Coming to your prestigious internship hungover (aka still drunk). Taking tequila shots on a Monday night. Ditching responsibilities for a last-minute road trip. Getting inappropriately drunk with co-workers.
It’s these ridiculously amazing choices that define our college years. Yes, they’re probably questionable. And, yes, they’re probably destructive to one’s well being, too. But there’s no better time than the present to live your life recklessly.
The reasoning behind why it’s essentially a requirement that you live recklessly in your college years is simple: you’re young enough to get away with behaving in an outrageous way. As you get older, the standards for appropriate behavior get higher and higher, so there’s less room for dancing on any and all elevated surfaces.
You Can’t Get Fired From a Job You Don’t Have Yet
Repeatedly showing up to work hungover is a recipe for a meeting with Paul from Human Resources, who tells you it’s time to clean out your cubicle. The same goes for completing crappy work at the last minute or outright not completing the work at all. Shoddy work on an intern assignment? It was just busy work with no real affect on the company, so no big deal. And in college, they can’t kick you out for bullshitting a 10-page paper about symbolism in The Fountainhead. You’ll end up with a bad grade (but hey, C’s get degrees right?), but what’s the worst that could happen? There are virtually no serious consequences for being a little destructive in college, so make the most of it before your career and paycheck depend on your life choices.
It’s a Relatively Safe Environment
Not every college campus is a little utopia where nothing bad can ever happen. However, college towns are generally less dangerous than the big city you’ll end up living in. People hanging around a college campus are most likely innocent students. They’re not looking to cause trouble; they’re just looking to find the cheapest drinks in town. These people are also probably your closest friends who always have your back, even at the worst of times. So it’s okay to let yourself get a little bit out of control when you know you’re surrounded by all of your friends who would take care of you and keep you safe in a heartbeat. When you’re alone in a big city, you don’t have this same luxury – you’ve got to keep your stuff together and look out for yourself.
These Opportunities Aren’t Available Post Grad
The closest thing you’ll get to a Ho Ho Hammered themed Christmas party after you graduate is probably the annual politically correct office holiday party. Sure, they’ll be eggnog and cheap champagne, but it will be nothing compared to endless bags of Franzia and cheap vodka. There really is no other time in your life where it is socially acceptable to blackout on the beach or use beer instead of water on a slip ‘n slide. So what if you have a mountain of work to get done? You have your whole life to be miserable working day after day without a summer break; this is not the time to start that misery.
With all of that being said, don’t question it when that little devil on your shoulder is telling you to play hooky from work to do a little day drinking. Embrace that little devil because he’s right: you deserve to live recklessly while you’re still young. Don’t completely throw all reason and sense out the window because we still need some put-together people to make up for all the degenerates, but don’t be afraid to make questionable choices – it’s honestly now or never.
Featured image via 81disasters on Flickr
