so..." I followed by saying I don't either.
To tell you the truth, though I know this boy as a solid acquaintance but not a best friend, I didn't know whether he was a drinker or not and he's the type that could go either way. I was glad to hear that he had decided not to be one (whenever someone says that they don't drink, I am glad for them), but it struck me, why should he have to say that? Shouldn't it be something assumed in a high school? We're all under twenty-one. So legally, not just morally, we should all be non-drinkers. We never have to say, "I'm not married" in high school. No one is. However, people act shocked if someone is in shock from a statement such as, "Vodka has a peppermint after taste," "I don't like beer," or "Gin is good." (Yes, all of these are phrases that I have heard at high school, actually all of them in a classroom during a worktime or such). Why do we have to define ourselves as non-drinkers?
I repeat, in a perfect world, teenagers would not SAY "I don't drink." They wouldn't drink, but they'd never actually say it.
So, today in French class, the subject of Scotch came up (because that's the French word for that type of tape. Just plain "scotch.") I was sitting with two boys while we wrote paragraphs, and one of them stated that he could use some scotch right then (speaking French and not speaking of the tape--yes I already knew he drinks). I said that I'd never tasted scotch, and that I don't really have any desire to ever have it. The other boy said, "I don't drink so..." I followed by saying I don't either.
To tell you the truth, though I know this boy as a solid acquaintance but not a best friend, I didn't know whether he was a drinker or not and he's the type that could go either way. I was glad to hear that he had decided not to be one (whenever someone says that they don't drink, I am glad for them), but it struck me, why should he have to say that? Shouldn't it be something assumed in a high school? We're all under twenty-one. So legally, not just morally, we should all be non-drinkers. We never have to say, "I'm not married" in high school. No one is. However, people act shocked if someone is in shock from a statement such as, "Vodka has a peppermint after taste," "I don't like beer," or "Gin is good." (Yes, all of these are phrases that I have heard at high school, actually all of them in a classroom during a worktime or such). Why do we have to define ourselves as non-drinkers?
I repeat, in a perfect world, teenagers would not SAY "I don't drink." They wouldn't drink, but they'd never actually say it.
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Further, vodka is not well suited for distillation in a pot still, the usual device for hand-crafted liquors. So, the alcohol of choice is industrial-grade beverage alcohol produced at 190 proof by Archer Daniels Midland and several other industrial distillers. It is shipped in - your choice - either rail tankers or tanker trucks to the bottlers of high-society vodka, who cut it with some kind of designer water and and fashion an advertising campaign based on some "hook" that their marketers hope will catch your imagination. A kicky label helps, too.
The silly things one learns from cooking...