Rules to Drinking, a guide on the social expectancies when drinking with friends:

1. Clean yourself up and look nice, no one wants to go out with someone who hasn’t shaved or run a brush through their hair (or mouth for that matter).
2. Drink plenty of water before going out, dehydrating yourself with Alcohol will only get you into trouble later.
3. Eat something before going out, this will save you money from food at a restaurant and can help keep you from getting sick from your drinks.
4. Be lively and fun, but not rude, you’re going out to meet up with people.  You don’t want to annoy them as soon as you see them.
5. Remember the adage:  Liquor before Beer you’re in the clear, Beer before Liquor you’ve never been sicker…
6. Don’t refuse a free drink from a friend, but make sure to buy rounds also
   1. BUT politely refuse a drink from a stranger, especially if you didn’t see it pored.   No reason to make some poor guy / girl buy you a drink when you’re not into them at all.  Plus it can be dangerous if you don’t know whats in it.
7. Don’t overdo the drinking… Contrary to public belief there is more where that came from so don’t feel the need to drink it all at once.
8. Take breaks and alternate to non-alcoholic drinks (remember rule #2, water is key)
9. Drinking games can be fun, but they can also make you go way past your limit.
10. Know your limit and stop before you go to far.
11. Goggles are for swimming, stop before you can’t see straight or when you judgment gets clouded.
    1. A good way to tell if your judgment is off picture your grandmother / grandfather if they look attractive to you in any way then you’re way past the point of making sense.
12. Always leave when your friends do, if they think its late enough to leave then it is.
    1. Friends you just met tonight don’t count, NEVER leave with someone you just met at a bar.  Get their number and meet up some other time (see rule #11 on judgment)
13. If you spill a drink while bringing it to your lips, its time to put it down and go home.
14. Always finish the night with plenty of water, this is the number one thing that will stave off hangovers.

A Service announcement from Windy City Novelties, Inc.

A lot of people always sit and wonder who invented this drink of drinks that we call Beer!  While its been around in one form or another (usually in the form of mead) for thousands of years the modern drink’s creation can best be described by this song:

A long time ago, way back in history,
when all there was to drink was nothin but cups of tea.
Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mops,
and he invented a wonderful drink and he made it out of hops.

He must have been an admiral a sultan or a king,
and to his praises we shall always sing.
Look what he has done for us he’s filled us up with cheer!
Lord bless Charlie Mops, the man who invented beer beer beer
tiddly beer beer beer.

The Curtis bar, the James’ Pub, the Hole in the Wall as well
one thing you can be sure of, its Charlie’s beer they sell
so all ye lads a lasses at eleven O’clock ye stop
for five short seconds, remember Charlie Mops 1 2 3 4 5

He must have been an admiral a sultan or a king,
and to his praises we shall always sing.
Look what he has done for us he’s filled us up with cheer!
Lord bless Charlie Mops, the man who invented beer beer beer
tiddly beer beer beer.

A barrel of malt, a bushel of hops, you stir it around with a stick,
the kind of lubrication to make your engine tick.
40 pints of wallop a day will keep away the quacks.
Its only eight pence hapenny and one and six in tax, 1 2 3 4 5

He must have been an admiral a sultan or a king,
and to his praises we shall always sing.
Look what he has done for us he’s filled us up with cheer!
Lord bless Charlie Mops, the man who invented beer beer beer
tiddly beer beer beer.

The Lord bless Charlie Mops

Original lyrics thought to be written by British Royal Navy crew members.  Re-sung lyrics above from the Clancey Boys version.

Do:   Have tons of Beer

Don’t: Dye it Green thinking it will look cool, looks don’t count here and the coloring kills the taste!

INSTEAD:  Use Glowing Green Cups or Beer Mugs

Do Have the party at your house instead of a Bar

Don’t go cheap and skip the decorations or themeing, otherwise you’re just having people over to drink… instead of CELEBRATING!!!

INSTEAD:  Use tastfully tacky decorations to give your rec room or garage that Irish feel complete with Shamrocks and Pots of Gold!

Do Have a lot of people over, the More the Merrier!

Don’t act like a scrooge (british litterary character Not Irish!) and have two or three people, again that’s not a party and it won’t be any fun!

INSTEAD:  Advertise your party to all your neighbors with a custom banner themed to St. Patrick’s Day!  Why make them jealous?  Be the talk of the street with inviting them all

Do use paper plates and serving bowls.

Don’t use real plates that need to be washed and dried for hours after the event, you’ll thank me later.

INSTEAD use themed paper plates and utensils to get that extra GREEN needed for St. Patricks Day, again dyed food doesn’t taste good while a green plate gets the point across!

Do buy all your Party Supplies necessary from Windy City Novelties, Inc.

Don’t over pay by going to a local party store or worse yet, a grocery store…

INSTEAD save 40-75% by buying direct online again at Windy City Novelties, Inc.

Kiss me I’m Irish!  At least for tonight I’ll be Irish, for tomorrow I might be out of sightish.

Oh St. Patrick’s day… Fun and merriment, a time when everyone claims to have descended from the green fields and moors of the fair island Ireland.  And a perfect time for every one to host their own Patty’s day Party.  Why go out and pay for overpriced beer, especially when they don’t even know how to make good corned beef and cabbage?!?

And if you do decide to have your own fun, do it right with decorations, banners and merriment.  In fact in our next post we’ll even have a Do’s and Don’t’s of hosting your own St. Patrick’s Day Party.

In fact don’t forget to tell your friends and family about your party.  The easiest way to do that is to make an obnoxiously large banner and hang it on your front lawn for all to see!

Enjoy and remember to purchase all your St. Patrick’s Day party items at Windy City Novelties, Inc.

This question comes up more then you might think:  Why host a party?  Why go through the trouble and expense just to have people over to eat your food, drink you refreshments, and dirty up your house?

The simple answer is that being social and having a group of friends will benefit you down the line when you’re looking for companionship, help on some issue, or even when you’re bored on a Saturday night and there’s no good movies on.

Getting past the deeper meaning you should host a party to keep the party stores in business… Just kidding, parties are great ways for people to let off steam and relax.  It allows an opportunity to be with people they enjoy to celebrate an occasion.

For many of us, who have become to busy with work or family functions, throwing a party is one of the few times we have to see our friends.  All to often we fall out of touch with people that were integrel to our High School, College, or 20’s lives.  Those that saw us at our worst and cheered us at our best.  This is serious though, too often people don’t realize what friendship means.

But the main reason to throw a party is simply that if you don’t do it who will?

a public service message from ThePartyFAQ.com

Okay, I get asked a lot of questions regarding our banners, lets go ahead and answer them:

What is a customizable banner?

A customizable banner is a a template that we create that allows you to add your own text to it to create really awesome themed party decorations.

How do I customize it?

Simply visit us online and choose from our more then 500 wall and door banners! Then select the one you want and start typing!  If you get confused watch this YouTube video for guidance.

Is it plastic?  Will it tear easily?

No to both questions.  We use high quality vinyl material in all our banner printings.  It is rated to last 3+ years OUTSIDE IN THE ELEMENTS!!!

Okay I have the banner now what do I do with it?

Hang it either outside your party location to let guests know where you are, or inside to help create the theme!  Attach them to walls or posts either with the 4 corner gromets or with sticky tack or tape.

Enjoy and remember to visit Windy City Novelties, Inc. for all your party needs

Christmas, Chanukhah, and even Ramadan have quickly approached this year.  You’re probably getting ready for Turkey and Ham, Latkas and Brisket, or some freekeh and falafel (seriously I’m hungry just writing these all down).  But the real question is do you have all the paper goods you need?

Really think about it, do you want to spend the entire next day cleaning dishes and loading the washer?  Wouldn’t you rather have festive plates, bowls, knifes and forks and then simply dispose of them?

Click on the image to view our Hanukhah paper goods

Click on the image to view our Chanukhah paper goods

Are you a Chanukhah fan?  You like playing dreidel? Lighting the Menorah?  Then how about our Hanukah plates.

By the way if you’ve ever wondered why Chanukhah is spelled so many different ways its because its a Hebrew word transliterated into English, and unfortunately there’s no standard for Hebrew-English translations.

Christmas more your thing?  Enjoy Rocking Around the Christmas Tree?  Listening to the story of Cindy Lou Who?  Well then we’ve got the plates for you!  How about:

January 20th, 2009

A date which will go down in American history as a turning point for our country.  Whether you are a Republican or Democrat we can all undoubtedly agree that this is an amazing event.

If you’re like me you weren’t invited to any Inaugural Balls, but maybe you plan on being home watching the event?  Maybe you’ll want to have others over to watch history being made.  Or maybe you simply like throwing parties.  Whatever your inclination might be Windy City Novelties has some of the best items to help you throw a spectacular Inauguration Party.

By far and away the two most popular items are the Obama luminaries and the Obama themed Lumiloons!

Some fun facts about inaugurations:

• George Washington was inaugurated as president on April 30, 1789!
• Thomas Jefferson was the first president inaugurated in Washington DC
• John Q. Adams used a book of US laws instead of the bible to swear upon.
• Chief Justice John Marshall presided over 9 inaugurations
• Woodrow Wilson, Dwight Eisenhower, and Ronald Reagan  were sworn in 2x, once privately and then publicly
• Franklin D. Roosevelt was the only, and will never be matched due to new term limitations, President to be sworn in 4 times
• Lyndon Johnson was the only President sworn in on a plane, hopefully never to be repeated
• The book of Psalms contains the most quoted Bible passages at inaugurations.

You can even put these fun facts, or just about anything else you    want on one of our banners.  Check out this version of our customizable banner in patriotic colors.

If you’re planning a dinner party, or cocktails then you’re definitely going to want some of our Patriotic centerpieces

Patriotic Centerpieces help make any dinner party into an Obama party

Everyone loves to get an award, so why not incorporate that into your next Halloween or dress up party?  Some saucy minx find a costume too irresistible to ignore?  Well then award her with the Sexiest Costume award.

someone go above and beyond the call and really sever their hand to be the most real looking zombie victim?  Or do they look so much like Richard Nixon that you really are afraid that you might be wire tapped?  Then award them with the Headless Halloween Award.

Having a more family orientated party and don’t want to scare the begeebers out of an adorable child with a skeleton award, but want them to know how awesome they look?  Well then we have the perfect Best Costume Award.

Tons of choices for you to choose from at Windy City Novelties, Inc.

Ladies and gentlemen, no longer do you have to make tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions to get Senators, and presidential hopefuls, McCain and Obama to appear at your next party or social gathering.  I am happy to announce that you can have the rare pleasure of having both of them side by side in your home for the low low price of only $63.90 ($31.45 each).

How is this possible you ask?  Well easily if you order from Windy City Novelties.  While not picking partisan lines I can tell you that the 6′ tall Barak Obama and 5′8″ John McCain are both stand up men that you can’t help but want to prop up in front of all your friends.

Just imagine how you’ll be the talk of the town when you announce that not one, but both of the presidential candidates will be in your home or office indefinitely.  Although for being in the public eye so much I’m surprised at how little they each have to say, literally nothing.  And it looks like their smiles never leave their faces… Maybe they know something we don’t.

Not a political afficianado? Windy City Novelties has the perfect solution with tons of stand-ups ranging from Austin Powers™ to the Three Stooges™.

All these and more are available online at Windy City Novelties, Inc.

Senators McCain and Obama do NOT endorse these statements.  The Three Stooges, and Austin Powers are registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Social message:  Remember to vote and make your voice heard for our future.