I recently went on a night out during the week for my best friends birthday, and I came to the conclusion that I was definitely too old for that crap. Yes, that's right, at the tender age of 22, I'm throwing in the towel to clubbing on a weeknight.
And it's not because I have a 9-5, Monday to Friday job that would make mid-week clubbing a serious issue, I don't. I work loads of different hours at all times of the day, different days of the week in a bar in Merchant City, Glasgow. So, to be fair, you'd think weeknight partying would be perfect for me. That I would love the draw of the cheap drink, loud music and crazy dancing into the early hours of the morning. And as a student, I did.
However, now I feel it's a completely different story for me.
The weeknight belongs to the student. A carefree person entitled to cheap, crappy drink to help them through the difficulties of student life. And that's fine! £1 drinks are ideal during these times, who wouldn't love that?!
I'll tell you who, GROWN UPS.
And it's not because I have a 9-5, Monday to Friday job that would make mid-week clubbing a serious issue, I don't. I work loads of different hours at all times of the day, different days of the week in a bar in Merchant City, Glasgow. So, to be fair, you'd think weeknight partying would be perfect for me. That I would love the draw of the cheap drink, loud music and crazy dancing into the early hours of the morning. And as a student, I did.
However, now I feel it's a completely different story for me.
The weeknight belongs to the student. A carefree person entitled to cheap, crappy drink to help them through the difficulties of student life. And that's fine! £1 drinks are ideal during these times, who wouldn't love that?!
I'll tell you who, GROWN UPS.
Yep, those dreaded folk, the ones that work hard during the week and are willing to pay normal prices for their drinks. Those people that you'd never dream as a student that you could be.
And then BAM! Suddenly, you are one of those grown ups.
You may not have seen it coming, the transition may have been very sneaky, but it takes over at some point and when it happens to you, you'll be as shocked as I was.
And then BAM! Suddenly, you are one of those grown ups.
You may not have seen it coming, the transition may have been very sneaky, but it takes over at some point and when it happens to you, you'll be as shocked as I was.
Now, I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with being a student, or even just enjoying a week night out. I'm not here to judge anybody.
In my days as a student/teenager I LOVED going out during the week, it was the best! How could it be THAT cheap?!
I went through a period where I was out nearly every night(and I still to this day don't know how I afforded it or how I survived it!), and you just think to yourself "never again"... Then, inevitably you would do it to yourself all over again at the next available opportunity, because all of that pain coming your way the next day, it will totally be worth it.
Then comes that special day when you realise, it is totally NOT worth it. And you come to terms with the fact that, indeed, you are too old for it.
I'm not sure if there is an actual age where you are classed as being too old for these kinds of nights out, or how you even define it. I personally think that it's all to do with your mental age and state of mind. I'm not judging anyone for still loving that lifestyle, a lot of my friends still do it.
However, I think the time has come for me to accept that it is totally over.
And I'm not even sad about it.
So, here are the realisations that came to me as I stood in a sweaty nightclub on a Monday night surrounded by these carefree, weeknight partygoers, absolutely hating life...
1. Wow... This club is so freaking busy... And warm, man is it warm in here. There is no way there is air-con in here, I feel like I'm walking through an invisible wall of stranger sweat. Is it also necessary to have to keep touching people and have them touch me?
2. I need to hold on to any part of my friend(Laura), because if I lose her, I'm literally running out of here and into the first taxi home.
3. Well, CLEARLY the ID'ing process in this nightclub is failing, because these people all look about 12, there is no way in hell they are legally allowed to be in here.
4. I am going to need a lot of alcohol to get through this night.
5. Aaaaaannnnd the bar is about 5 deep... Amazing...*resigns self to queueing for 20mins*
6.Finally get to the front of the queue and then some bimbo pushes her way to the front, flashes bar tender a smile, gets served first obviously. Great, a twelve year old who can't be legal to drink has managed to get served before me. Because I am a decent human and I'm not drunk I will not be *THAT customer* and complain, because I know that gets you nowhere.
7. Why do people insist on elbowing you?! Is there really any need?! I'm just standing here, keeping to myself, please remove your elbow from my boob it won't get you served quicker.
8. FINALLY I have been served!!!
And this friends, was my thought process on my last ever week night out. Apologies for the length, but I wanted you to really feel my pain with me as my youth rapidly slipped away. And also, thank you if you made it to the end! If you did, I get the feeling you are feeling the same way! At least now you know you aren't alone!
I do want to say though, that I am so glad I went on the night out, it was for my best friends birthday and I wouldn't have missed it for the world! I'm more than happy to go out, especially if it makes her night a little bit better. Just maybe next time we could take a raincheck on the student night... That could be fun :)
I'm not trying to put a downer on it, I promise I can have a good time, this was just a fun post to mark the end of an era.
Let me know what thoughts you have on this subject, let me know I am not alone please!
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| With photographs like this, I could never judge. |
In my days as a student/teenager I LOVED going out during the week, it was the best! How could it be THAT cheap?!
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| Because who doesn't love the bouncers on a night out?! Don't worry, I did know him! |
I went through a period where I was out nearly every night(and I still to this day don't know how I afforded it or how I survived it!), and you just think to yourself "never again"... Then, inevitably you would do it to yourself all over again at the next available opportunity, because all of that pain coming your way the next day, it will totally be worth it.
 |
| Told you I can't judge |
Then comes that special day when you realise, it is totally NOT worth it. And you come to terms with the fact that, indeed, you are too old for it.
I'm not sure if there is an actual age where you are classed as being too old for these kinds of nights out, or how you even define it. I personally think that it's all to do with your mental age and state of mind. I'm not judging anyone for still loving that lifestyle, a lot of my friends still do it.
However, I think the time has come for me to accept that it is totally over.
And I'm not even sad about it.
So, here are the realisations that came to me as I stood in a sweaty nightclub on a Monday night surrounded by these carefree, weeknight partygoers, absolutely hating life...
1. Wow... This club is so freaking busy... And warm, man is it warm in here. There is no way there is air-con in here, I feel like I'm walking through an invisible wall of stranger sweat. Is it also necessary to have to keep touching people and have them touch me?
2. I need to hold on to any part of my friend(Laura), because if I lose her, I'm literally running out of here and into the first taxi home.
3. Well, CLEARLY the ID'ing process in this nightclub is failing, because these people all look about 12, there is no way in hell they are legally allowed to be in here.
4. I am going to need a lot of alcohol to get through this night.
5. Aaaaaannnnd the bar is about 5 deep... Amazing...*resigns self to queueing for 20mins*
6.Finally get to the front of the queue and then some bimbo pushes her way to the front, flashes bar tender a smile, gets served first obviously. Great, a twelve year old who can't be legal to drink has managed to get served before me. Because I am a decent human and I'm not drunk I will not be *THAT customer* and complain, because I know that gets you nowhere.
7. Why do people insist on elbowing you?! Is there really any need?! I'm just standing here, keeping to myself, please remove your elbow from my boob it won't get you served quicker.
8. FINALLY I have been served!!!
9. Oh, they have great options here... I think I'll have the worst vodka known to man and lemonade please, that will make my insides happy...
10. Wait, how much ice did he just put in that?!?! You'll regret that when the ice machine runs out in an hour!
11. Oh god, there is now no room for the lemonade... Where are you going to put the lemonade?!
12. Yep... That's just vodka and ice with a splash of lemonade...
13. Oh god, I forgot just how bad weeknight £1 vodka is... IT BURNS!
14. I'm pretty sure all the guys in here think they are in Las Vegas splashing the cash on ALL th Champagne and Bitchezz, totally "young money", when really, they are in a nightclub in Glasgow paying £1 for gut-rot vodka and disco-winching.
15. *Crazy in Love starts playing*-I realise that all of these people won't even remember this being in the charts... God, am I really that old?! I definitely danced to this at a school disco... and here I am 11 years later, still wishing I were Beyonce.
16. Oh great, someone keeps bashing into us, trying to get into our booth... This will end well.
17. Yep, bunch of steaming people raging because people crashed the party... In normal civilisation, this would be handled by saying "really sorry, but we actually reserved this area so you can't really come in here". Nightclub translation- keep pushing them till they leave... Yep, other drunk people respond well to that.
18. Looking at Laura and both realising that we really can't be dealing with all that drama, let's go to the toilet.
19. Go to toilet, finish business. Go to wash hands, can't find a sink in amongst all the makeup bags and hairspray fog... Why do they need all this already?! They can't have even been here an hour! MOVE SO I CAN WASH MY HANDS IN THE DESIGNATED HAND WASHING FACILITIES. Thank you.
20. Can't face bar again. That was the worst tasting drink ever,I don't think I can do it to myself again.
21. I really wish I could just have a conversation with Laura, but I can't even hear myself think it is so loud in here.
22. Did I just complain about how loud the music is?! Lol, Kayleigh, stop being a granny.
23. Looks at watch, it's 1.30am, yaaayy- we can nearly leave! Surely I'm not the only one to be thinking this... Laura sees my face-she's totally thinking the same as me. Are we both grannies?
24. Let's go get some fresh air and discuss how we are no longer cut out for nightclub life... A few drinks with friends at a bar sounds waaayyy more appealing! As does a seat and food right now...
25. Yep, we are leaving to get food... We'll just wait here until 3am and catch everyone as they leave.
26. Discussions about how we would rather be in our pj's, no makeup on, hair scrapped back watching movies continues...
27. We would also rather go out for a meal or have a few friends round to the house for food, drink and conversation...
28. People were very argumentative in there... And reeaally drunk... And I certainly saw more than kissing happening, who would do that?! I definitely think I'd rather be out on a Saturday with people my own age...
29. And we are in a taxi home, beating the queues because we are wise and know when it's time to leave. The discussion about how these nights are very uncivilised after watching young boys having to be carried by strangers to a taxi whilst their girlfriend cries, carrying her shoes behind him. Yeah, if it weren't my best friends birthday and if she didn't love this, I'd have been in bed hours ago... And I didn't even get drunk...
30. Fuck, I'm too old for this... Yeah, definitely too old for it and definitely surprised by how OK I am with that fact...
31. I'm pretty sure I've just become a grown up. Au Revoir weeknight clubbing! We are over!
32. Can I go to bed now and watch my Gilmore Girls box set and snuggle with my cats and be totally ok with that?! Amazing, I'm doing it anyway!
And this friends, was my thought process on my last ever week night out. Apologies for the length, but I wanted you to really feel my pain with me as my youth rapidly slipped away. And also, thank you if you made it to the end! If you did, I get the feeling you are feeling the same way! At least now you know you aren't alone!
I do want to say though, that I am so glad I went on the night out, it was for my best friends birthday and I wouldn't have missed it for the world! I'm more than happy to go out, especially if it makes her night a little bit better. Just maybe next time we could take a raincheck on the student night... That could be fun :)
I'm not trying to put a downer on it, I promise I can have a good time, this was just a fun post to mark the end of an era.
Let me know what thoughts you have on this subject, let me know I am not alone please!
Love,
Kayleigh Rose
x
