I recently had my 22nd birthday just a couple of weeks ago, and I felt a little bummed out that I didn’t really do anything. I had just spent the day reading "Harry Potter," and I went and got myself a nice bottle of whiskey. Then I thought it through: That kind of day is something I had been pining for since I made this stop in my life at Western Washington University. To be honest, I really disliked my experience at school and in Bellingham, besides the friends and relationships I had made with a couple of groups I’ve joined. That got me to thinking: Am I just anti-social, or have I been cleverly avoiding the annoyances that come with partying for me? Now, I am not out here to say that if you party, you are stupid or anything like that, but it just is not for me.
So, I guess my question is, why is partying a must in college? It is everywhere I seem to go. I went to a Mariners game last year for college night (who wouldn’t jump at the idea of $12 tickets?) and by the 2nd inning, there were a group of girls donned in their Mariners crop tops and Snapchatting away about how ‘drunk’ they were. Well, unless you pregame, you either spent $50 bucks each on watered-down beer or you are faking it to look ‘cool.' Then the game went on and all the kids were filing out to go to some party at the University of Washington. I hit my breaking point when the game was really close and came down to the final out and some ‘suh-dude’ proclaimed that the Mariners were going to blow it; he was filing out and stopped right in front of me and my brother. Why are your 20s consumed by drinking and even smoking pot at a ball game? (We can smell it, dude.) Sit down and enjoy the game and the darn view of the Seattle skyline.
Now, I may sound like the kid that just wasn’t cool, but who really cares? I don’t get it seeing students coming into class blazed, hungover, or looking at shoes during a physics lecture. Why do you waste the professors', peers', and your own time? I get it, college is supposed to be fun, but where is the line between fun and paying $80K to develop a drinking problem? Think about it; think about how privileged you are to even be at a university and working toward your career. Sure, I hate school sometimes, but there is some important stuff to take away from these years. Since this election cycle ended, I have taken a long look at my privilege, not only as a white, middle-class male, but as someone attending a university, paying a lot of money to become a teacher. Watching this phenomenon of fake news rise has made me look at knowledge as a weapon. I’ve watched people post fake news and cherry-picked facts and I tried to look at myself. I started buying up books that I had on my wish list for years now. I am seeking out knowledge, something I should have done in 2013, when I was an 18-year-old at Eastern Washington University. I banked off my prior knowledge and skated through gen-ed courses.
So, that brings me to the point I hope you take away, college students. Don’t wait for the protests to get involved; in actuality, some of you didn’t vote because ‘it did not matter.’ That narrative is exactly why we have the system we have now. I don’t mean to be harsh, but use the resources at your disposal. Stay in on a weekend and read a book, or go out and volunteer. Go have lunch with your friends and have a couple of drinks rather than drink a fifth of vodka to yourself. I am all for a good time, but think about these privileges afforded to you by yourself, your parents, or someone who got you here. We are here to be scholars; let’s start acting like it.
