There is a quiet intruder who is taking over our lives. He knows no fear, and he can easily control your every thought and every action. This stranger is making friends and making sure everybody knows who he is. He creeps into our conversations and our friendships, and we are not conscious of the fact that he is making his move. His intent is to be a powerhouse and have people look to him for fun and to take care of their problems. Who is this impostor who already controls many of our lives? He goes by the name of Alcohol.

I think we have a real problem with the kids these days.

This is very puzzling to me — how shallow do we have to get before we can only have a good time if we are getting “wasted?” I think about this a lot, and I have had many conversations with many different people about it. Last week I was talking to a friend of mine who likes to indulge. She was very drunk at 8 a.m. on a Monday morning. The reason for this was that the week and weekend before was Greek Week on the ISU campus.

One of the many guidelines for the event was that no alcohol was to be included in the activities. Now, you can imagine how this went over with many of the people who depend on alcohol at their parties. I asked her why she was drunk so early on a Monday and she told me, “Well, we couldn’t drink all weekend, and we needed to get some drinking in before the week started for real.”

I may have a different outlook on things because I choose not to drink, but I don’t look down on “drinkers.” I just think that we are going downhill fast if we cannot enjoy activities without the scent of alcohol flowing from our mouths. Drinking is not wrong; however, when a person gets to the point where he or she relies on it, that’s taking it too far.

People are missing out on life. Go do something! Partying is fun, but not every single weekend. I think students believe this is what they are supposed to do in college. Break the trend. Look at all the other stuff there is to do: go camping, sing karaoke, play games of tag or hide and seek. Just get out of the same old, overpowering trend.

Alcohol and parties are two things that everybody considers to be one. Open your eyes. The world is slowly passing you by. Go get drunk and party once in a while, but don’t become so dull-minded and numb that it is all we can do. The world will not wait for you in your lifeless state.

Taylor Wolf

Freshman

Pre-Graphic Design