A new survey says three in five Americans “dread” going to family parties during the holidays, and it’s no wonder, considering that two in three say they have a relative that always takes things too far with the open bar.
The non-scientific poll of 2,000 Americans of legal drinking age that was sponsored by Ritual Zero Proof reads like a list of what not to do during the holidays.
Fifty-eight percent of those polled said their entire family drinks entirely too much during the holiday season, with 63% of respondents able to point the finger at a particular relative who spices things up too much, thanks to the spiced wine.
In fact, there’s a reason “Drunk Uncle” was a recurring character on Saturday Night Live — a third of those polled say their father or mother’s brother is usually the one to blame for such party fouls.
The survey also showed 54% of respondents say someone’s going to have to apologize the morning after a family holiday party. Thirty-one percent blame mom, and 30% their dads, for bringing up uncomfortable topics at the dinner table.
Maybe no surprise, then, that 48% admitted to drinking too much themselves during holiday gatherings.
If your office is having a holiday party this year, you’re also not safe. Two-thirds of those polled say they have a co-worker who goes full Drunk Uncle at those events. Three-quarters of people say all that liquid courage shows their co-workers who they really are — and 46% say they attend just to find that out.
That said, 62% say they’ve dreaded going back to work after an office party because of post-party embarrassment, and 64% say they couldn’t look at their co-workers the same way after the office holiday party.