Why you should keep alcohol in your cupboard

I learned today's home remedy from my mother-in-law. My husband and all of his siblings swam competitively. With all of that swimming, swimmer's ear was a common problem. She went to see the doctor about the problem with one of her son's. She was given a prescription for a tiny bottle of ear drops, that cost $50. When she went back to get a script for a refill, the nurse advised her to just go and get a bottle of Everclear alcohol, and fill her ear drop bottle with it. The last time I went to the liquor store, you could get an 8oz bottle of Everclear for $4, and that bottle will last a looong time (ok, I haven't even been to the liquor store, my mom went and we split the bottle). Swimmer's ear is essentially an ear infection and Everclear, being 180 proof, will kill almost anything. I keep mine in a glass medicine dropper bottle and have managed to quickly squelch a few ear infections with just a few drops each time.
On a side note, my grandma always used to say that if you mixed a few drops of Everclear with a tablespoon of hot lemonade and gargled it, it would cure a sore throat. I wouldn't be surprised if it did, it would be like a fire-lemon mouthwash. But my throat has never hurt enough to induce me to try this method.