the stupid years

     i had a fun fourth of july. i spent part of it on the beach watching drunken dudes do stupid things. it was pretty funny. they probably wouldn't have done as many of those stupid things without the alcohol. it really is an amazing thing. it shows a whole different side to a person's personality that you may have never seen before.
     i was watching an episode of House today where the patient was having frontal lobe inhibition which led to him saying whatever he thought and if he weren't in the hospital i'm sure he would have been doing whatever he felt as well. it led to his wife finding out about all these opinions of his that he had kept from her in order to have a happy marriage. it made her feel like she really didn't know him.
      alcohol has the same kind of effect on the brain. it also inhibits your frontal lobe which then disinhibits your behavior. people say stupid things and do stupid things since the smart part of their brain isn't telling them not to. this is why i call the time in your life between the ages of 18 and 24 "the stupid years" because this is the time in a person's life when they do the stupidest things and are the worst versions of themselves. this is when most people start drinking and have a tendency to go overboard with their drinking. it leads to making terrible decisions, accidentally saying things you shouldn't, and behaving in risky ways. this age period is the biggest for traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, especially in men. they get drunk, think they are superman, and then find out they are not.
      hopefully, if you are smart enough that even when you are disinhibited you still don't do really stupid shit that will kill you, then you will learn from your stupid years. learn from your failed friendships and romantic relationships. learn from your injuries and near injuries. learn from money lost and time wasted. and learn when to stop drinking. it's critical to learn how to drink slowly and not to the point of vomiting and passing out. it's fun to drink a little bit when hanging out with friends because you say silly things more, laugh more, dance funny, and have no shame about looking silly. but hanging out with someone who always gets blind drunk is annoying for everyone else.
     i think there is a reason why few people marry their high school sweethearts. it is really hard to make it through the stupid years without ruining relationships and burning bridges. if a couple loves each other enough to make it through all the pain and end up stronger for it, then they will probably make it through anything. i've had one friend that married her high school boyfriend and i really don't worry about her marriage at all. i can't know for certain that everything will be fine, but they are off to a good start if you ask me.
     i do think for all these reasons that it is really important to get drunk with the people in your life so you can get to know them better. how someone acts when they are drunk says a lot about them. there are the stereotypes of drunks that let you know what kind of person you are dealing with. do they get angry and start fights? do they cry in the bathroom all night? or do they just sit on the side and giggle at everything said or done? i'm the type that gets really giggly and prefers to surround myself with people who are the same way. i don't want someone with pent up anger around me. i also don't want to be with a Debby Downer who is gonna suck all the fun out of the day. and if you wanna be close friends or married to someone, don't you think you should know what kind of drunk they are? to hear what they aren't telling you, to see what they don't normally do, and to just figure out if you can stand to be around them when they are drunk.
     while it is true you can never know everything about someone, you can find out a lot when they are drunk. since drinking is the legal and socially acceptable way to increase your fun times, you may as well find this stuff out sooner rather than later. unless you're one of those weirdos that never drink. then no one will ever know what a great dancer you are, how funny you are, or how great you look in a hat. and what a shame that would be.