Sure, before that point I drank, sometimes to excess. But not on a regular basis like I have the past many months.
I have drank a lot. Regularly.
With friends.
With my family.
With people I don't even know.
With just myself.
At home.
At other people's homes.
At Bars.
At parties.
At concerts.
During the day.
During the evening.
During the week.
During the weekend.
I have drank a lot. Period.
I have a lot of fun memories, some hazy, some told to me by others who could still remember, some I actually remember fine.
Had some good times, some great times, some bad times, and a very scary times as well.
But over all I have been pretty lucky. Because once I get drunk, I make bad decisions like the majority of the population does in that state.
The worst decision is always driving myself home.
Go ahead and judge me.
But don't pretend to be a saint.
A lot of people drink and then drive them self home, or to whataburger, or to an ex's home.
Doesn't matter what the destination is, what matters is you had an adult beverage and you drove.
Don't give me the crap about "Well I just had one" either. Because the law defines driving under the influence in a manner that gets you whether or not you fail a breathalyzer.
I can remember how much I loved the fact that my favorite bar was only a few blocks away from my apartment in Beaumont. And how when I moved in with FedEx his apartment was the same distance away, just the other direction.
That was my place to get away from the world.
According to MADD
On average someone is killed by a drunk driver every 40 minutes. In 2007, an
estimated 12,998 people died in drunk driving related crashes—a decline of 3.7
percent from the 13,491 drunk driving related fatalities of 2006. On average
someone is killed by a drunk driver every 40 minutes. In 2007, an estimated
12,998 people died in drunk driving related crashes—a decline of 3.7 percent
from the 13,491 drunk driving related fatalities of 2006.
Think about that for a second.
It could be you, your mom, your bestfriend, your significant other that gets hit either while driving under the influence or by someone who is. And they could die.
Sobering isn't it?
(No pun intended.)
You're probably wondering why the hell I am evening blogging about something I have admitted I have done countless times. Something extremely dangerous and irresponsible.
Something society judges people for and considers them a bad person for doing.
Last week I completed a defensive driving course to satisfy a requirement for doing 80 in 70 close to Rockdale Tx last November. (Thanks dps officer, captain asshole, for not catching the guy who passed me on my right ON THE SHOULDER DOING 100 EASY.)
The course enlightened me to facts about alcohol, how your body reacts to it, and the consequences of driving while under the influence. Things I obviously should have learned during drivers ed, or sometime during my 24 years in existence.
But I have always just blown it off. Taken the "it won't happen to me" approach and gone on doing what I do.
Yet, last night as I used the back roads behind my neighborhood to get my much desired hamburger, I couldn't help but think of the many times I used those roads to hide from the cops as I drove my drunk self home.
I can't keep doing that.
I can think of so many times I have driven with people (or my dogs) in the car while drunk or rode in a car with a drunk person driving.
And with all of the things I now know, I realize how stupid I was.
So, I am wising up and asking everyone to do the same. Please.
If not for anyone other than yourself.
Please think before you drink!
Visit MADD's website to learn more statistics on drinking & driving.
http://www.madd.org/About-Us/About-Us/Statistics.aspx
For Texas drivers, visit DPS's website to learn what a DWI really means and how it will affect your life
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/
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