DEAR MOLLY: Drunk and Embarrassed

Dear Molly,

Last Tuesday, I got really drunk at a certain Square establishment. I apparently made it to the Quincy lobby and passed out on the couch, because two tutors shook me awake the next morning and told me that I should go to my room and wash the pen off my face before anyone else saw me. Not only am I too embarrassed to go back to the bar where I puked in the bathroom, but now I’m also embarrassed to ever go to Quincy again. Thoughts?

—Blushing Boy



Dear Blushing,



The great thing about being a college student is that it basically gives you a four year pass to make a few, shall we say, interesting choices. And most of your fellow classmates have taken advantage of this freedom. Not to belittle your plight, but it is pretty run-of-the-mill.

Some people choose to go down in history as “that kid who fought a chair” or “that kid who tried to dance with a wall and broke his leg.” Some get hammered on a weeknight, show up drunk to Organic Chemistry and are asked by a teaching fellow to “please leave and not return to this class until you are sober.” Some play strip-Jenga with new friends at a party, only to be reminded later by someone they don’t remember meeting that they actually were the only one removing clothing. Eh, it happens.

I am not encouraging you to try to out-do these embarrassing stories, but rather to illustrate that these things have happened to real people, and that these people have persevered and moved on. If they can do it, you can most definitely recover your pride and dignity.

The bars in the square rely on college students for their profits. That is not to say that it was cool to puke in the bathroom. Your $7 Long Island ice tea did not include a fee for cleaning up your vomit.

However, you are undoubtedly not the first person to do this. Next week, there will most likely be a different ridiculous drunk kid, and you will be forgotten. So take a moment to pause, reflect, realize you got a bit out of hand, and then move on. You either learn from your mistakes or are bound to repeat them.

Either way, you shouldn’t be so embarrassed as to have to hide your face from the places you love. Do note, however, that if you keep up this protocol, they may ask you not to come back. So choose wisely.

In regards to the tutors, well, they were college kids once too. They have seen drunk people before, and probably have had their fair share of “crazy night” stories. As with the bar experience, you aren’t the first to pass out on that couch. It really is quite convenient and at least you passed out there instead of on Plympton Street.

No one is immune from embarrassing moments, whether you drink or not. You are fixated on it because it happened to you. Do you recall every detail of your roommate’s last absurd night? No, because it is over and done with by now. Give yourself the same courtesy and get back in there.

See you at senior bar,

Molly



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