That fine academic example of Afro-Engineering reminded me of something I'd been meaning to write about for a while.

This summer I got to go to Hawaii. While there I notice that every time we filled up our garbage can with beer cans, someone would come and rummage through our trash to get them. Then I noticed why: in Hawaii, as well as many other eco-minded states*, aluminum and glass bottles require a $.05 deposit. Us dumb Main-Landers didn't realize that can we crushed on our heads was a little piece of silver coinage. Realizing this, the wheels began turning.

Would it be possible to actually drink my way to Hawaii? I started looking at the beer cans I was drinking anyway and my eyes saw nickels. So to figure this out I did a little research.

First off, how much does a ticket to Hawaii cost and what does that translate to in cans of beer? Today, the cheapest ticket I could find was $636 and this is 12,720 cans of beer. Because I'm drinking beer anyway, the cost of the beer is a sunk cost.

Next, how do I get the cans over there? Checked luggage is the obvious answer, but upon closer examination I realized that beyond the 2 free pieces of carry on, each bag of up to 50 pounds costs $50. On the other hand, I can ship via the USPS where each box only costs me $43.68.

Assuming that each can weighs 1/24th of a pound, it will take 8 boxes, for a total shipping cost of $330.11.

So in the end I actually didn't find a way to fly to Hawaii free, but I did find a way to save 48% on a ticket. More importantly than that, epically for all you hippy ass motherfuckers is that I'm helping to save the world -- by drinking beer.

Ok, so my room mate just told me that they tried this scam on Seinfeld. Damn.

...and that alone it'll take me something like 20 years to drink that much beer at my current consumption rate. Fuck.