I'm not "afraid" of alcohol. Heck, I worked for years in the sawmill industry and part time as a longshoreman while I paid off my school loans. Alcohol and profanity are two of the primary staples of life for both of those groups. I've spent many an hour in sports bars and beer halls just to be able to watch a BYU game while I was away on a job.

Long ago, I tired of co-workers expecting me to be their designated driver so they could get a little drunker and much dumber. I find little enjoyment in hanging out with people who need alcohol to unwind, because the next day they will semi-remember having a great time with their work buddies, while I get to clearly remember all the god-awful stupid stuff they said and did while drunk or semi-drunk. Frankly, that is neither enjoyable or a justifiable use of my time.

I realize that avoiding most after work events has cost me opportunities over the years at companies where the surest route to advancement was to go out drinking or bar-hopping with the boss. My current company is a prime exhibit of that scenario. My former product manager only promoted drinking buddies. Fortunately, nearly all of them left the company within a year after he did.

Four years ago, I went to our annual company Christmas party at Papasitos in Houston. It was my first year on the job so I didn't know better. The last time I saw such a high concentration of drunk and stupid in one place was at a high school kegger in 40 some years ago. It didn't take me long to realize why none of my non-drinking co-workers chose to attend.

Today, five of us had a late lunch together after attending OTC in Houston. We had a great time visiting with each other, and didn't need a single ounce of alcohol to have a fun time. Sadly, many other co-workers would be unable to even carry on a decent conversation in that environment without at least a glass of beer in hand. Oh yeah, I was the only Mormon in the bunch.

With all the demands on my time, hanging around after work just to "enjoy" watching a bunch of co-workers make fools of themselves is pretty low on my list of priorities. Many of my fellow non-drinking and non-LDS co-workers feel the same way.

And that has absolutely nothing to do with being Mormon, being a BYU fan, or being "stuck up".