I turned 21 over the weekend, so I thought I’d document my experiences being 21 thus far, and also talk a little about the awesome birthday that I had. You can tell that I’m studying for midterms when my articles become this short and this hands-off.

I was fortunate enough to have awesome friends on my 21st birthday, and they came over a little bit early (10 PM) so that we could pregame for the bars, which we went to at midnight. What did we pregame with? Some awesome jell-O shots, made by my wonderful friend Danni (who sometimes works out with me). The main thing, of course, isn’t the Jell-O shots, though they were really good and Danni brought several different flavors (lime was best).

I suppose the main takeaway is how weird it feels to drink legally. I’ve had alcohol before, of course, in private. It felt pretty normal. But to actually go outside, order a drink, and consume it in full view of public? Crazy. My friend Casey made a note to me about that, actually, when he looked to me and asked whether or not it felt weird to be drinking in public. He had just turned 21 literally seven days previously.

That aside, he was awesome enough to buy me my first legal drink, a rum and coke double. It was pretty good, and not overly strong. It got me started, though the Jell-O shots had already taken a slight toll due to my consuming ten of them straight, and one on the way out of the door.

After that first drink, I wanted my friends to try my favorite mixed shot, so I had the bartender make us B52 shots. For those who don’t know, B52 is my favorite, but I’ve only encountered people who know about it in Europe. It consists of one part Kahlua, one part Bailey’s, and one part Orange Liqueur, all layered over a bar spoon so that they don’t just mix. Then you light it on fire.

Unfortunately, the bartender didn’t know it (first time I’ve met a bartender who didn’t, but also first time I’ve been to an American bar, so...), but he made us double shots of it after I explained it. He also wasn’t allowed to light it on fire by Oregon law, so we took it cold. It was, regardless, still delicious. Absolutely to die for. I highly recommend this drink.

Afterward, the bartender made me a cocktail called a “brohattan.” Yeah, that’s right. A brohattan. It’s basically a tall glass that’s 1/3 vanilla whiskey, some random syrup, and the rest filled with lemonade. It was strong, and took me from being buzzed to straight up being drunk (though not too drunk). The night ended after Casey and I shared a free 21st birthday drink (shared due to already being drunk from several strong drinks one after the other) in the form of raspberry lemonade vodka. That was honestly the best drink of the night, maybe because it was free

I don’t know, it sounds uneventful, but I wouldn’t have had my 21st birthday any other way. Also, I was able to go to the store the next day and buy wine! How lucky! Anyone who I force to taste test my food, prepare for the invasion of French cuisine now.