Thursday, September 24, 2009

Theme Song Thursday: Please Read

Unfortunately a tragedy happened this weekend. At my college a young student passed away. After a night of partying, he headed home but he never made it. He was missing for almost two days until he was found in a stairwell. He died of alcohol poisoning.

I didn't know him. I don't know anyone who knew him but (as a friend of mine put it) that doesn't make it any less tragic.

If you're in college or if you have kids in college please show this to them or talk to them about this. He was obviously okay enough that his friends let him go home alone and he made it most of the way. Sometimes things happen and they get out of control. I remember being underage and avoiding anything that would result in me getting caught drinking but this could have been avoided. Please listen to your gut. If you have a bad feeling then call someone. I don't care if you leave your friend on the sidewalk and call 911 from inside a car parked across the street. If you think someone needs to go to the hospital then THEY NEED TO GO. My sister is still in college and I can't even fathom the thought of something like this happening to her.

The point of going to college is to secure your future and prepare for life. MAKE SURE YOU GET THERE.

This is for Joe.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a tragic, awful story. I hope that lots of people read this and take some notice of your advice. I cannot imagine the pain of that poor young man's friends and family :0(

California Girl said...

I am so sorry. I worry about this kind of thing all the time. As you may note from my son's messages home from Europe, he's no stranger to partying. The idea someone can die of alcohol poisoning blows me away but my understanding of it is limited. I imagine it affects everyone differently and an amt that would bother me might not bother you or something like that. Point is to know when you or your friend has had enough. So terrible for that boy's parents.

Mango Girl said...

What a tragedy. Unfortunately, all too common. I worry about Pitcher and his friends all the time. Does a mother ever really quit worrying?

My thoughts and prayers to the young mans family and friends.

xo, Mango

The Peach Tart said...

This was a great post with a great message.

Medora said...

How terrible - I have had alcohol poisoning before - accidental - and when you're young, especially, you have no idea how much you can handle. I know some kids do this by trying to outdrink each other, as in a contest, or to prove their tolerance, but sometimes it is really a matter of being unaware of your tolerance level. I am glad you posted this - like you said, so many teens and young adults just don't know that this danger exists.

Melanie's Randomness said...

Oh poor thing. That is tragic. I had an ex that was Diabetic that got alcohol poisioning and I was the one that was like We gotta take him to the hospital. I remember everyone saying ohh hes alright, he'll snap out of it, but luckily we did cuz he was in bad shape.

Great post & great message.

BlackSnow said...

alcohol can take you in different kinds of shit.

Joanie said...

That's terrible! I guess I don't watch the news enough, I didn't hear that story. It's one of the few things I worry about with my kids in college.

White Rabbit said...

Actually honey, he fell while he was drunk on those stairs and it was the fall that killed him.

I guess the thing that irks me most is he was 18 years old. The frat he was attending should never have given him alcohol. Shit, most people our age can't even handle alcohol properly. The entire school turns a blind eye to these situations UNTIL someone gets hurt. The frat is dry now, as if they are the ones necessarily to blame. What about all the other frats? Are we just going to leave them open for this to happen again?
It's just infuriating. I love me an adult beverage from time to time, but the point is...it's an adult beverage for a reason.

kel said...

I had heard that story.. such a terrible shame.

Chris said...

Terribly sorry to hear that . . . simply awful.

This is Chris, by the way, under a new name.

Mike said...

How did I miss a post? Hmmm, I need to check and see if blogger messed anything up!

That is very tragic, and to think that someones entire future ended because of drinking. It happens way too much!

Jaime said...

that's terrible. and it happens way too often. i had my fair share of nights of looking after my drunk sisters and having them take care of me, but we were fortunate that we never had to deal with anything like this.

Midtown Girl said...

So tragic!

My heart goes out to his family. Thank you for posting this so people can be aware.

XOXO

Hit 40 said...

How terrible!! I can not believe campus security did not find him sooner. I used to walk all the stairwells when I was on duty as a resident advisor.