As someone who is pretty damn close to the people you described above...

Do what you want and do listen to anyone.
If you don't wanna drink, then don't.
If you only want a little here and there, then do so.
You shouldn't have to feel forced just to do something.
And if something doesn't feel right, just walk away.

And go to bed, you hippy. Its 5:20am XD

Nothing wrong with saying no to drinking. People will probably never quit offering it to you, though. Try to get comfortable saying no all the time.

"Wanna drink?"
"No, thanks."
"Aw, c'mon."
"Newp."
"You're no fun."
"Lol. Whatever."
"Do it! Just a shot."
"Still no."

Do what you want and don't let other people tell you otherwise. The biggest regrets in life are those decisions and choices you make when you know they are the wrong ones. Not everyone needs to drink and get drunk to enjoy furcons, etc. Every time we have hung out, I enjoyed your company. With or without alcohol. I say just do what makes you happy and don't let people get in your head.

do not let others control what goes inside your body. if you feel no desire to consume alcohol, then your friends should respect that and live it at that. if they continue to push it on you, then politely tell them you are sticking to your convictions and walk away from the situation. eventually they'll have to get the hint

Do you need to loosen up? Meh, that's really your call based on how you feel when hanging out with folks. If you are comfortable and trust them relatively enough, then don't worry about stuff that may happen.

Do you need to start drinking to accomplish this? Absolutely not. I barely ever touch alcohol and have no real interest in getting drunk. I don't judge others for drinking, it's just not my thing and I dislike the taste of most booze. I will occasionally have a drink but never allow myself to feel like "OMG the cool furs will only like me if I'm hammered!" which is a BS thought. That's what person charm is for

Besides, not being drunk means you get to *clearly* see the craziness going on around you, for which to tease your friends with once they have sobered up. ^.^

It's like smoking though isn't it?

Nobody should force you to do it and you shouldn't feel guilty about yourself for refusing. The whole room could be full of drinkers or smokers and you could be the only one doing neither, and that shouldn't make you feel any bit guilty. It's important to keep one's morality, and it's a real sign of strength not to conform to peers. And if they continue pressuring you into drinking, well, they're just wankers for doing so aren't they?

i think its completely up to you, don't let people push you around about something you have decided on just be firm in your decision.

Your life your rules Kev.

If we would accept to do all the things that people would expect up to be we would be prety boring robots O.o

Not drinking is a PERFECTLY OK choices as it is to drink your desition in the end is yours =) I never drank up to 21YO and honestly i still had the blast of my life whithout a single drop of alcohol =)

Stay who you are Kev, you were fun to hang around at FCN, without any drinks, probably wouldnt have hung out with you if you had been drinking. I am one of the people who doesnt care much for those who drink, because its more fun seeing the person for who they are, not who the alcohol makes them.

I always have friends telling me that it's not alcohol's fault, but the people who drink it. However, you never really know how it will affect you once you start drinking.
Whoa - it's definitely alcohol's fault! Alcohol is a depressant - it turns down parts of the brain a little. And the first thing it affects is your judgement. Some people like that because a little alcohol frees them from inhibitions. But drink too much - and "too much" is different for everyone - and they will lose control of themselves and have seriously bad judgements, and other body functions will be affected... like breathing, for example.

(But it's also the fault of the people who drinks it, since it's they themselves who decided to impair their own judgement while they're sober. Saying "alcohol made me do it" in court is not going to work.)

For me, I prefer to keep my judgement "on" at all times. It's useful. And my friends never made me felt I need to drink alcohol or else - although there have been nudges here or there, mostly from family.

It's actually quite nice that we live in a western consumerism culture of "be who you want to be". At my father's last job, he works as upper management for a real estate company. So there is a lot of drinking to gain the trust of local government officials (because the state owns the land in China and all that).

I also try to avoid coffee, even though at my internship enough people drink it to warrant a coffee machine, and it's stereotypical of programmers. But that requires having regular, enough sleep, and as I'm typing this at 1am, regular sleep doesn't seem to be what I'm currently experiencing. :p

I think it's okay to experiment a bit. I'm a non-drinker myself, although I'm more than happy to have a few drinks here and there if the situation calls for it and I feel like doing it. Still, I only drink things I know I like (although I'm always willing to try new stuff), and I only drink as much as I want.

I live around really heavy drinking friends, people who go straight to the Beer Store as soon as they're done work, so I very much understand that peer pressure. At times they do make you feel like a legit party-pooper for not being drunk out of your arse (though that's usually one of those 'the alcohol talking' moments), and they very much value people getting drunk and automatically equal that to 'a great time'.

I was lenient a couple of times and kinda went along with it. I won't lie - I had fun, and I completely understand why people love getting buzzed/drunk, but it's just really not my thing. I'm a very active type of guy, and sitting and drinking just feels very boring to me, whether I'm drunk or not.

After a while your friends will come to terms with the fact that you don't drink and they'll kinda leave you alone about it. If you're lucky enough, you'll have people like me around, who don't drink, and don't mind having some sober fun, or even an intelligent conversation about something. Not all furries are drunkards, and the one thing you'll never catch me doing at a con is getting 'buzzed'. There's so much going on to enjoy that it's just absurd choosing to switch to 'drunk mode' and forgetting all of it later.

A lot of it is a cultural thing. I'm sure being from Ontario you've always noticed that 'dude I can't remember anything that happened last night' is supposed to mean 'I had an amazing time' - Ontarians LOVE their drinking. I kinda prefer having nice, fun experiences which I will be able to remember in the future, and on the plus side that is usually a lot cheaper than drinking xD

I don't wanna bore you though, so basically just know that you're not the only one. I've been seeing more and more people that don't drink, decided to abstain from it, are on their way to quitting it, so chances are drunkards will be the ones treated weird a few years from now. If you feel like trying a new drink or even getting a little buzzed, there is NOTHING wrong with that. And if you just don't feel like drinking at all, there's also NOTHING wrong with that - you just gotta find your own way to pass the time/have fun while your friends are drinking. Go make new friends, who'll likely be sober and remember your name by the time the night's over! ^^