I am stepping away from the general comedic flair that most of my pieces take on to send a message of warning. This cautionary tale is not just for children but adults too. Games, while fun and seemingly harmless are not always so. Flip cup for example, is a dangerous game and one should be on guard when they hear those two words in succession.
There are several factors that play into this game's wrath and ultimately the very demise of the player. The first being: when it is played during cold and flu season. Be warned, you can try and cling to your red solo cup for as long as humanly possible, but eventually you will have to leave to go to the bathroom. At this point you will not remember to bring your cup with you, or have time to search for a sharpie pen before peeing your pants. It is at this moment in time when your 'friends' will attempt to solicit a substitute player to fill in for the two and a half minutes while you are gone. After all they can't be expected to pause their binge drinking just for you. Then they'd have to do it for everyone, and at that rate no one would get shit faced. The substitute will most likely grab a cup other than yours thus creating a treacherous pinwheel effect in which no player will hold/drink from their original cup again. The pinwheel effect is duplicated as many times as bathroom breaks are taken as well as when players leave/join the game. You do the math.
Additionally, diet also plays an important role in this game. It is particularly less harmful for college aged students who have a hearty diet of Ramen and cheap beer which will sustain their bodies and oddly enough boost immunity. Though surprising as it may seem, studies show that an elderly person in their mid twenties is far more likely to contract a killer cold/flu virus and be laid out for the next 7-10 days. It is their routine of daily exercise and plant based foods which make them more susceptible.
I don't relay this story to be a menace, threaten the reader, or to sound foreboding... I tell you because it happened to me!!!
