It’s 11 on a Friday night, by this point I can’t even remember how many times I’ve been asked “Why aren’t you drinking?”, “Are you sure you don’t want a drink?”, or my favorite “Why don’t you want to have fun?”

But I want to and I am, I’m surrounded by people I love spending time with and I’m getting to relax just like everyone else after yet another hard week of classes.

I’m just not drinking.

Alcohol is just a catalyst to get people to open up and destress, it’s not the way to have fun. The fun comes from the people you’re with and the memories you’ll get to share with them. When you look back at college, it won't be to remember the drinks you had but the memories and fun you experienced (that just might have occurred after a few). The only thing that ruins my fun is having to laugh off the comments on my lack of drinking and assumptions of who I am because of that.

I don’t hate alcohol, I don’t hate you for drinking, I don’t think drinking is wrong, but more often than not, I’m going to say no.

I say no for the people in my family who couldn’t. I say no for the years it took some of my loved ones to finally be able to put a bottle down. I say no because what’s a hobby for you could easily become a habit for me. I say no because I don’t want to be dependent on anything other than myself.

I shouldn’t have to explain my choices, my answer of no should be enough. So please, stop making me feel bad for making the best choice for me. I’m not trying to make a choice for you or ridicule you for the choice you make, I’m just asking the same in return.

How much of a damper would it be if I continually asked “ Do you really think you should be drinking?”, “Wow how many has that been?” or “Are you really gonna get like this again?”

My choice to not drink doesn’t dictate who I am, it doesn’t make me any lesser of a person just because I’m skipping out on a favorite American pastime. At the end of the day, it’s just a beverage I’m not choosing to sip on.

So next time you feel so inclined to grab me a drink, make it a tea and I’ll be forever thankful that for at least one day I can skip out on the Q and A.