The good folks of Maine were stricken by some sort of disease last month. None of us knew what it was, but nearly all of us were affected, me included. At first, I thought it was a simple head cold induced by some dust that was cast into the air by a propane heater fan. Dust has been a trigger for me for most of my life. In fact, back in 2012, I trained Muay Thai at a club in Connecticut that used forced hot air as its heat source. The heat used to run while we were in class. That year, I caught seven head colds in the one season due to the dust spewed from the system. It was terrible.
Again, this year, I thought my illness was triggered by dust, but once others began presenting the same, or similar, symptoms, I knew that couldn’t have been the source. It must have been germ based. Stemming from either bacteria or from a virus, most likely a virus since it was contagious. Seemingly everyone was getting it. People from town, people from the food pantry, and people from jiu-jitsu class. Everyone. What’s worse was that this particular illness lasted weeks, unlike any other I’ve ever experienced. The symptoms began in the sinuses, moved to the head as a headache, and then moved to the throat and chest. Poor Laura even caught it and weeks later, is still coughing from lung irritation. Weird.
Just to let you know, I tested myself for COVID and the test came back negative. I’m suspicious of the test though because I have an odd feeling COVID had a part to play with this. Our collective susceptibility was just too coincidental. The thing moved too fast, was too debilitating, and lasted too long.
The disease isn’t what I wanted to discuss in this post though. It was merely a prelude to the suggested medicament, which is as entertaining as entertaining can get.
I volunteer with an old-school Maine woman. She moved to the state during her early teen years and has yet to leave. She’s now in her 80s and knows the rules of the road, so to speak. Basically, she’s seen a lot of things and knows how it all works in this part of the country.
Last week, as I was nearly healed from the suffering of my dreadful malady, this wonderful woman and I were speaking on the front steps of our organization. She noticed the lingering affliction in my eyes and indicated that I still appeared to be sick. I didn’t feel sick anymore, but I apparently still looked it.
She told me, “You know what will really kick this from your system?”
Of course I wanted to know, so I replied, “What? Oh please tell me so I can pass the information on to Laura. She’s still ill.”
My friend informed me of the cure and it goes like this: “Get yourself a big glass and fill it half way with whiskey. Then fill the other half with water, drink the entire thing, and go to bed. When you wake up in the morning, you’ll feel great!”
I couldn’t believe it. I thought this suggestion was the best thing ever.
I told her, “C’mon, that can’t really work,” to which she replied, “Hey, it’s worked for me. I’ve drunk that and when I woke up the next morning, I had no idea where I was.”
I do love Maine and I love the people in it. This whiskey cold cure is just about as Maine as it gets. Basically, drink enough to knock the cold right out of your soul. While I have no idea if this particular remedy actually has any positive effect on a person’s health, I’d certainly agree that a half glass of whiskey ingested in one gulp would make just about anyone feel…different. If I drank that much in one sitting, my cold would most likely be the last thing I’d be concerned with the next morning.
While straight-up whiskey therapy for a cold might not be the best road to travel down for most people, I’ve heard good things about what’s referred to as a hot toddy. What’s a hot toddy, you ask? It’s a simple drink that can ease the symptoms of just about anything. Here’s the very straightforward recipe:
Hot Toddy Recipe
¾ cup water
1 ½ ounces whiskey
2 to 3 teaspoons honey, to taste
2 to 3 teaspoons lemon juice, to taste
1 lemon round
1 cinnamon stick
Mix the liquid ingredients in a glass and toss in the lemon round and cinnamon stick. Drink up and enjoy. Sounds good to me, especially while sitting in front of a cracklin’ wood stove. See ya next time.
