Alex Owens, Eugene Egan and Rory Crean.

WTF? Blackrock College, Dublin

Junior Category

AT A PARTY, a beer shoved into your hand. In a field, a cigar between your teeth. At the back of the bus, spraying Lynx. In a shop, taking a credit card out of "your" wallet. WTF? investigates where we went wrong.

Now, we don't advocate underage drinking, smoking drug-ing or sex, but we don't oppose them either. Do your own thing, freedom and democracy and all that.

Teens will be teens, and no adult, talk, grind, prison or magazine is ever going to change that. We know that no drinking until 21 is unrealistic (kudos if you don't, though) and that most people will break it before that. But drinking to get drunk at 13 . . . well, that one made us stop and think.

Barnardos says that 83 per cent of us (14 to 17-year-olds) drink. "Ah yeah, but that's probably only half a can," we hear you say. It probably is for most people, yeah, but, according to Barnardos, 33 per cent of us also binge drink (have more than six cans) at least three times a month.

If you're one of "the lads" or "birds" who likes the "occasional brewsky" or you know someone who is, you (or they) should know the extent of the damage alcohol does. Be careful to arm yourself beforehand.

Alcohol can cause brain damage, or emotionally stunt you. Alcohol is a depressant - the more you drink, the worse it gets. Don't believe people when they say that they're a "happy/angry/ funny drunk". Everyone's a sad drunk eventually.

It is with a heavy heart that I tell you that I have had an exceptionally bad experience with alcohol. I was at a party on the last night of a school play I had been in and, to celebrate, a friend and I thought we would go drinking. We got some vodka, I knew it was bad, but what I didn't know was that it was a high percentage spirit.

I hadn't eaten since lunch, and it was 11 o'clock. My last memory of that night was being on my knees, vomiting.

The following day I had to have the night pieced together for me by "witnesses", and I can tell you that it was horrible.

In a sense, I'm glad I got caught, because if I had gotten away with it, there is a good chance I could still be drinking my brain away. My own experience and (acquired) common sense saved me, but what about you?