1. Notes: 5 / 1 year ago  from sandcastle-decisions (originally from sandcastle-decisions)
   Life is passing me by.: "What about feeling like you just can't cope with the people you see everyday?"

   love-underestimated-me:

   justahomeboy:

   All the time.

   The alcohol and drugs addiction counselor asked us this today. She asked us teenagers resorted to alcohol and drugs. Most of the seniors answered the questions. Then she asked us why teenagers drank and smoked and got high.

   “Because there’s nothing else to do.”

   My opinion? I…

   Ok, through this. In a country where you seldom have anything to do at night if you’re actively social and constantly wanting to do something and get out, drinking is almost uniquely your only choice. Of course, there is definitely the option of not drinking, and believe me, there’s way more people in parties that don’t drink than you would ever think. The reason alcohol is implemented in our society is because it gives us an artificial high that makes everything better than it is (or worse)

   This is shown in virtually every country in the world.

   You are right when you say that it is cowardly and pathetic for those who drink in dire situations. It is an escape, but realize that, if anything, an action like that demonstrates how broken those people really are. They have to fill up their hollow chests with alcohol because, as aforementioned, it makes everything better. I am talking from experience when I say that not drinking when you are sad is harder than it looks when you’ve fully experienced the rush of emotions caused by alcohol. The point here however, is that you’ve digressed and misinterpreted a perfectly reasonable statement as to why we drink here.

   We do it for fun. Alcohol is the biggest ice breaker, probably world wide, and here it is the best way to make new friends and meet new people and have a good time. Is it absolutely pathetic we’re using this as our main source of fun, not only here but worldwide as well? Yes. Is it acceptable by any means? Depends on who you’d ask. Sure enough, there are people who are not fully aware of alcohol’s effect on the body and the destruction of cells and such, but most of the people (I hang out with, at least) are 100% fully aware of the horrors that are happening to their body. Yet, even so, I digress.

   “Nothing to do” means that we don’t have a lot to do. It doesn’t mean that we’re escaping our problems through drinking (although I’ll admit I know many people do) but as an activity, it is one of the only options we have at night. Picture this:

   It’s a Friday afternoon, and school just ended. You talk with your friends to meet up in the usual spot, and then proceed to joke around for a while. After a while, someone comes up with an idea of what to do, be it play XBox, go to the movies, or just walk around. Even so, that’s it. That’s the end. By night, your eyes are burning by the staring of a screen for four or five hours, or you’ve had your share of “screen viewing” on the movie screen. Sure, you can still walk around and prance through the block, but you can’t do that for too long. Someone calls and says there’s a party at Taborga’s and it’s gonna be sick.

   Why the fuck not.

   Odds are, it will probably be fun because you can see those friends you don’t usually see and have a good time. Here’s the final kicker, alcohol makes it even more fun. Sure, if you drink until you’re a dead beat horse on the track, you’re an asswipe. But if you consume just the right amounts, it’ll all be more enjoyable. Hell, I can bet most drunk people have made new friends, met lovers, had hookups (although I admit that this point may be regrettable later) and had a great time. We do it for fun because it’s enjoyable and it is the best of the little of things to do in this dead town. Don’t take it personal, but that’s what she meant. We’re all trying to fight our own demons, but not all drinkers are attempting to escape from them via this method.

   Alright, perhaps I didn’t understand what she meant when she said that because she also said other things as well, so I might have mixed a few things. I perfectly understand that for people who have more of an active social life, drinking is the normal thing to do, especially at this age. We’re experimenting (just like when we were kids) with new ideas and new surroundings. This experimentation will undoubtly continue until the moment we die. Whether these experiments are safe or not is another question.

   “Alcohol is the biggest ice breaker.”

   I’m not disagreeing with this statement, because I know close friends who have felt the “powers” that alcohol has on the human body. You may say that I am biased because I don’t know what it’s like, but isn’t it more real when you’re sober? As you said, there is the option of not drinking at parties and such. As for drinking being the only choice of having fun at a party, that’s not really true is it? There is actually a lot to do except we don’t really see it. At least, that’s what I think. There are so many options of having fun at a party if you know how to manipulate your surrounding. I guess, in a way, under the influence of alcohol, you ARE manipulatng your surroundings to fit what you want. It’s an easy way of doing it when you’re drinking than it is when you’re sober.

   As for the reason one drinks, most of teenagers drink for fun, sure. Others drink their sorrows away. Others drink their shyness away. We all have so many excuses. People I know have come up to me and given me justifications as to why they drink. It has always mind-blown me. Why does anyone feel like they need to justify their decisions to me? If you drank, you drank. That’s your decision; that’s your life. I believe that your decisions shape who you are and a lot of it has to do with decisions of your surroundings. I don’t exactly have a problem with people drinking. If you do it, you do it. I just have a problem with people giving excuses to their vices. Correct me if I’m wrong, but when you need to give an explanation to people as to why you do something, then you’re not 100% sure of what you’re doing is good or bad. I guess most justifications are given not to convince the other person, but to convince yourself that what you’re doing is not wrong. I guess it’s about looking for confirmation that what you’re doing is right. It’s subjective; not because it’s right for me means it’s right for you.

   Maybe not everyone drinks because everyday problems become unbearable. Problems which seemed to be fix themselves almost magically yesterday become problems that cannot be fixed by any human power. I still think it’s cowardly, but we all have our ways of coping, which brings me to individuality. We’re different. We’re all unique. We shape our environment and the environment shapes us. Society molds us and we mold into the society. What makes us unique then? We’re unique because we all have a different way of coping with hard situations. Me, personally, I like to face it straight up, because I figure there really is no other way out. I never liked the easy way out and I’m not going to start looking for it. I admit, I used to escape from problems through personal harm, but people change, right? Others escape from problems beyond their control and they resort to alcohol and/or drugs. That’s their coping mechanism. I’m not saying it’s wrong; I’m just saying that it’s not always the most healthy. I personally do not think that anything that harms you can be such a good thing in the long run. Are the consequences 30 years from now worth your poor decisions now? I’d say not.

   I guess what I’m trying to say is that everyone is different. If you choose to drink or do drugs or smoke, then that’s your decision. It is your life in the end. It’s not mine. I’m just don’t like seeing people make poor decisions that they may or may not regret a few years from now. If you want to drink to have fun, then do it. If you want to get high every day after school, then do it. I think there are more ways to have fun than drinking/smoking/getting buzzed. I’m not saying, “DON’T GO TO PARTIES!” either. I’m just saying that people should be careful about the decisions they make.

   Por mas que lo creyamos; no somos invincibles.

   I agree wholeheartedly with almost everything you say. I do disagree, however, with your point that if people feel the need to justify their actions they’re not 100% sure as to whether they’re right or wrong. I love to talk and explain and justify my every action, even if I know that its right. If i told you right now a list as to why I am with Kimmy, and why there is something about her that I love, would it be that I’m not sure about it? I beg to differ, but regardless you are right. I was simply pointing out the reasons why drinking is not a hellfire to cross, just an option. Personally, it makes everything more fun than it usually is. Of course there are other ways to have fun, but this is just something I enjoy, as well as most of the people I know. I do feel like shit’s gotten too intense, though, so I’d like to end this here, although you are right; we’re not invincible. I’m not trying to say we are. It’s something recreational and just like anything else in the world, completely damaging if taken too far. Too much of anything is really, too much. 

2. Notes

   1. sandcastle-decisions liked this
   2. justahomeboy reblogged this from sandcastle-decisions and added:

      I agree wholeheartedly with almost everything you say. I do disagree, however, with your point that if people feel the...

   3. sandcastle-decisions reblogged this from justahomeboy and added:

      Alright, perhaps I didn’t understand what she meant when she said that because she also said other things as well, so I...

   4. justahomeboy said: Cowardly is the wrong word for it. By saying that “there’s nothing else to do” Maria meant that there is nothing beyond partying with friends that will fill up a night life properly. Alcohol helps people have fun and break the ice. (more coming)
   5. sandcastle-decisions posted this

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