beer

Do you recall the joy of blowing bubbles? One of the most fun gifts to give young children is a bottle of soapy ‘bubble stuff’ with a wand to dip into so that it can be waved around to create tiny bubbles floating on the air – or to blow through carefully to make the largest bubble possible.

Bubbles floating on the air is enjoyed by adults just as much – witness how often they are used at weddings or special celebrations. The rainbow colours caught in the light and changing as the bubbles move seldom are almost guaranteed to make people smile.

It is chasing after the bubbles and trying to catch them that provides very young children with endless fun.

Then they grow older, learn to swim, and begin to appreciate bubbles in a different way by trying to make as big a splash as possible in a swimming pool.

Our children grow older still and so, on a hot day, they might prefer the bubbles of condensation on a cold bottle of beer over diving into the swimming pool.

The bubbles foaming at the top of a glass once the bottle has been opened is a far cry from those first bubbles chased across the lawn.

Generally speaking, people are encouraged to drink between four to six cups of plain water daily in order to remain hydrated. Do you? Of course this will vary depending on your level of activity, the temperature of the day, and what other fluids you imbibe in the form of juices, tea, coffee or alcohol.

A perusal of sites on the internet reveal that a gallon of beer (over three litres) formed part of a sailor’s daily ration on sailing ships. An alternative would be three cups (under a litre) of watered down wine or one cup (250 ml) of watered down spirits. It is the label on the wine featured below, Tin Cups Smooth Red, which set me off on this track of daily rations.

According to the blurb on the label, a liara was a tin cup measurement for the crew’s daily ration of wine. I cannot find a reference to a liara in this sense.

My search nonetheless sent me down information paths that informed me that, as beer did not last very well on long sea-voyages, the Royal Navy used either wine or spirits. The latter included brandy (sourced whilst in the Mediterranean), arrack from the East Indies, or rum from the West Indies. Apparently in time the West Indian merchants lobbied the Navy until rum became the standard spirit everywhere. The diluted rum became known as Grog. The practice of issuing rum to sailors in the Royal navy was discontinued in 1970, while New Zealand’s navy only abolished it in 1990.

My preferred ‘daily ration’ is tea – although I am happy to drink it in un-rationed quantities.

What is yours?