ollege life has become synonymous with things like a three day party weekend, drinking, and bar hopping as much as possible. The typical weekend planning conversation that you probably have or at least hear every weekend includes “What bar do you want to go to this weekend?” or “[insert your friend’s name here’s having a party,” and for those underclassmen, “Who do we know that’s 21 and can get us alcohol?” or “Where can we get into?” Even if you live in your own bubble while you’re at college it is almost impossible not to know which are the underage and fake ID-friendly bars within a stumbling radius of your school, because chances are that’s where your roommate or people on your floor are loudly discussing going sometime this weekend. I am not saying there is anything wrong with that either, but every now and then it is nice to have a weekend where nobody puked, you actually remember bonding with your friends the night before and don’t have to look at pictures to fill in the blanks, and as a bonus you don’t wake up feeling like you got hit by a truck the night before.

“There’s really nothing better to do,” is the popular answer to why students drink so much. Believe it or not, drinking is not the only thing to do on weekends, even in a small city like Albany. Why is it that we torture ourselves into being nocturnal and drink things that most of the time we don’t even like the taste of? Try some things that you will remember doing in the morning. If you want to stay up late, Crossgates Cinema 18 has movies starting at 11 and 12 pm, which should keep you entertained, until at least 2 am; and for those who live on campus, the College of Saint Rose-friendly Madison Theatre also has midnight shows on Fridays and Saturdays.

There is also Rock and Bowl at most local bowling alley’s, some even with karaoke, but just remember you will probably bowl a better game if you ignore the bar next to the snack stand. There are always concerts and comedy shows going on at places like the Egg, Palace Theatre and Pepsi Arena, or even smaller local acts at venues such as Valentine’s and Northern Lights, just check their websites and you would be very surprised at all the events they have going on almost every night, I know I was. A little farther from campus is also Proctor’s Theatre in Schenectady which is starting to bring big Broadway musical shows to the area such as Hairspray, Mama Mia, RENT and more. Although sometimes you may think that tickets to such events may be too expensive for your poor college student budget, think about how much money you would have spent on pre-gaming and on drinks at your favorite bar, and it is probably less than that, and unlike being worried about your fake ID, your student ID may be able to get you discounts on certain shows.

An alternative most would probably not think about is Zero Gravity on Central Avenue. It is a laser tag/arcade facility and although not open as late as you might be out otherwise, the facilities are surprisingly open till midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. If you’re thinking laser tag and an arcade sounds stupid, I am sure you would do something more ridiculous while you were drunk. We also have a couple ice skating rinks in the area where you can go finesse your triple-toe-loop, or just practice not falling (disclaimer: similar to drinking, this activity may also make you feel like you got hit by a truck in the morning). For an even more nostalgic feel, you can even go to Guptill’s Skating Arena on a Thursday night when it’s still a school night for the younger kids, and there are no water canons, and go roller-skating.

And since you won’t be hung-over in the mornings, or afternoons, head out to Color Me Mine in Stuyvesant Plaza and discover your hidden artistic talent when you pick out a ceramic piece to paint. If you feel so great in the morning that you’re up for a drive, spend the day at the new Six Flags Great Escape Lodge & Indoor Waterpark, it doesn’t have to be summer to go to an amusement in the upstate New York anymore and you don’t have to spend the night in order to go.

These are just alternatives that involve leaving your house or dorm, you can stay in too. Rent some movies with friends, invest in a home karaoke machine that you and your friends can dress up and rock out to, instead of a beer pong table, save the table and the beer money and get a pool table for your apartment, and there are always those board games and card games that you have turned into drinking games, they are not that bad on their own either.      

Basically, what it comes down to is you do not have to drink to act like an idiot and have fun, do it sober you’ll remember more and it’ll be even funnier to look back on because you won’t have the “I was so drunk” excuse. So go ahead and don’t wake up feeling like crap in the morning on Friday, Saturday and Sunday; pick a couple non alcoholic activities once in a while, and enjoy waking up in the morning (or afternoon) again. ■