Poll: Is it okay to not drink/smoke at a party?

[steelserenity]

Yes yes yes yes it is okay!
I love the bar and to hang out with my friends, and I don't drink or smoke or anything at all. The atmosphere is exactly the same, I have just as much fun, and I remember it the next day lol!
Honestly, I have a great social life, I love to go out, and not drinking has never once affected that! My friends accept it and don't mind (they drink themselves) and I don't mind that they do, plus I still always feel included and have a great time!

I hope more people begin to see that drinking/smoking isn't what's needed to make a party fun!
I totally support how you feel, and you don't need to drink to have fun, sticking to your values is the most important part. If someone doesn't understand that, then they're not very fun people to party with.

I'm with your decision to not drink all the way !

 

[Tilted_Logic]

It's definitely fine not to drink or smoke at a party. Sure to the hardcore party-goers it'll seem weird, but it's about you feeling comfortable in the environment and if you don't like drinking that's perfectly fine.

I'm the same way, don't much care for parties, and hate drinking. Never smoked. Although I have found people tend to get pushy or 'encouraging' when I don't have a drink, so like other people have already suggested I generally just grab a cup and fill it with orange juice or whatever non-alcoholic beverage they're mixing and just hold it for the night. Works wonders

 

[Nouw]

Let me get this straight: you're seriously expecting your friend to act reasonably while drunk?

Good luck.

Add a Military Term of service and we have a winner.

 

[Hollock]

I've been to one party. I held a beer for 5 hours and they kept trying to give me more. And I was very bored.

 

[Trololo Punk]

Yes, of course.
I'm not of age, but just knowing that, not everyone drinks and or smokes but still go to parties.

 

[Creator002]

Certainly it's fine to not smoke or drink at parties. I didn't when I was underage and even now that I'm 19 (legal age here is 18), I still don't drink every time I go to a party. I usually only have a few on New Year's/Christmas and, since I don't smoke, I don't do that either.

EDIT - Actually, last New Year's was the first party I've been to since turning 18 and has been my last so far. Come to think of it people were trying to shove alcohol down me, but they didn't act like asses when I said no more.

 

[SoulSalmon]

I didn't even think that'd ever need to be asked o.0

Personally, I tend to accept a drink or two, I am NEVER getting drunk though... I was put on Ritalin as a kid because the doctor I went to was a shoddy "EVERYONE HAS ADHD!!!11 D:<" kind of person...
That month or so... looking back on that has pretty much set me up for NEVER losing control of myself again, wether it be to drugs, alcohol or anything else.

 

[kouriichi]

Of course it is.
I dont drink. Never have. Never will.
Dont smoke. Never have. Never will.
Anyone asks why, i pull the, "big angry black guy" routine and scare them off. ((which makes my friends laugh because i scream like a little girl and haul-ass if i see a bee.))

If but if you dont wanna look square, grab a red plastic cup, and pour some sprite into it. Say your downing cups of vodka, "like a boss". Then chug it before anyone has the time to question it.

 

[Rule Britannia]

I do drink at parties but I don't smoke, especially not cigarettes. There is no benefit whatsoever from smoking cigarettes all you get is withdrawl symptons and get angry plus you stink to high heaven.

I'm open to weed since it's not as harmful but I fear my asthma may kick in if I used it. I'm not gonna ask about for it but if it's offered I probably won't so no.

If you don't like the taste of it fine by me, I didn't like the taste of it first time I tried it but now it's ok. If you don't wanna smoke good for you. Unfortunately I will give into peer pressure ¬.¬.

 

[DazBurger]

I know the feeling.
I'm 21 and I don't drink or smoke, and people just don't get it.

You think you got it tough? I live in the country with the most alcoholic youth.
We have some who starts drinking at 12-13... And its perfectly legal, you just have to be 16 if you want to buy it your self.


... And I'm fine with people drinking them selves under the table and I'm even fine with people doing it around me.. That means I always remember all the little things they don't want to.
Just don't try to pressure me to drink... I have a build in defense-mechanism that makes me give you the middle-finger and leave.


Maybe that's the reason I didn't start drinking in the first place..?

 

[SquirePB]

I personally don't drink all that much either but that's cos I do mixed martial arts and want to start fighting some time soon. Most of my friends while crack one or two jokes about me being a girl or something but that's all it is, jokes. There was one time though where one of the girls we were hanging out with (she's one of the people who tend to be full of shit) started actually having a go at me for not drinking, saying I was being anti-social and stuff. Then one of my best mates, who not two minutes before hand had been giving me a bit of crap for not drinking, turned around and just told her to fuck off and let me live how I chose.
I guess what I'm saying is I think it's perfectly acceptable to choose not to drink and vice versa, so long as it's your choice. Your really friends will support your choice and it doesn't matter what the other ones think.

 

[DeimosMasque]

I do drink and smoke (at age 31 I'm ready to basically give them both up any day... oh rum! Be right back!) and I have never held it against anyone if they didn't, even at parties.

I didn't drink a drop of alcohol until I was 23, didn't smoke until I was 29. I always had fun at clubs and parties, even without it. Still do since I'm usually the designated driver for those things.

The trick honestly is not let their drunken/stoned behavior make you feel out of place. Play around with them, live it up. Have fun your way, and help them have fun their way as well. Someone's drunk? Act drunk around them, make them feel accepted. Someone's stoned, go along with it.

You'll find yourself having a lot of fun without drinking at all. Just "feed of the energy" don't be a stick in the mud and run with it. Great fun.

 

[loc978]

Depends on the party, really. In this case, I'd say not at least taking the beer and sipping on it was being a little bit standoffish to your friend, who I assume won't be home for long before being shipped off somewhere. Being a complete teetotaler won't score you any points at all in life outside of religious fanaticism. Moderating intake when others are going overboard tends to be the best way to both be responsible and maintain relationships with people.
That said, when someone shoves a shitty beer in my face, I always let 'em know I brought my own. I generally can't stand cheap beer.

 

[N3Burgener]

If your religion does not allow drinking...
If you have a serious moral issue with drinking...
If you're under-aged and don't want to risk getting busted...
If you're with unfamiliar people in an uncomfortable place...
If you have no idea what they're serving you...
If you have to drive and don't want to pay for a cab...
If you have an important obligation the next morning...
....then don't drink.

Otherwise, if you're voluntarily at a party, then you may as well participate in it. Drink the beer and stop being a pansy. At least drink one, or accept one and nurse it throughout the evening so you don't seem so auspiciously out of the loop. My experience is that it's not entertaining to be the only sober person. When I'm drinking and there's one or two others who aren't, I notice them feeling detached and disengaged from everyone else.

The whole point of being at a party is to be social, and it's hard to be social if you're not in the same mental state as everyone else. I'm not saying that if everyone's doing hardcore drugs that you should join in, but a little drinking is perfectly acceptable now and then. It's not necessarily about "fitting in" (that does play into it a little), it's just about participating in communal activities and enjoying the company of your friends more in light of that.

As far as smoking is concerned, most people that I know are respectful if you don't want to smoke. They understand that people aren't smokers, and that smoking isn't something that everyone does at parties. A lot of my friends and roommates are/were smokers, and they've never pressured me to smoke. I think it's because there are bigger risks with smoking and a lot of smokers actually regret doing it, at least to a certain extent, so they don't want to push anyone else into it.

With that said, just do whatever feels comfortable. If people are hassling you about not drinking, then you should at least drink a little to appease them, or stop going to parties with them that serve alcohol.

 

[HardkorSB]

I don't drink alcohol or smoke(weed or cigarettes) and I don't go to parties that often, but yesterday I went to my friend's welcome home party(he just finished his Army training). When I got there he was drunk and kept trying to get me to drink a beer with him even though he knows I don't drink. Every time he would talk to me he would say, "If you are my friend you'll chug this beer with me.", or something like that and every time I'd say no. After about an hour of trying he gave up and got mad at me. Even the other guests looked at me funny when they'd offer me something and I turned them down.

So as a guy who doesn't get out that often, my experience last night did nothing to encourage me to go out to more parties(to many people trying to get me to drink). Is it okay to not drink/smoke at a party? Was my friend just being a drunk ass? Or would I need to go to parties with people less likely to make me feel out of place?

So, you're asking if it's OK not to poison yourself for the amusement of others?
Tough question.

 

[370999]

No you don't have to drink. Do be aware though that if everyone else is, they are going to seem an awful lot less funny to you then they will to each other. Also if you can drive you will be seen as Taximan. Either way it is a party, have fun. Just be ware that others will as well.

 

[RussetRanger]

Believe me dude, I know that feeling. I don't drink nor smoke, and that can seem weird to many people. However, it is your choice. Just because most people do it, it does not mean you must. Just respect differences and there shall be no troubles.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Not drinking is perfectly fine.
But you need to understand turning down peoples offerings is very impolite, so either suggest a replacement drink or take a couple of bites / sips as a gesture.

These social games we play are odd, but you either play along or get shunned

 

[smithy_2045]

It's definitely fine to not smoke.

Drinking, I find, makes parties more enjoyable, but I wouldn't begrudge someone for not drinking. I might try to convince you to drink, but I wouldn't be offended if you didn't.