I just want to say that I share the exact same views with you and this post made me feel so good about myself. I'm a freshmen in college who is constantly struggling with finding people who don't drink. A few people accept that I don't, but still try to get me to do things with them. I dread the weekends for this exact reason. Why go out and lose consciousness, do things you regret only to feel awful the next day and tell your "dramatic" stories? I hate it so much. From Thursday nights to Sunday nights, I'm miserable - every single weekend. And it's not one of those "go out and have fun!" type of things, because the one time I tried, I was left behind and more miserable than I have ever been in my life. There are so many better things you can do with your time and what's the point in not remembering what happened the night before? I used to not care that the people around me drank, but now it's like there's no one ever here for me to talk to. Every weekend I spend alone in my bed watching tv and preparing myself for the 2am drama that is sure to come running into my room when I'm just falling asleep.
The worst part is that these people don't even care about the emotional toll they put on me. I came to college happier than ever with my life and now feel worthless all because I don't like to drink, do drugs or smoke. It's terrible and honestly I only find more and more reasons to never get into the habit.
So thank you so much for posting this. I realize it's from so long ago, but I share every single one of your views and it's really nice to not feel so alone.