Sunday is St. Patrick's Day -- which means we have a “party” holiday on the weekend. Here’s a rundown of some stuff you need to know about the big day:
- 60 percent of Americans plan to celebrate St. Patrick's Day this year, which happens to be the fourth most popular drinking day in America, behind only New Year's Eve, Christmas and the Fourth of July.
- $5.9 billion will be spent -- and 13 million pints of Guinness will be served.
- Cabbage shipments increase 70 percent in the week leading up to the big day, with over 30 percent of Americans celebrating by preparing a traditional Irish meal.
You'll see plenty of fall-down-drunk idiots at the bars for St. Patrick's Day this weekend. Don't be one of them . . . A recent study looked at the most common ways we HURT ourselves while we're drinking. And it found the average alcohol-related injury happens after about 8 drinks for guys, and 6 drinks for women. Here are seven more stats from the survey . . .
1. The type of alcohol linked to the most injuries for MEN is beer. And for WOMEN, it's vodka. The top five overall are beer, vodka, whiskey, tequila, and rum.
2. The ten most common drinking injuries are bruises, cuts, scratches, broken bones, and sprains. And 88% of people who've broken a bone while under the influence said it wouldn't have happened if they were sober.
3. The body parts you're most likely to injure are your leg, arm, face, hand, and head.
4. The most common PLACES for a drunk injury to happen are at a house party . . . at home . . . on the road . . . at a bar or restaurant . . . and on the sidewalk.
5. The most common occasions for drunk injuries are birthdays, New Year's Eve, a college party, and a work celebration.
6. The average drinker has had two drinking-related injuries. The most common age it happens is 22. Then it spikes again at 25 and 35.
7. 23% of us have started a drunken fight before. And when people were asked why they started a fight, the #1 answer was . . . "I don't remember."
BY THE WAY if you end up partying a little too hard and feel terrible on Monday morning, here are four tips on how to call out sick from work without raising too many eyebrows . . .
1. Keep it brief. Less is more here . . . tell your boss as little as possible without being cryptic. Explaining the details of your "sickness" isn't really necessary, and the more specifics you add, the more suspicion it can cause.
2. Acknowledge bad timing. Your boss knows it's the day after St. Patrick's Day, so NOT mentioning it would be suspicious. And unless you spent all week bragging about how wasted you're going to get this weekend, you should be fine.
3. Only tell people on a need-to-know basis. Follow your company's policy, but generally you should only need to tell your boss and any coworkers who might be affected by your absence.
4. Be realistic with your abilities. If you're legitimately not feeling well, it's okay to say you won't be available to answer emails or calls. And if you anticipate being out for a few days, try and give your boss as much notice as possible.
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