No Laughing Matter

My drinking started when I was 17 in high school. Until that point, I was sort of a saint. Didn’t curse, obeyed all of the rules, and I was a great student. Then one Friday night my friend’s mother went out, leaving us the house to ourselves, and the two of us mixed up whatever alcoholic drinks we got our hands on. When the first sip went down my throat, I thought, Huh, I don’t feel different. I better drink some more. So drink and drink hard is what I did. Suddenly, I was born again! I felt pretty and funny, and later that night when we got to our school’s football game, I thought I was the most popular person there. I forgot most of what happened after, but I do remember, as the buzz turned into a drunk, feeling alive. Until I passed out, of course.