"Spiritus" of the Holiday Season

Three things to consider, today, class:
1.The Latin word for "breath" is "spiritus."
2. People, being human, drink (more?) alcohol during the Holidays.
3. The combination of these two yields the phrase "Spirit of the Holidays."
Without waxing too philosophical about the interconnectivity of the soul, the breath and the spirit, the ancients (and not-so-ancients) would often pass a mirror under the nose of a suspected dead person to see if his "spirit" had truly left him. If he did not fog the mirror with his exhaled breath, he was considered "gone." CPR had not yet been invented; hence he was consigned to the poetically-named "narrow house." A coffin.

It appears the more things change, the more they stay the same, as modern-day law enforcement relies on a breath test to determine whether a person--especially a driver--is intoxicated. Like it or not, the instrumentation is pretty sophisticated--and rarely in error. While failing that test won't send you to a narrow house, it could well send you to the "big house."

What to do? What to do?

Simple. Give yourself a breath test before you hit the road to learn whether you are "in the clear" or "in the bag." On the lower right side of this column is a link entitled "Home Breathalyzer Test." It will take you to the same page as the link before this sentence. Clicking that link will take you to a site where you can match technology with 5-0. In fact the first link on that page will take you to a product I am currently testing via two subjects who are very likely candidates for developing ticket-worthy BAC levels--two NJ college men. They will, of course, remain anonymous for the duration of the field test of the two devices I have given them, but they have promised to report on the efficacy of the devices. I, in turn, will report their findings to you; but for $22, the device, if it works as advertised, is a steal. Clearly, its purpose is noble--to alert you as to what your BAC content is on a pocket-sized instrument that local law enforcement will likely employ if they suspect you of driving while impaired--and to hopefully prevent you from making a stupid choice to drive if it is higher than allowed.

Tragic deaths due to drunk driving always hurt.
But they seem to hurt more during "The Holidays."

Check out the links, then check back here in late December for the report on those devices by my field testers.

And let me be among the first to say, "Merry Christmas!"