Photo by gemma.amor/Flickr CC
For some people, the holidays signal one thing and one thing only: it's time to drink. Having to spend time with relatives is an instant cue to consume copious amounts of beer, wine, and nog. It's the seasonal equivalent to Pavlov's dogs. Me, I save only one holiday for drinking of that magnitude. That's Repeal Day, the second greatest holiday next to Christmas itself.
Each year on December 5th I celebrate the repeal of Prohibition in the United States, which happened in 1933. When that special day comes around each year I make an extra effort to exercise my God-given right to imbibe with gusto and finesse. I also honor flag and country, my profession, and all things congenial. Drink after drink, I toast the blessed country, the greatest profession on Earth, and all of my friends. In fact, toasting is an essential part of Repeal Day and a popular pastime prior to Prohibition.
I have toasts packed away like extra drawers on vacation and let them loose on that special day. Here's a particularly patriotic one:
The Frenchman loves his native wine;
The German loves his beer;
The Englishman loves his 'alf and 'alf,
Because it brings good cheer.
The Irishman loves his " whiskey straight,"
Because it gives him dizziness.
The American has no choice at all,
So he drinks the whole damn business.