Here is a little life tip. Listerine and prescription drugs are not a natural mix.
That bit of wisdom is for me; not for you. Unless you would like to add it to your own account of Things I Should Have Known. But I am certain none of you have done anything similar to what I did the other night.
I have a nightly routine before I slip my aging bones between the sheets.
There is a bottle of water on my bathroom counter -- for taking pills and brushing teeth. A bottle of Listerine stands sentinel beside it.
The routine is simple. I take my pills with a swig of water. I then gargle and swish with the Listerine. And I finish off with a frenzy of teeth brushing.
It is the habitual motion of a well-greased machine. Almost.
I must have slipped a cog on Monday night. I tossed the pills in my mouth, grabbed a bottle, and gulped down the pills.
You have undoubtedly already figured out what happened. Instead of the water, I swallowed the pills with Listerine. A large gulp of it.
The back of the Listerine bottle is quite clear about warning against swallowing the contents. It is not toxic. But it certainly is not gastric-friendly. As I was to discover the next morning. (At least, I made it through the night without incident.)
I have been a regular Listerine user since my dental hygienist informed me it was a better course than trying to get the role of Bleeding Gums Murphy on The Simpsons.
That is when I discovered the tanker truck Costco size of Listerine bottles. In all kinds of flavors -- including my favorite, vanilla mint.
That luxury ended when I moved to Mexico. Mouth wash is a rare find around here. When I can find a bottle of Listerine, it is always small, in a generic flavor, and expensive.
But that is true for most imported products. NAFTA has not completely removed the customs duty sting. And because a bit of protectionism has managed to survive, even products produced under license in Mexico do not have a true market value.
I have found local (and cheaper) substitutes for a lot of my purchases down here. It may be time to start looking for the Mexican equivalent of Listerine.
Until then, I will try not to waste any more of this liquid gold as a drug accessory.
