Here in college, many students occasionally decide to swear off drinking. There is a common cycle that leads to such a declaration. The weekend begins with the determination to turn oneself into a train wreck, seemingly a good idea at the time. Such an initiative is usually accomplished, complete with such embarrassment that the declaration to remain sober and abstinent is the next logical conclusion. After about two weeks of staying dry, that undeniable urge to make a bad decision takes control and the cycle repeats.
A variety of poor choices can be made due to the lack of clear judgment from shot-gunning too beers. The most common experience from drinking is beer goggles. Most everyone will, at least once, hook up with someone way below their standards due to their inebriated state. They'll be squealing to friends about how hot he is while drunkenly reapplying lip gloss in the bathroom, but in the morning shuddering at the thought of having made out with Shrek. This humiliating experience is a rite of passage, so just accept fate.
Alcohol can lead down paths you never thought existed. While this may seem frightening, it will usually make an excellent story. During the summer following freshman year, I found myself at a party with a group of people I had never met. After a few drinks, I was much friendlier and began flirting with this one guy. He was moving uneasily through the room while grabbing onto chairs and people to steady himself. But he was cute and I was quite tipsy myself. We tried having a conversation, but when I asked him why he was traveling to Boston the following day, his response was "Uh, what? I don't c9 remember." Again, in my inebriated state, I didn't think twice about it.
One friend motioned for me to talk to her. "There's something you need to know," she urged. My other friend quickly interjected, "Ashley, he's blind!" "Don't say that too loud!" my first friend warned. "No, don't worry. He can't hear me -- he's blind!" he replied with his drunken logic.
The discovery of his sight impairment certainly explained a lot. Later I found out that he was going to Boston to train with his new seeing-eye dog, but this didn't prevent me from making out with him. Or attempting to, since he couldn't really find my mouth. It required grabbing his face and guiding him.
Are these mortifying experiences avoidable? The simplest solution is to control your drinking. Blacking out every weekend can put you in dangerous situations like having anonymous or unprotected sex. You can also depend on your friends to keep you from going home with the wrong person. Or you can always try planning ahead; if you know that you may drunk dial an ex later in the evening, it might be a good idea to delete his phone number. Simply entering his name as "Richard Don't Call!" will not work.
Such experiences could easily dishearten you, but remember that there is always the chance to have a hilarious, unusual sexual exploit. When else are you going to have the chance to force yourself on a gay guy or have sex with someone in an Italian piazza?
