Flashback Friday: All I Need Is the Air that I Breathe

There must not be any Booze Hounds in the Missouri State Senate. Yesterday, the senators voted to ban alcohol vaporizers. Boo! I mean, if ever there were an invention that fell into the Now-That's-What-I'm-Talking-About! category, it's alcohol vaporizers.

The machine allows liquor vapors to go straight to the lungs and into the bloodstream, instead of passing through the stomach and liver.

Sellers promote it as a way to get a buzz without the calories, carbohydrates or much of a hangover.

Apparently, lawmakers think this might be dangerous. "That's just death waiting to happen if we don't ban these," said Sen. Luann Ridgeway. The Viper disagrees. Finally, my liver doesn't have to do all the work.

These machines, dubbed AWOL -- that's alcohol without liquid -- are sold in the United States by Spirit Partners Inc., based in Greensboro, N.C.

The AWOL uses pressurized oxygen to atomize the alcohol into a breathable form. That means Team BHI members finally have a use for all this lung capacity we've gained through running. Now, that's a breath of fresh air.

See, running does improve your boozing!

Benched!
Well, after three days off, I went for a five-mile run yesterday. The prognosis does not look good for the Shamrock 15K this weekend. My knee isn't happy today. The good news is I don't think it's my ITB.

The other good news is I already have a resolution for 2009: don't get injured early in the season. This is the second year in a row that I've had early season knee pain.

Northeast Ohio is supposed to see 7-10 inches of snow this weekend. Sounds like a good opportunity to rest. For once, this crap weather might do me a favor.

Friday night happy hour is nearly upon us. Have a fine weekend. Don't forget to spring ahead on Sunday. Drink well and run well (if you can).