Book Club: Edward Fortyhands and Bookmarks!

Drinking games

I love most drinking games. Parachute (long story, I’m not going to explain) is easily my favourite. But there’s a certain kind of drinking game that I’m absolutely terrified of playing. Kings cup (the real version, not the ‘athletes’ version we play on tour) and drinking jenga to name a couple. The kind where everyone sits in a circle and there are turn-based minigames and such. I always try to avoid playing when there’s a game on, which is quite difficult, as you pretty much have to sit in the circle to even watch, and when it comes around to where you’re sitting, there’s always that one person who asks ‘why aren’t you playing?’.

Not drinking alcohol isn’t even an acceptable reason to not play, so I try to not have a drink on me at all when I watch. I mean, what am I going to say?

“I get really bad anxiety when the attention is focused on me”?

“I’m terrified of what I might have to do”?

“I’m worried I won’t be funny/witty enough”?

“I don’t want to risk my chances of having to *insert whatever thing I’m most scared of in that particular game*”?

I don’t want to be a buzz-kill, so I end up just feeling like the awkward kid with a secret, darting out to ‘check my phone’ or something when it gets close to being near my turn ’till people realize I don’t want to play.

Anxiety sucks sometimes.