Lucky Number 21
One of the nicest bits of kismet in my life is that my 21st birthday fell on a weekend. What that meant is that the gloves could come off but I also wanted to enjoy the event so that was something I was aware of going in.
I had a couple of close calls during my first semester of college so I largely abstained from controlled substances those first couple years really only drinking overseas when the age limit was no longer really an issue. That meant my tolerance was incredibly low which probably would make the whole thing more (more likely less) memorable. While a handful of my friends were older than me, it was decided to keep the action to a house party rather than a bar to accommodate the most people; birthdays are always meant to be spent with friends.
So we stocked up with enough wine, beer, and liquor to satisfy approximately a dozen people for a full weekend within reason. A bit surprisingly, I largely kept to wine that weekend. I had just come back from a study abroad trip in Costa Rica which has a pretty abundant supply of decent Chilean and Argentine wine and really developed a taste for it. Still have, honestly; I'll take a bottle of Casillero del Diablo over it's Italian counterparts in most cases though my sweet tooth does have a soft spot for Beringer's white zinfandel.
While I certainly went to parties my first couple years of college, I was usually the designated driver. I figured I might as well be of some responsible use while maintaining my social life on the weekends. As such, I hadn't really participated much in the standard drinking games that first half of college; kings, beer pong, flip cup were all known to me but I didn't have a whole hell of a lot of experience there. I tried to make up for lost time that weekend but have you ever tried to play beer pong or flip cup with red wine while everyone else is drinking Bud Light? I was completely fucking terrible. I mean, I still had loads of fun. But completely fucking terrible.
Around three in the morning, I went out to the back patio to get some air and some smoke. I had become a bit of social smoker by the end of high school and, by halfway through college, had transitioned largely from cigarettes to the occasional cigarillo before virtually dropping the habit entirely by the time I started grad school. But I wasn't out of college yet so with a casual flick of my wrist I opened, lit, and closed my trusty Zippo lighting the tip of my smoke in one fluid motion. Years of practice, that.
I collapsed in an old wooden lawn chair, exhaled, and hang my tipsy head back looking up at the stars. It was actually a pretty clear August night and I started mentally picking out constellations next to that Virginia moon.
"Don't pass out just yet." called out a voice behind me so suddenly that the sharp intake I reflexively had on that cigarillo had me coughing out the hot ash I accidentally inhaled. I turned and one of my friends hosting the event sat in a seat next to me.
"You're actually holding up pretty well." he commented studying me idly.
"Costa Rica. Wine was cheaper than water." I grinned through an exhale of sickly sweet smoke.
"You got more than just a tan. You meet someone?" he raised an eyebrow, always curious about that.
"Maybe," I replied, eyes quickly turning down while the cover of night concealed a blush before quickly changing the subject. "That's one of those things where I should probably just sit on the sidelines and not complicate things. Anyone think to bring a guitar?"
"No." a pause but he lets me blissfully have the conversational detour. "21 hasn't changed you all that much."
"Because of you. All of you. How long have you and I been doing this? A decade [at that point]? You're the guys that keep me grounded, that keep me humble."
"You? Humble?"
I laughed.
"You know the only reason I brag so much is because I'm so excited to share what I'm doing."
"You must get excited a lot."
"Constantly." another nocturnal blush followed by a genuine sigh. "No, seriously. All of you were really there for me when I needed it the most, when I was at my lowest. I can never begin to be there for you guys enough. Plus, [with a raised eyebrow of my own] you think I'd prefer spending a birthday with my actual family?"
We both shakily get back on our feet and begin to walk inside as I put out the cigarillo on the brick wall by the patio door.
"You're not going to tell about me about her, are you? It's a her, right?"
"It's a her and fuck no."
Birthdays moving forward would initially carry the same freewheeling intensity for a time but, really, after my 27th, I generally slowed down to have a quieter time with friends over dinner and drinks; the occasional rock show thrown in for good measure. Hell, this past birthday started out with me hanging out with Australian indie rockers on H Street and ended facing down white supremacists in Lafayette Square so it certainly wasn't uneventful.
Birthdays were always about friendships, more than an annual celebration of cheating the reaper for another year, for me, it's about honoring the people in my life to make life worth living. Music is the heartbeat for me; it always has been. Friends are the soul. My faith's in friendship. And that only gets stronger every year. Here's to another year cheating the reaper. And, more importantly, here's to all of you.
I had a couple of close calls during my first semester of college so I largely abstained from controlled substances those first couple years really only drinking overseas when the age limit was no longer really an issue. That meant my tolerance was incredibly low which probably would make the whole thing more (more likely less) memorable. While a handful of my friends were older than me, it was decided to keep the action to a house party rather than a bar to accommodate the most people; birthdays are always meant to be spent with friends.
So we stocked up with enough wine, beer, and liquor to satisfy approximately a dozen people for a full weekend within reason. A bit surprisingly, I largely kept to wine that weekend. I had just come back from a study abroad trip in Costa Rica which has a pretty abundant supply of decent Chilean and Argentine wine and really developed a taste for it. Still have, honestly; I'll take a bottle of Casillero del Diablo over it's Italian counterparts in most cases though my sweet tooth does have a soft spot for Beringer's white zinfandel.
While I certainly went to parties my first couple years of college, I was usually the designated driver. I figured I might as well be of some responsible use while maintaining my social life on the weekends. As such, I hadn't really participated much in the standard drinking games that first half of college; kings, beer pong, flip cup were all known to me but I didn't have a whole hell of a lot of experience there. I tried to make up for lost time that weekend but have you ever tried to play beer pong or flip cup with red wine while everyone else is drinking Bud Light? I was completely fucking terrible. I mean, I still had loads of fun. But completely fucking terrible.
Around three in the morning, I went out to the back patio to get some air and some smoke. I had become a bit of social smoker by the end of high school and, by halfway through college, had transitioned largely from cigarettes to the occasional cigarillo before virtually dropping the habit entirely by the time I started grad school. But I wasn't out of college yet so with a casual flick of my wrist I opened, lit, and closed my trusty Zippo lighting the tip of my smoke in one fluid motion. Years of practice, that.
I collapsed in an old wooden lawn chair, exhaled, and hang my tipsy head back looking up at the stars. It was actually a pretty clear August night and I started mentally picking out constellations next to that Virginia moon.
"You're actually holding up pretty well." he commented studying me idly.
"Costa Rica. Wine was cheaper than water." I grinned through an exhale of sickly sweet smoke.
"You got more than just a tan. You meet someone?" he raised an eyebrow, always curious about that.
"Maybe," I replied, eyes quickly turning down while the cover of night concealed a blush before quickly changing the subject. "That's one of those things where I should probably just sit on the sidelines and not complicate things. Anyone think to bring a guitar?"
"No." a pause but he lets me blissfully have the conversational detour. "21 hasn't changed you all that much."
"Because of you. All of you. How long have you and I been doing this? A decade [at that point]? You're the guys that keep me grounded, that keep me humble."
"You? Humble?"
I laughed.
"You know the only reason I brag so much is because I'm so excited to share what I'm doing."
"You must get excited a lot."
"Constantly." another nocturnal blush followed by a genuine sigh. "No, seriously. All of you were really there for me when I needed it the most, when I was at my lowest. I can never begin to be there for you guys enough. Plus, [with a raised eyebrow of my own] you think I'd prefer spending a birthday with my actual family?"
We both shakily get back on our feet and begin to walk inside as I put out the cigarillo on the brick wall by the patio door.
"You're not going to tell about me about her, are you? It's a her, right?"
"It's a her and fuck no."
Birthdays moving forward would initially carry the same freewheeling intensity for a time but, really, after my 27th, I generally slowed down to have a quieter time with friends over dinner and drinks; the occasional rock show thrown in for good measure. Hell, this past birthday started out with me hanging out with Australian indie rockers on H Street and ended facing down white supremacists in Lafayette Square so it certainly wasn't uneventful.
Birthdays were always about friendships, more than an annual celebration of cheating the reaper for another year, for me, it's about honoring the people in my life to make life worth living. Music is the heartbeat for me; it always has been. Friends are the soul. My faith's in friendship. And that only gets stronger every year. Here's to another year cheating the reaper. And, more importantly, here's to all of you.
