Don't Be Stupid

Don't Be Stupid.

That is the phrase that should be stuck in every freshmen's head as the First Friday of college comes around.

The First Friday is the single most dangerous day of the year for a college freshmen. Let me explain why.

After orientation week has ended and classes have begun, every freshmen has an epiphany. "I am free!" They realize that their parents are gone and they are surrounded by peers. They are now adults. They get to make their own decisions, have their own life, and it is all up to them. "They get to do whatever they want now"

Sorry to all the freshmen, but that is just not how it works. Being an adult means you do get to do whatever you want, but if you do something stupid then you lose your right to be treated as an adult. There may no longer be parents who nag you when you do stupid stuff, but there are now other adults (like police) that can make your "stupid" bite hard.

Most freshmen forget this little fact as First Friday comes. The drug of freedom is in full swing and they are ready to start the college experience.

The most typical thing that happens is around 8-9pm Friday night a bunch of freshmen get a ride to a house somewhere and get unlimited access to a keg or something similar. Freedom tells the freshmen that they finally get to try liquor. And "being an adult" gives them the belief that they can handle as much as anyone else. So the freshmen start to drink, and drink, and drink. Unfortunately they have forgotten one thing. In one week they have not met or come to know anyone at the school truly well. Sure the roommates and suitemates have become kind of close, but the freshmen are really amongst strangers. They hardly know anyone and hardly anyone knows them.

So now the freshmen is a minor who is drunk among strangers.

There is an incredibly dark direction that this could go, but I will leave that to the imagination of the reader and tell of the most common occurrence.

Usually, the drunk freshmen is noticed sitting on the couch, maybe by a suitemate or an upperclassmen. The freshmen is then given a ride. But it is a ride back to campus. The "friend" is just dropping them off and after that doesn't really care. Plus the "friend" doesn't want to be caught with an underage person who is completely drunk in their car.

So the freshmen is dropped in the middle of Mingus to fend for himself/herself. If they are just kind of drunk they may make it back to their dorm room by themselves. But then they do something stupid and play music super loud or start to yell so that the RA's come. They are now a documented underage drunk and they lose all the scholarships they need to afford a $40,000 a year education

This ends up on the internet after First Friday
because he was stupid

The other thing that can happen, is the freshmen is so drunk that they lay in the parking lot, where they were left, until a responsible person comes along. If a person is unconscious or vomiting late at night it is most likely alcohol poisoning. 911 will be called and the freshmen will be hauled to the hospital where they will again become  a documented underage drinker. They then lose any scholarships and are put into the public justice system.

To all the freshmen out there. If you are planning to go wild over the weekend you can, there is no one to stop you. But Don't Be Stupid, because once you do that you lose all right to make your own decisions and they are, instead, made for you. And when you're stupid payback always comes and it is a B*?$%.

College is a great experience, you can have a ton of fun, and there is no reason to waste a three day weekend. But just "Don't Be Stupid." if you want to be an adult you first have to act like an adult. You need to know and respect your limits and think about the consequences.

Please Don't be Stupid. But have an awesome First Friday of college.

Note: If you need help or happen to spot anyone who may have broken the DBS rule and need help, call your RA, HRL (928-777-3790), or Safety (928-777-3333)