The unofficial start to the summer is fast approaching. Can I get a collective WOOT!! please? Victoria Day Weekend is almost here. What am I saying? I’m Canadian for toque-sake…
May two-four is almost here.
This post is about something that is important all year round, but since cottage, camping and patio season is upon us (again, can I get a WOOT!) it’s time this is mentioned again.
This post is not really directed at the ones that choose to drink and drive because, well, I don’t get you. I don’t know how you can drink and get into your car with everything that we know. We everything that we see. We everything that we read. How about this post from a woman who is 5-months pregnant and was just rear-ended by a drunk driver?
Actually, I do get you. Because I did it once. I was 19. I thought I was being responsible. I think I had three drinks in the span of about three or four hours and I *felt* fine. I could walk, talk and everything as if I was sober. Or so I thought. I got in my car and drove out of the parking garage. As I exited the garage, I drove over the curb slightly and though, “Ooo. Maybe I shouldn’t be driving.” But then I thought, “But it’s only a few blocks away.” I drove home without incident. THANK GOD. My life could have changed in those five minutes. I never did it again.
I also had moment in college when I friend said, “How did we get home last night?” “Um… You drove!” I never trusted him behind a wheel again, either.
Here’s another wake-up-call moment a co-worker of mine had. He lived in Port Hope (which is where “Wheels” of Degrassi hails from – more about him later on in the post). He relayed a story about how he used to drink and drive all the time. Every weekend. Some weeknights. A few times a week. One morning he turned on the news and it changed him forever. There had been an accident. A four-year-old boy had been killed. This boy was killed only a couple blocks over from where my co-worker had driven that night. And it happened at almost exactly the same time. “That could have been me that killed that kid,” he said. It shook him up. He doesn’t drink and drive anymore.
Remember “School’s Out: Degrassi High”? The final episode/movie to cap off Degrassi High was brutal in it’s realism. The f-word was uttered – twice – on prime time Canadian television. There was a near-drowning scene. And then there was this one. Going back and watching this scene now shakes me to the core. Go to 5:30 for the aftermatch of the accident drunk “Wheels” caused. Now that I’m a parent, the ten-seconds that starts at 5:50 almost made me throw up. Definitely made me cry. I can’t even imagine. Click on the image to view the video in another window.
I see drinking and driving the same way I see firing a loaded weapon into a crowd.
You’re lucky if you DON’T hurt or kill someone.
But this post isn’t about those who choose to drink and drive. It’s about YOU.
The one who can stop it.
The LCBO has a fabulous initiative called Deflate the Elephant. You can check out their Facebook page for great tips and some mocktail recipes.
They also have a great website with some scenarios to work through, as well as a handy iPhone app. The app is a great thing to have handy, as it gives you examples on how to word things at different points in the festivities.
Our hope is to deflate the elephant BEFORE it’s too big for the room. When someone has been drinking, it’s pretty hard to convince them not to drive. Get solid plans in place BEFORE.
Have taxi numbers handy.
Make sure designated drivers are decided (I married someone who doesn’t drink, so I’ve got one built in – if we ever go out together….).
And make sure they have fun beverage options. Here’s fun one from Cocktail Deeva (who is also a FAB twitterer).
Have options for guests to stay over. And as Dee mentions in her video above, have extras such as toothbrushes and deodorant for last-minute overnight guests to make them feel welcome.
It is up to each and every one of us to make sure there are ZERO drunk drivers on the road. If we all take some responsibility maybe we can make sure our roads, our friends, our families, our KIDS are safe.
Not sure what we can do to make drinking and DANCING safe, though…
*This is not a sponsored post. I was approached by Dee to write a post around Deflate the Elephant. All opinions are my own.*
