Closely studying the relationship of the student body to the local liquor store has pointed me toward possible conclusions in the alcohol consumption phenomenon of college. While science and medicine have attempted to prove that some people are genetically predisposed to alcoholism, I believe that the societal state of social relations is another key factor in the identification of alcohol dependency. In this societal state, dependency is often less severe than alcoholism and less obvious in its consumption practices, yet still ingrained in the everyday as routine and necessary. The necessity of alcohol consumption is not always based on chemical addiction, but is instead deeply rooted in social addiction. Social addiction is based on the growing need for social interaction despite the declining presence of physical interpersonal communication in the post-modern world.
Playing the role of social lubricant for centuries, alcohol has become a standard medium to repair broken social traditions and absent formalities in communication, allowing the socially awkward to bridge the communicative gap of fear and social anxiety. This is apparent in the many roles that alcohol plays as a measure of communication and a subject of communication. As visible through my previous observations, there is more to alcohol than just its psychoactive properties that trigger social confidence and interpersonal opportunities. There is the ritualistic presence of alcohol as a good that accompanies social occasions, such as parties and private dates. Alcohol attracts people to gather around it and is often used to justify a bold leap of attraction from one human to another. In many cases, the act of purchasing liquor on a regular basis becomes the act of meeting a liquor store owner and employees, who become regular faces to the routine consumer. Finally, there is the subject of connoisseurship where individuals come together to express their opinions, share their experiences, and relate on the topic of taste, forming a community around alcohol as a romanticized product. In all of these examples, alcohol acts as a magnet to attract interpersonal socialization. Physical human interaction has become an overlooked necessity in the post-modern age where communication is increasingly virtual and technology is increasingly alienating, making alcohol a classical pillar for students to grab onto and socialize around as a traditional means of interaction. As these traditional forms of socialization continue to dissolve, alcohol becomes more important in its social role and dependency grows to ensure the continuation of interpersonal communication, especially within the college environment.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
The Collector
For those alcohol consumers interested in expanding their beer and wine pallets beyond the standard choices of mass produced supermarket 30-racks and boxed wines, beer distributors and liquor stores often provide a unique range of products to satisfy the demands of these alcohol connoisseurs. Many drinkers perceive the acts of brewing and winemaking as artistic crafts that deserve examination of taste and contemplation of expertise. This is another dimension that in addition to the social and psychoactive properties of alcohol, attracts consumers to participate in its cultural consumption. Individuals attracted to the notion of alcohol connoisseurship are not only interested in alcohol as a drug, as they are also aware of alcohol as an art, subject to individual opinion and the process of review. Beer and wine enthusiasts are interested in the alcohol creation process from start to finish, familiarizing themselves with styles, tastes, history and geography, breweries and vineyards, all in the pursuit of extensive alcohol knowledge. They do this as an attempt to formulate their own educated opinions of alcohol brands, positioning themselves as the taste makers and experienced critiques within the alcoholic art world. For others, the act of consuming different alcohol brands is the act of adding to a collection of alcohol experiences; the mind of the adventurous collector who consumes to expand his or her knowledge of the craft and to check another brand off the list. Still others journey through the endless variety of craft beers and wines as a search for the perfect drug, one which tastes good, feels good, and embodies the individual's personality.
By continuously stocking the shelves with new varieties of microbrewed, limited edition bottles, the local liquor store has built its reputation as supplier for the inquisitive brewers and adventurous beer tasters of the area. With the presence of the surrounding colleges full of trend setters and creative art students, the store strategically orders obscure craft beers with unique labels and curiously inviting packaging. These tantalizing bottles and cans serve as conversation starters and content for beer-talk among growing connoisseurs. In some cases the visually stimulating beer bottles serve as fashion accessories as students traverse crowded party floors with their flashy beer bottles held out in plain view. The success of these decorative beer brands is easily apparent within the local liquor store, especially with the beer Mississippi Mud, a product of the Mississippi Brewing Co. in Utica, New York. Mississippi Mud is a microbrewed black and tan very similar to the black and tans of the famed Yuengling company, the oldest and now largest American-owned brewery. While the two beers share a very similar taste and almost equal alcohol percentage, Mississippi Mud is both obscure and eye catching, packaged in a small moonshine jug and emblazoned with old timey writing and the image of a swamp gator. This has made Mississippi Mud an instant hit at the local liquor store. Although it is more expensive than Yuengling, it is an obvious favorite among the college population, as students can be seen carrying the jug around campus with one finger through the tiny loop handle, yielding it comfortably and proudly as a stylistic choice of alcohol taste.
Although expensive wine purchasing is less prevalent in the alcohol consumption practices of the local colleges, the local liquor store does not shy away from international wine enthusiasts, offering them a separate room to explore their options. With a stock of wines that vary in age, region, styles and grapes, the liquor store provides a wide price range from $10 California wines to $100 French wines to satisfy the tastes of all wine consumers. These prices most likely correspond with the commitment of the wine connoisseur or the importance of status to the wealthy individual who is willing to drop up to $100 on an alcohol tasting experience. Expensive wines come with an aura of prestige and this is portrayed within the atmosphere of the wine room. In contrast to the main room with its pop music, advertising setups, neon signs, and even cheap mass produced wine, the separate wine room is quiet and elegant, adorned with rustic wooden crates and wine racks and a plush red carpet. This gives the wine connoisseur an inviting atmosphere to read up on the history of a vineyard or the origin of a bottle, while he or she contemplates the prestige of an expensive buy.
While craft beer and wine tasting can be viewed as a personal collection of taste, the individual opinion of an alcohol enthusiast is often used to spark conversation among other drinkers. Alcohol consumers can share their experiences and connect on taste, using the art and craft of alcohol as a platform for socialization. At the same time, alcohol tasting as a hobby can lead to collection obsession and a personal dependency on rare and expensive alcohol products. This serves as another example of an alcohol reliant relationship built around social consumption.
By continuously stocking the shelves with new varieties of microbrewed, limited edition bottles, the local liquor store has built its reputation as supplier for the inquisitive brewers and adventurous beer tasters of the area. With the presence of the surrounding colleges full of trend setters and creative art students, the store strategically orders obscure craft beers with unique labels and curiously inviting packaging. These tantalizing bottles and cans serve as conversation starters and content for beer-talk among growing connoisseurs. In some cases the visually stimulating beer bottles serve as fashion accessories as students traverse crowded party floors with their flashy beer bottles held out in plain view. The success of these decorative beer brands is easily apparent within the local liquor store, especially with the beer Mississippi Mud, a product of the Mississippi Brewing Co. in Utica, New York. Mississippi Mud is a microbrewed black and tan very similar to the black and tans of the famed Yuengling company, the oldest and now largest American-owned brewery. While the two beers share a very similar taste and almost equal alcohol percentage, Mississippi Mud is both obscure and eye catching, packaged in a small moonshine jug and emblazoned with old timey writing and the image of a swamp gator. This has made Mississippi Mud an instant hit at the local liquor store. Although it is more expensive than Yuengling, it is an obvious favorite among the college population, as students can be seen carrying the jug around campus with one finger through the tiny loop handle, yielding it comfortably and proudly as a stylistic choice of alcohol taste.
Although expensive wine purchasing is less prevalent in the alcohol consumption practices of the local colleges, the local liquor store does not shy away from international wine enthusiasts, offering them a separate room to explore their options. With a stock of wines that vary in age, region, styles and grapes, the liquor store provides a wide price range from $10 California wines to $100 French wines to satisfy the tastes of all wine consumers. These prices most likely correspond with the commitment of the wine connoisseur or the importance of status to the wealthy individual who is willing to drop up to $100 on an alcohol tasting experience. Expensive wines come with an aura of prestige and this is portrayed within the atmosphere of the wine room. In contrast to the main room with its pop music, advertising setups, neon signs, and even cheap mass produced wine, the separate wine room is quiet and elegant, adorned with rustic wooden crates and wine racks and a plush red carpet. This gives the wine connoisseur an inviting atmosphere to read up on the history of a vineyard or the origin of a bottle, while he or she contemplates the prestige of an expensive buy.
While craft beer and wine tasting can be viewed as a personal collection of taste, the individual opinion of an alcohol enthusiast is often used to spark conversation among other drinkers. Alcohol consumers can share their experiences and connect on taste, using the art and craft of alcohol as a platform for socialization. At the same time, alcohol tasting as a hobby can lead to collection obsession and a personal dependency on rare and expensive alcohol products. This serves as another example of an alcohol reliant relationship built around social consumption.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Personal Business
There are plenty of locations within the US that cater to the public demand for alcohol. From gas station 40-ounces to discounted supermarket 30-racks, the options are endless and the market is competitive. So how does a small independent liquor store stay afloat in this cutthroat corporate marketplace? Why return to the same store over and over when the businesses down the street offer the same drug in endless variety and only subtle differences. The local liquor store must establish a clientele of loyalists; customers who will come back every week to restock their supply. The liquor store of my focus has been very successful in obtaining market dominance and through relatively simple acts of customer connection. These acts include, personal greetings, small gestures of appreciation, small talk and flirtation, and most importantly, VIP treatment for regulars. Overall, it is the projection of personality and the effort of establishing a relationship that rewards the customer for his or her loyalty.
From the first time I visited the local liquor store, I noticed the unusually personable, and pleasantly cheerful attitude of the store owner. My first thought was the old comedian, Phil Silvers. He asked me my name and didn't even pretend to question my age, proclaiming that I must be 21. When I told him I was actually 22 (the age on my fake ID at the time) and a freshman at the local college, we got into discussing my life after high school. At that point I assumed the identity of my older fiend who farmed in Vermont for four years before attending college. My story wasn't very convincing but he just nodded along with a smile and pretended to buy it. It was a pleasant first impression and it put my nerves at ease, considering I was still underage and used to faking my identity at impersonal supermarkets and foreign ran convenient stores. Ever since that first interaction, the owner has never remembered my name or any other customer's at that, due to the overwhelming flow of students into his establishment. Instead he uses the easily adaptable and laughable catch phrase, "Hey there, guy" or the slight variation, "Hey there, big guy!" The owner is almost always in the store to greet students with this phrase, making an effort to invoke interpersonal feelings without any strong commitment. This greeting is well known throughout the school and mocked in a lighthearted manner, only adding to the lovable personality of the store owner.
The owner is also kind enough to perform little gestures of appreciation for the repeat faces in his store, offering miniature bottles of liquor or "nips" to large spenders and birthday customers. Sometimes just the acknowledgement of a liquor brand results in a free complimentary nip. The front counter is stocked full of them and they act as small counter weights in the balance of customer satisfaction. One repeat customer told me that she would return to the store every week and pretend be curious about a brand of vodka, always resulting in a complimentary nip, despite her repeated fascination with the same brand every time. The owner's forgetfulness and extroverted efforts to produce customer satisfaction add to the comedic aura of the store and the appeal of returning week after week.
Besides the comedic characteristics of the owner, the local liquor store also attracts sales with its employment of attractive female cashiers. The store cashier can often be a young woman, whose gamine-like aura provides happy male customers with flirtatious small talk and smiles. I noticed the effectiveness of these female cashiers through my own attraction and that of my male friends. After a flirtatious greeting, a cute cashier asked my friend, "Is that it?" and he assumed that she was challenging the size of his purchase. In an attempt to impress the young woman, he added three more items to his purchase and inquired, "How about now?"
If the attractive personalities of the owner and his employees weren't enough to create a social dependency among alcohol interested students, then there is always the promise of store VIP status. For those who have visited the store weekly, year after year, the owner provides those regular customers with inside information. He informs them of the cold 30-racks in the back and offers them access to the refrigerated back room. He also cuts the change off of the final sales price. After becoming a regular there, I began to talk beer and wine with the owner who would happily offer his opinion in taste, pointing me toward quality rather than price. When I asked him whether they carried a specific brand of wine, he eagerly ordered a batch of bottles within the week. The bottles ended up selling out rather quickly and the owner joyously expressed his appreciation for my advice. As a result, he cut the price of my purchase and threw in a complimentary nip as an extra little "thank you".
These experiences with the overall personality of the establishment have sealed my consumption based relationship with the local liquor store, providing myself and others with an attractive source of alcohol. The appealing aura of this interpersonal alcohol outlet has undoubtedly contributed to the weekly consumption practices of the school campus. As students become loyal to the friendly independent business, the duty to support that business becomes a priority, and students flock to the location as a weekly ritual. Is this just another example of the interpersonal social dependency that fuels alcohol culture? How does the alcohol-oriented relationship of student and business, differ from the previously discussed examples of student and student?
From the first time I visited the local liquor store, I noticed the unusually personable, and pleasantly cheerful attitude of the store owner. My first thought was the old comedian, Phil Silvers. He asked me my name and didn't even pretend to question my age, proclaiming that I must be 21. When I told him I was actually 22 (the age on my fake ID at the time) and a freshman at the local college, we got into discussing my life after high school. At that point I assumed the identity of my older fiend who farmed in Vermont for four years before attending college. My story wasn't very convincing but he just nodded along with a smile and pretended to buy it. It was a pleasant first impression and it put my nerves at ease, considering I was still underage and used to faking my identity at impersonal supermarkets and foreign ran convenient stores. Ever since that first interaction, the owner has never remembered my name or any other customer's at that, due to the overwhelming flow of students into his establishment. Instead he uses the easily adaptable and laughable catch phrase, "Hey there, guy" or the slight variation, "Hey there, big guy!" The owner is almost always in the store to greet students with this phrase, making an effort to invoke interpersonal feelings without any strong commitment. This greeting is well known throughout the school and mocked in a lighthearted manner, only adding to the lovable personality of the store owner.
The owner is also kind enough to perform little gestures of appreciation for the repeat faces in his store, offering miniature bottles of liquor or "nips" to large spenders and birthday customers. Sometimes just the acknowledgement of a liquor brand results in a free complimentary nip. The front counter is stocked full of them and they act as small counter weights in the balance of customer satisfaction. One repeat customer told me that she would return to the store every week and pretend be curious about a brand of vodka, always resulting in a complimentary nip, despite her repeated fascination with the same brand every time. The owner's forgetfulness and extroverted efforts to produce customer satisfaction add to the comedic aura of the store and the appeal of returning week after week.
Besides the comedic characteristics of the owner, the local liquor store also attracts sales with its employment of attractive female cashiers. The store cashier can often be a young woman, whose gamine-like aura provides happy male customers with flirtatious small talk and smiles. I noticed the effectiveness of these female cashiers through my own attraction and that of my male friends. After a flirtatious greeting, a cute cashier asked my friend, "Is that it?" and he assumed that she was challenging the size of his purchase. In an attempt to impress the young woman, he added three more items to his purchase and inquired, "How about now?"
If the attractive personalities of the owner and his employees weren't enough to create a social dependency among alcohol interested students, then there is always the promise of store VIP status. For those who have visited the store weekly, year after year, the owner provides those regular customers with inside information. He informs them of the cold 30-racks in the back and offers them access to the refrigerated back room. He also cuts the change off of the final sales price. After becoming a regular there, I began to talk beer and wine with the owner who would happily offer his opinion in taste, pointing me toward quality rather than price. When I asked him whether they carried a specific brand of wine, he eagerly ordered a batch of bottles within the week. The bottles ended up selling out rather quickly and the owner joyously expressed his appreciation for my advice. As a result, he cut the price of my purchase and threw in a complimentary nip as an extra little "thank you".
These experiences with the overall personality of the establishment have sealed my consumption based relationship with the local liquor store, providing myself and others with an attractive source of alcohol. The appealing aura of this interpersonal alcohol outlet has undoubtedly contributed to the weekly consumption practices of the school campus. As students become loyal to the friendly independent business, the duty to support that business becomes a priority, and students flock to the location as a weekly ritual. Is this just another example of the interpersonal social dependency that fuels alcohol culture? How does the alcohol-oriented relationship of student and business, differ from the previously discussed examples of student and student?
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Liquid Romance
I would like to begin by exploring the notion of romance involved with weekend alcohol purchases. Alcohol has long held the role of a social lubricant among weekend gatherings. Like the oil that maintains the college social machine, alcohol facilitates interaction between students by blocking off major inhibitions. These inhibitions are the product of various social anxieties. Ranging from rejection to humiliation, they prevent a student from professing his love to an admired crush, fantasizing about moments of heart-to-heart connection rather than pursuing those fantasies in reality. Not only does it decrease inhibitions, but it fuels the sexual hunt, increasing the individual's libido and pushing forth the romantic social factor. This makes romantic fantasies seem obtainable and worth the risk. For the young males and females that belong to the college community, alcohol has obtained a romantic status; one which promises interpersonal opportunities for connection. Whether the desire is to find a romantic partner or a purely sexual one night stand, alcohol has become the cupid's arrow among student minds, a tool to facilitate the search for love and lust.
In an environment where one seems out of place if he or she is not wielding an alcoholic drink, alcohol has become an almost necessary medium for romantic interaction. If an individual fails to obtain a stock of alcohol for the weekend, that individual has been set back in social assets, deeming him or her unprepared to host visitors and possible love connections. There is also the societal notion that a male must be equally drunk to a female in order to justify a moral hook-up; a rule that pushes alcohol as an equalizer between willing men and women. Since alcohol has become such an ingrained aspect of college socialization, a conscious non-drinker is severely limited in his choice of mates, making alcohol a desirable means to the rest of the female population. Could this be why students have become so dependent on weekly alcohol consumption? Without alcohol, the possibility of sexual encounters and weekend love affairs seems to dwindle back into unobtainable fantasy. Could alcohol dependency be responsible for the construction of such a fantasy and the collapse of traditional mating rituals?
I have been in close connection to a student named Glenn who has purchased alcohol from the local liquor store for four years. He had been an active participant in the weekend mating game for almost three of those years, purchasing large bottles of expensive liquor in order to obtain the mental state of "blackout". This is the intoxicated state in which he would belligerently pursue any female within the proximity with absurd honesty, completely unaware of those actions in the coming morning. Reaching the point of no inhibitions, Glenn could openly ask any female if they would like to agree to sexual intercourse with him. Although this student had a large, menacing appearance, he was well known around campus as a humorously affectionate character. Because of this, most women did not sense his aggressiveness as a danger and just passed him off with understanding laughter. In a few cases, Glenn's belligerent honesty actually attracted women, some who were extreme sexual deviants and others who must have appreciated his openness. By the end of the third year, Glenn had become physically and mentally tired from his weekend blackouts, deciding to reduce his amount of alcohol consumption significantly. It was then that Glenn met his girlfriend, not through weekend partying, but through class. After settling down with this girl, Glenn rarely consumed alcohol at all. He decided that weekend drinking was not worth the trouble anymore and that he would rather stay at home with his new partner. Despite his new take on weekend college gatherings, Glenn continues to visit the local liquor store weekly, purchasing small amounts of alcohol to stock up the refrigerator.
After finding a compatible mate, Glenn completely denounced social alcohol consumption on campus as an unnecessary ritual. He no longer saw the point in even leaving his apartment, let alone his room. Yet, he remained loyal to the liquor store business as regular customer. What does this say about alcohol dependency and weekend rituals? Is weekend socializing only necessary for those in search of love and lust, or does it offer other opportunities for escape?
In an environment where one seems out of place if he or she is not wielding an alcoholic drink, alcohol has become an almost necessary medium for romantic interaction. If an individual fails to obtain a stock of alcohol for the weekend, that individual has been set back in social assets, deeming him or her unprepared to host visitors and possible love connections. There is also the societal notion that a male must be equally drunk to a female in order to justify a moral hook-up; a rule that pushes alcohol as an equalizer between willing men and women. Since alcohol has become such an ingrained aspect of college socialization, a conscious non-drinker is severely limited in his choice of mates, making alcohol a desirable means to the rest of the female population. Could this be why students have become so dependent on weekly alcohol consumption? Without alcohol, the possibility of sexual encounters and weekend love affairs seems to dwindle back into unobtainable fantasy. Could alcohol dependency be responsible for the construction of such a fantasy and the collapse of traditional mating rituals?
I have been in close connection to a student named Glenn who has purchased alcohol from the local liquor store for four years. He had been an active participant in the weekend mating game for almost three of those years, purchasing large bottles of expensive liquor in order to obtain the mental state of "blackout". This is the intoxicated state in which he would belligerently pursue any female within the proximity with absurd honesty, completely unaware of those actions in the coming morning. Reaching the point of no inhibitions, Glenn could openly ask any female if they would like to agree to sexual intercourse with him. Although this student had a large, menacing appearance, he was well known around campus as a humorously affectionate character. Because of this, most women did not sense his aggressiveness as a danger and just passed him off with understanding laughter. In a few cases, Glenn's belligerent honesty actually attracted women, some who were extreme sexual deviants and others who must have appreciated his openness. By the end of the third year, Glenn had become physically and mentally tired from his weekend blackouts, deciding to reduce his amount of alcohol consumption significantly. It was then that Glenn met his girlfriend, not through weekend partying, but through class. After settling down with this girl, Glenn rarely consumed alcohol at all. He decided that weekend drinking was not worth the trouble anymore and that he would rather stay at home with his new partner. Despite his new take on weekend college gatherings, Glenn continues to visit the local liquor store weekly, purchasing small amounts of alcohol to stock up the refrigerator.
After finding a compatible mate, Glenn completely denounced social alcohol consumption on campus as an unnecessary ritual. He no longer saw the point in even leaving his apartment, let alone his room. Yet, he remained loyal to the liquor store business as regular customer. What does this say about alcohol dependency and weekend rituals? Is weekend socializing only necessary for those in search of love and lust, or does it offer other opportunities for escape?
Friday, March 9, 2012
The Objective
This website will act as my ethnographic journal as I begin to research the role of alcohol in college student social interaction. The location I will be focusing on is a small town liquor store in close vicinity to two colleges, making it the primary alcohol vendor for those two schools. Business flows according to the student schedule, with weekly rush hours appearing and disappearing like clockwork. The store sees its big business hours on Friday and Saturday nights, with students packing out the shop, eager to make their weekend purchases. With two hours until store closing, the parking lot becomes riddled with haphazardly parked vehicles as students rush in and out, greeting, socializing, and mapping out their nightly options. Carrying boxes full of bottles full of intoxicating fluids, the students return to their campuses to live out their uninhibited social desires.
Alcohol has been used as a social lubricant since the establishment of recorded history, giving godly substance to the Greek Dionysian festivals and fueling the underground social resistance of the American speakeasies. My study will focus on student socialization, providing details about the emerging concept of the weekend warriors, or those who live for the weekend. The weekend warrior in relation to the student, is one who commits to school and studies during the week, only to escape into the uninhibited pursuit of pleasure and fulfillment when the weekend arrives. Alcohol seems to be the key component to assisting the weekend warrior's often desperate search for relief. But Why?
Has alcohol become the medicine of choice for suppressing anxiety and unhappiness, acting as temporary relief from the pressures of the school system? Or is alcohol just a platform to obtain what is really at demand; human interaction and interpersonal communication? Has society become so detached from peer to peer interaction that it requires mind altering drugs to facilitate socialization? Perhaps alcohol is just another substance to combat society's growing vulnerability to social anxieties, an effort to meet increased social demands as a functioning member of the student body. Whatever the reason, the majority of students seem to be dependent on alcohol to race through the fast-paced weekends, visiting the liquor store like it is a weekly errand. In this lifestyle, where does the role of the liquor store lie, and what does the store do to encourage alcoholic consumption?
I will attempt to answer these questions and define other peculiar characteristics of the system, as I observe the relationship of the liquor store to the students and the students to each other within this small community.
Alcohol has been used as a social lubricant since the establishment of recorded history, giving godly substance to the Greek Dionysian festivals and fueling the underground social resistance of the American speakeasies. My study will focus on student socialization, providing details about the emerging concept of the weekend warriors, or those who live for the weekend. The weekend warrior in relation to the student, is one who commits to school and studies during the week, only to escape into the uninhibited pursuit of pleasure and fulfillment when the weekend arrives. Alcohol seems to be the key component to assisting the weekend warrior's often desperate search for relief. But Why?
Has alcohol become the medicine of choice for suppressing anxiety and unhappiness, acting as temporary relief from the pressures of the school system? Or is alcohol just a platform to obtain what is really at demand; human interaction and interpersonal communication? Has society become so detached from peer to peer interaction that it requires mind altering drugs to facilitate socialization? Perhaps alcohol is just another substance to combat society's growing vulnerability to social anxieties, an effort to meet increased social demands as a functioning member of the student body. Whatever the reason, the majority of students seem to be dependent on alcohol to race through the fast-paced weekends, visiting the liquor store like it is a weekly errand. In this lifestyle, where does the role of the liquor store lie, and what does the store do to encourage alcoholic consumption?
I will attempt to answer these questions and define other peculiar characteristics of the system, as I observe the relationship of the liquor store to the students and the students to each other within this small community.
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