21 in Wisconsin; How to not make your big birthday a big mistake.

Last Sunday I turned 21! WWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A ha ha, no, not quite. But that's what everybody else in my age group is thinking. It gets even worse because I live in Wisconsin; America's brewery.

I've seen all of my friends lined up like ponies at the gate just WAITING for that clock to hit midnight (okay, more like 8 am because midnight is when alcohol stops being legal to buy until morning.) They buy into the hard and fast pseudo-alcoholic lifestyle that is constantly depicted as fun in movies and commercials and wreck themselves pretty hard for the next two days. Many Wisconsinites drink early (so do teenagers in general, I suppose) but THIS IS DIFFERENT. The big 2  1 is when you finally receive the last of your rights as a common adult and everyone is out to get you wasted to celebrate.

Me, I don't do that. Call me a black sheep but I like being able to remember my birthdays and not have hangovers and miscellaneous injuries that can't be explained.  I've always had a fairly good relationship with alcohol and have some advice I really wish I could've given to some of the people I've seen plastered on the pavement.

1. EAT. Before you go out, having something in your stomach can help prevent you from getting drunk too quickly, thus ending your night too quickly. Eating at some point during your celebration keeps you going longer.
2. PACE YOURSELF. Too much too fast is a recipe for regret.
3. HAVE A DESIGNATED DRIVER. This is the guy/gal that is gonna be your guardian angel of sorts. If where you live doesn't have a program to help drunk people get home without driving, they are indispensable. They peel you off the pavement if you've gone too far, help prevent you from going home with someone you don't know (especially if its by force by the random person), and make sure your brains aren't splattered on the pavement because you thought it was safe to drive drunk.
4. DON'T GIVE IN TO PEER PRESSURE. I get that friends want you to have a good time but sometimes they want you to drink a lot more than you think you can handle and it's really important that you say "no" when you reach your limit.
5. DRINK WATER. To prevent dehydration and to water down the alcohol in your blood.
6. STEP OUTSIDE. Once in a while, getting some fresh air really helps re-energize you, especially if you live in a place that allows smoking inside of bars and clubs.

Happy Birthday to ME and to anyone turning 21 this year!

Awwwww man, it's July!

I kinda forgot this existed and I really apologize for it. My bad. I dropped the ball completely. Truth is I didn't have much free time and the free time I did have was spent being lazy.

It feels good to start blogging again, though.

In case you were wondering:

I'm turning 21 in....... 5 DAYS! I'm so excited! But not because of alcohol, like everyone else my age for some ridiculous reason. I'll be able to start going to 21+ metal and punk shows which is a far greater reward than booze could ever be!

I'm moving!!!! For 9 years since exactly yesterday, I've lived in a ghetto-ish neighborhood. I've been physically assaulted, verbally abused, seen some crazy things and now I'm moving to a much better neighborhood where I won't be afraid to go outside after dark.

I'm going back to school in January for cosmetology! Since the last time I got booted from school, my confidence has been utterly shattered and I just kinda pushed trying to get somewhere with my life as far back as possible because I was just confused and totally scared of failing a third time.

I'm going to start posting once a week since I have a lot more free time now than I used to.