I don't have anything against alcohol, but I reduced it to only drinking like one beer every three months(and a bit more around Christmas, New Year's Eve). There are healthier things in life, I hope you continue to not feel pressured and stick with your position. Also, it's clear OP doesn't really want to drink, so stop naming alcoholic drinks that he should try. Trying to make someone use unhealthy substances just because you feel like he should is wrong.
Do not worry you are not. I do not drink any alcohol, I never liked the taste, and I do not like what it does to you. (I do not want my lines getting blurred I have them with a reason). During high school and my college years people always tried to get me to drink, but since I always refused they accepted it. I am now 32 and I still do not drink alcohol (I am Dutch and I do not drink alcohol and I do not do drugs ). The thing I always find strange is that when I say I do not drink alcohol, people always compliment me how good it is that I do not drink (and how they wish they didn't drink), If people are so impressed why don't they quit I do hate the glorification of alchohol. I do not mind when people drink, but the glorification is annoying ( and bad)
I remember when I was a kid, I was at a restaurant with my folks and some other people, and I asked to try some of my mom's wine. She let me, and I told her it didn't taste good. She said that it was an acquired taste. In return I said, "Why would you want to acquire it?" (Oh the wisdom of children) There is undeniably social pressure to drink alcohol. I know someone who tells anyone who asks at parties why she's not drinking that it's because she's an alcoholic. The truth is that she just doesn't like alcohol, but she's found that if she says that she simply doesn't like it, it becomes a thing. Some people get uncomfortable, and believe she thinks she's above them because they drink and she doesn't. It all boils down to the fact that drinking alcohol is the accepted social custom for getting slightly impaired -- even if it's just a bit of light-headedness. More importantly, it's the accepted social custom for behaving as if you're impaired, whether you are or not. It allows people to act in a slightly more free/wild/silly way and have a socially acceptable reason/excuse to do so. All other considerations are secondary, taste included. And weed serves basically the same function -- it's just that it doesn't have the near-worldwide cultural acceptance that alcohol does. (Of course, alcoholic beverages were also important historically because they were safer to drink than water -- you'd get diseases from the water that couldn't live in alcohol. But in first-world countries, we're long past that now). The reason that people get uncomfortable with non-drinkers is that they see them as breaking the social contract -- they assume non-drinkers are going to hold drinkers to the non-impaired standard, as silly as it might sound when said that way. There is a rhyme and reason to that line of thinking, but seriously, people who assume there's something wrong with non-drinkers -- either that they're stuck up or just "haven't found the right drink" -- need to realize that there are people out there who just don't like alcohol, and stop trying to fix them. I do drink socially -- wine is always my preference (I did grow up in California, after all), beer if it's all that's available. I don't drink the really hard stuff unless it's been pretty heavily mixed. But if you don't drink, there's nothing wrong with that. Just be aware that you may run into some insecure people who have a problem with it. Either have a plausible excuse ready like my friend, or be prepared to potentially have this conversation a lot with random people at parties.
Although I agree it is the accepted social behaviour to drink, there are some things I would like to add. I didn't drink, and I never drank. After a short while all everybody i knew knew I didn't drink. Since I always refused the alcohol they never got it anymore for me, so they got a beer for everybody and a soft drink for me (but if you are inconsistent they will just forget to get you a non-alcoholic drink. I have heard so many secrets of people who were to drunk to remember that I would not forget the conversation the next day:grin: I think the fact that I didn't drink actually made me more interesting for girls. I have had many conversations with woman, who I didn't know to well, about why I didn't drink (including my wife). For those peolpe I appeared really trustworthy and also strong minded. So for getting to meet a girl it can actually be a positive. Of course I was not condescending about people who do drink (insulting a possible date is never the smart thing to do). I seldom met a person who couldn't handle me not drinking (the few people who couldn't handle it were also people I would not be friends with even if i did drink, so who cares about there opinion:grin btw is it ironic that I got James Harden status with a post about not drinking alcohol
Not sure if serious, but I know people in real life with this mindset. I've found that they're generally not worth interacting with.
Drinking once a week with my college buddies is far from a problem. Internet p*rn five times a day might be...
No booze at all for almost 6 weeks now due to finally getting super strict with my summer cut... went out with a buddy tonight who was drinking, a couple chicks (5/10 meh) asked us to go back to their place afterwards, could not bring myself to sober smash (would've definitely drunk smashed). Going out sober is just not as much fun.
