Check it out.  (PDF Version)

You won’t find it in the Guinness Book of World Records, but Andre the Giant holds the world record for the largest number of beers consumed in a single sitting. These were standard 12-ounce bottles of beer, nothing fancy, but during a six-hour period Andre drank 119 of them. It was one of the few times Andre got drunk enough to pass out, which he did in a hallway at his hotel. His companions, quite drunk themselves, couldn’t move the big man. Fearing trouble with cops, they stole a piano cover from the lounge and draped it over Andre’s inert form. He slept peacefully until morning, unmolested by anyone. Perhaps the hotel people thought he was a piece of furniture.

Think about it: 119 beers in six hours. That’s a beer every three minutes, non stop. That’s beyond epic. It’s beyond the ken of mortal men. It’s god-like.

Really helps one put his 7-foot-4-inch 540 pound self into perspective, doesn’t it?

But there’s more to this tale of youthful debauchery than a just a few oohs-and-ahhs from the awestricken peanut gallery of us mere mortals. Seems that Andre once needed surgery, and his anesthesiologist was very happy to know the story. The article goes on to relate the following tale.

The time arrived, and the anesthesiologist was frantic. He had never put a person of Andre’s size under the gas before and had no idea how much to use. Various experts were brought in but no solution presented itself until one of the doctors asked Andre if he was a drinker. Andre responded that, yes, he’d been known to tip a glass from time to time. The doctor then wanted to know how much Andre drank and how much it took to get him drunk.

“Well,” rumbled the Giant, “It usually takes two liters of vodka just to make me feel warm inside.”

And thus was a solution found. The gas-passer was able to extrapolate a correct mixture for Andre by analyzing his alcohol intake. It was a medical breakthrough, and the system is still used to this day.

Here’s hoping that the medical procedure is aptly named. Cheers.

Anyone else think it’s a little unusual that Bill Nye is included in this list? I do. At least one guy’s friend agrees with me.

Here’s a link to a similar tool on the Nikon website.  (Warning:  has sound.)

link

It’s probably not what you’re thinking.

Get High Now is an illustrated, mind-blowing magic carpet ride of more than 175 ways to alter human perception and consciousness—without drugs or alcohol.

Based on science—not subjective New Age hearsay—Get High Now explores the worlds of neurology, biology, and physiology through meditations, illusions, common herbs, audio and visual stimulations, and some bizarre anthropological discoveries.

Among the listed highs: Cheese. Rumor has it that a 2007 British study showed that 67 percent of people who ate one ounce of certain cheeses before bed reported wild, fantastical, and sometimes life-changing lucid dreams.

Crazy & life-changing dreams, you say? Sign me up!  (I’ve just ordered my copy from Amazon.)

Bonus: The book’s website made Time’s 50 Best Websites of 2009 list.  So it has that goin’ for it.  Which is nice.