Being Invited, and Getting Drunk Out

I did something tonight that I haven't done in quite some time - I went to a bar to drink with friends. And although I intended to only have one or two, that was not to be the case. Some random drunk guy bought the entire bar a round of shots - 4 TIMES!!!

Let me back up a bit... I was invited to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant by some friends. Had a wonderful time chatting with them and eating inexpensive yet really good Mexican food. Then I went to a hockey game, thanks to some friends who weren't going to use their tickets. Oswego won over Buffalo, 5-2. It was a good game, and I had a lot of fun. Some of us decided to go out afterward to a local bar. Being Halloween weekend, at a bar, in a college town, we knew we had limited "old folks time" before the drunken college kids in ridiculous costumes invaded. Before I even finished my first beer, the bartender put out shot glasses for everyone sitting around the bar, saying that the guy in the green sweatshirt at the end of the bar was buying a shot for everyone. Ok, cool! We drink our shot, and I resume sipping on my beer. Not 15 minutes later, the same guy buys another round! Now, this is getting interesting. All in all, in the course of about an hour to an hour and a half, this guy bought 4 rounds of shots for everyone at the bar! Wow. That, plus the two beers I had - both of which were free, one because I kicked the tap and it wasn't a full glass so the bartender didn't charge me and the other because my awesome co-worker bought it for me - and it was starting to get drunk out!

I can't even say the last time I went to a bar and had that many drinks. It's been a long time. I was there with co-workers and their spouses- people I don't see very often in a non-work environment. We had a great time laughing together, making fun of the drunk guy in the green sweatshirt who dropped like $300 in booze, and criticizing the slutty Halloween costumes once the college kids started pouring in. Lots of fun!

This post is not going to be philosophical, or full of deep meaning, or anything like that, mainly because I'm exhausted and really need to get to bed. But my AHA came in the fact that so many different people offered me so many different niceties: Invited to dinner by one friend, given the hockey tickets by another, was given the "stop in any time" privilege by a very dear friend whom I don't see very often, a co-worker/friend bought me a beer, a girlfriend offered me her couch to sleep on tonight (or any other time). I got to hang out with people I don't often see in a "social" setting and I had a blast! Then, on the way home, my boss (yes, I hung out and drank with my boss) sent me a text asking to let him know that I got home ok. It may sound trivial, silly or even pathetic, but the feeling of being "wanted" is a very strong one, and something that makes me feel really good about myself!  Having that many invites from that many friends, and having people show they care about having me around... that's a good feeling!