Drinking Too Much

The following is an account of a friend’s Friday night, to the best of his memory:

- 1 shot of Jack Daniels in coffee after dinner
- 2 cups of coffee
- 2 Keystone Lights at Matt’s
- 1 Keystone at Fence Club
- 3 sips of mojito at Fence Club
- 1 Busch light at Fence Club
- 1 shot of vodka, poured onto arm after breaking window at Fence Club
- 1 Four Loko, purchased before the drink was banned, at Fence Club
- 2.5 Keystone over beer pong at Mike’s
- 1 hit off Tim’s pipe
- 3 Pabst Blue Ribbon over beer pong at Mike’s

This was a typical night out for him. In the unremitting clarity of his hangover, he seemed to regret his actions. He recognized that he probably should have ended his night early after putting his arm through a window. Yet in the moment, the thought didn’t even cross his mind. Instead, he poured vodka on the cuts and kept right on going. Why?

For many students at Yale, going out drinking is not just the way to celebrate a special occasion. It is the default way to spend our weekends. Drinking does, of course, have its appeal. Many a laugh has been brought on those telltale words: “I was soooo drunk last night.” But as a senior whose hangovers are only getting worse, I wonder sometimes whether it’s really worth it. The social pressure to imbibe is often unavoidable, yet I can’t help but feel that we’re all egging each other on without really wanting to ourselves.

We don’t just drink alcohol, either. It’s easy to forget, but caffeine is also a drug. So what’s the benefit? Can’t we just be happy with being ourselves, not ourselves in some chemically-induced state? In the course of three or four hours, my friend consumed the equivalent of fifteen beers and four cups of coffee. That just isn’t healthy. The strange part is, he laughed it off afterwards. Maybe this is normal, but should it be? I would like to think we still have the capacity to have fun sober. Increasingly, though, I don’t know.