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"FacebookPinterest\n\nThis may sound obvious, but it's important to note for drinking newbies, especially since Thanksgiving marks the beginning of pro-drinking season: imbibing with your relatives is different than pounding a sir with your bros.\n\nIf you're like most recent college graduates whose exposure to drinking has mostly been around your peers at college (or sneaking some sips of the handle of Ketel One when mom and dad were on vacation) drinking with the family can be an odd experience. Where boozing was once a source of joyful rebellion, it's now just a normal part of adult life like shopping at Home Depot.\n\nBut don't fret, newly minted adult drinker: here's how to show your family you're not just a post-collegiate amateur lush and have fun while doing it:\n\n\u00B7\u00B7\u00B7\n\n It's a marathon, not a sprint\n\n The old way of drinking? Drink as much as you can, for there will always be a toilet to throw up in, or a nearby Popeye's to satiate the gnawing emptiness in your stomach. The new, adult, grown-ass man way of drinking? Just like all the liquor ads say: enjoy in moderation. If you get too slurred before the appetizers run out you're missing the point of holiday boozing: to better facilitate conversation and closeness with your loved ones. Or, if you're family is dysfunctional like most, just to make things bearable until you can grab a drink with your high school friends after dinner.\n\n Don't get greedy...\n\n If you're lucky enough to be dining at the house of a more well-to-do relative, don't let your eyes outpace reality: You're still a ruddy-faced cub with no business dipping into the liquor cabinet unless explicitly directed. Sure, you feel like an adult when you demonstrate you've moved past slamming Busch Lights in your dorm room, but your uncle didn't spend all those years amassing a fine collection of aged whiskey just to watch you pour yourself a double of Macallan 25. He bought that case of Heineken for a reason, and you'll do well to remember that.\n\n ...in the open, that is\n\n Of course, feel free to pilfer when backs are turned. Why should feel guilty about overdrawing the Knob Creek when you've still got all that student debt to pay off? Do a full vertical pour when your uncle's taking a leak, and quickly drain it before he realizes you've upgraded to the alcoholic 1%.\n\n Be careful of where you pass out\n\n Oh how comfortable the couch in the living room seems. You'll only curl up for a second with a blanket on your lap, flipping to AMC's Godfather marathon just in time to watch Michael Corleone chew out Fredo for being a dipshit. But soon enough you'll be dead to the world, snoozing while supine or sitting up as your relatives circle your ennervated husk, tsking at your poorly concealed sloppiness. If you feel yourself getting the vapors, find a safe space to lay down for a second\u2014a spare bedroom? a study?\u2014or, failing that, find a cup of coffee and start slapping yourself to stay awake. Appearances matter, and you don't want to be the topic of everyone else's drive home. \"Did you see Mary's boy? Such a shame. If only he hadn't gone to journalism school.\"\n\n Remember and respect your relationships\n\n Simply because you're sharing in the drunken holiday spirit doesn't mean the youngs aren't still youngs and the olds aren't still olds. Don't use your liquid courage as an excuse to ask questions far beyond your clearance level. Now's not the time to wonder why your cousin is estranged from the family, or whether your since-remarried uncle has seen his kids since the custody settlement. You are not that close in this moment, I promise.\n\n Don't forget to give thanks\n\n Your customary Irish exit won't work here, even if you think you've earned the right to forgo one of Grandma's pinched-cheek kisses just because you don't want her to burst any more blood vessels in your face. Remember to thank whoever did the cooking, especially if they also provided the alcohol; your day of fun didn't just come from anywhere! Be grateful, and maybe next year you'll get a pour of that Macallan 25."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.gq.com/story/from-frat-to-family-6-tips-on-drinking-with-the-relatives-post-college>