Welcome to Amateur Night! Why Thanksgiving Eve is the Biggest Drinking Holiday of the Year

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It’s Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve.

What does that mean?

It’s amateur (drinking) night.

Forget New Year’s Eve, this is the biggest party night of the year for many.

That’s right, people are watching the minutes tick down to 5 p.m. as bars across America fill up. It’s the unofficial kickoff to the holiday season with its ugly sweater parties, uncomfortable office celebrations, visits with family members we only see a few times a year and caroling/dancing/gift-giving/cookie exchanges, which of course all leads to more drinking.

New Year’s Eve may have all the pomp and circumstance, but for a lot of people it has become too expensive for a night out. So instead of spending half of their college tuition for a night out, they stay home or go to a friend’s.  Compared to New Year’s Eve, Thanksgiving Eve is dirt cheap.

I wish I knew why drinking on Thanksgiving Eve has become so big, said Sergeant Scott Friedlein, who serves as an Alcohol Enforcement Supervisor Champaign Police Dept. Professional Standards Unit during a phone conversation today. “I guess it’s because this is the first opportunity to blow off some steam. And it is as busy if not busier than New Year’s Eve. I get a little more concerned New Year’s Eve….but both of these nights are very, very dangerous nights.”

 His anecdotal guess why people party like rock stars on Thanksgiving Eve:

Everyone is returning home and parents are busy preparing the big meal for tomorrow and have the ”get out of the house and leave us alone” mindset with their high school and college-age children.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/awayken/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Besides Thanksgiving Eve is when older siblings and college age friends come home for the holidays and homes are stocked with booze for family parties.

Another reason Thanksgiving Eve has become synonymous with being a lush:

A lot of 20-somethings have moved back home with their parents, which means they have less responsibility and more disposable income, according to Sergeant Friedlein.

Can we say beer money?

To embrace your drinking vibe check out this Facebook group: Thanksgiving Eve is a Drinking Holiday 

Thanksgiving Drink of Choice

So if you are one of the many who are going out drinking tonight, what is the best hangover cure?

More alcohol of course. Vino to be specific.

Image via Wikipedia

According to an Examiner.com post, Thanksgiving is the No. 1 wine-drinking day in the United States.

Still wondering Why Thanksgiving Eve is the Biggest Drinking Night of the Year?

Check out this list on Campus Squeeze. It’ll make you laugh or reach for a beer.