Friday Night Vodka Buzz. Ask me anything.

[Aristus]

Two shots to get the party started.

Now enjoying a Metaxa Sidecar tonight. Or at least, I would be if I had any Metaxa. Not even any ouzo as a substitute.

So, just brandy, limoncello, lime juice, and orange juice. Yummy!

Hope all is well with you. If I was our beloved SalmonChantedEvening, I would call you ‘my lovelies.’ But that’s his thing. I’ll just say:

I love you all…

[biophile]

1. Does Mrs A share your drinks, too?

And how’s the new job?

[Aristus]

2. She doesn't drink.

She’s enjoying some bottled water right now.

I know, I know…

I start my new job on January 27th. But I had another manager meeting at the clinic yesterday. And I had my provider photo taken. One thing I have detected already is that the providers and staff of the clinic are very liberal, and devoted to service of underserved and underinsured people.

That means everything to me.

[biophile]

4. It should be a pleasure to work with like minded folk

I know that I hated working with MAGATs - I was the only one in my department who wasn’t drumpf-humper 🙄😑

[Aristus]

5. You don't run in to a lot of right-wingers in community health.

Where I spent fourteen years of my practice. My new employer is not community health, but they are a not-for-profit. So I’m sure they attract progressives to work for them.

[WestMichRad]

3. Ask you anything? We'll, maybe not that...

But what did you think of Elton John’s comments dissing legalization of marijuana?

I for one thinks he paints with an overly broad brush. The “gateway drug” bs is an old trope. Some people respond very differently than others. Am sure that lots of people use cannabis responsibly, just like most can use alcohol responsibly. And some can’t handle their _____. (Fill in the blank with your vice of choice.)

[Aristus]

6. Just old-man ranting, that's all.

He had his fun. Now he’s being all disapproving. I’ve been telling my patients for years that I don’t have a medical objection to cannabis. I don’t encourage them to use. But I’m up front about my opposition to the criminalization of drugs. It’s just a feeble excuse to put people in prison.

[WestMichRad]

13. Him ranting, indeed.

I was disappointed that someone who has been on the forefront of pushing social boundaries would… I dunno, retreat, maybe (groping for the right word)… to such an intolerant attitude.

I agree with you, people with drug addiction problems need love and support, not ostracism and persecution.

[True Dough]

7. If your nickname wasn't "Chesty,"

what would it have most likely been? What other defining qualities would have factored in?

[Aristus]

8. One of my first barracks mates when I first got to Germany called me Sweet Pea.

I don’t think it was meant to be complimentary. I was already proving myself an anomaly among tankers. I liked fine food, fine wine, Shakespeare, and classical music.

I eventually grew into the hard-drinking image of the tanker. But it took a while. And not everyone liked the ‘real’ me.

[WestMichRad]

15. Pardon my ignorance, but...

… just what is/was a “tanker”?

[Aristus]

16. A tank crewman.

The guys who sit inside all those tanks you see in the war movies.

My baby was the M1A1 Abrams tank. Incredible piece of machinery. Crewing a tank is one of the coolest things I’ve ever done, and I treasure every memory.

[OldBaldy1701E]

9. I had a few friends that moved from North Carolina to Pullman, Washington.

Have you ever been there?

[Aristus]

10. No.

It’s home to Washington State University, and I’m a UW man. Plus, in order to get there, one has to drive through hundreds of miles of Eastern Washington Trump Country, with MAGA signs hung in every farm field. Scaring the crows more effectively than any scarecrow could.

[OldBaldy1701E]

12. Well, considering where he moved from,. he would not notice anything different.

That area is overrun with rethug sycophants as well.

And yes, he did take a job at WSU.

[Captain Zero]

11. Hey brandy here too!

And a nice glass of Malbec, and I just popped a gummie, and put a pizza in the oven.

Rooting for my IU Hoosiers, and I've called ND every name in the book, and that's not working.

Haha. The gummie will help.

[Aristus]

14. Malbec? Argentine or Chilean?

I like both at different times for different reasons. But if I had to choose, I’d say Chilean. Spicy notes with a nice finish. Not as smooth as the Argentine variety, but wonderful in its own way.