Making friends with other autistics

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I think it's because I always see socially awkward people (like possible Aspies) having more friends than me and they drink as well. Drinking is part of the culture I live in, so going out to bars and getting drunk at weekends with friends just automatically makes you far more appealing, because drinking is the "normal" thing to do. I'd say I know about 200-300 people approximately (all my family, extended family, friends, family friends, friends of friends, coworkers, in-laws, neighbours, etc, etc), and I know that about 99% of them drink alcohol. They're not alcoholics of course, but they drink enough to suit the culture we live in. So being a teetotaler can be socially isolating. It's why I tolerated my husband when he drank (he doesn't seem to these days), because, really, whichever man I'd fall in love with, there's like a 99% chance they'll drink too. It's very rare that I come across anyone who doesn't drink at all. I've been given two different bottles of alcohol for Christmas, and they'll probably remain in the fridge for all of eternity. But I accepted their gifts and just pretended to enjoy them, not only to be appreciative and not hurt their feelings or make them feel embarrassed or awkward, but also to make me look like I take part in the British culture too.

I know most people I know drink, because it's usually a common subject of discussion. Even people who don't drink so much as they've gotten older, they still drank when they were young, as I've seen photos on their Facebook pages before of them drunk at a bar with a pile of friends. It's just what people do and it's valued because of how normal it is. Even an autistic person probably feels quite NT if they go out to a bar for drinks with friends. I know I would.

"Oh Tamaya went out with some friends last night and got drunk" would immediately make me sound "normal". Instead it was always "oh Tamaya stayed in her room again last night, just like she does every weekend night".

Ugh! What a waste of a young life.
(Although this is less relevant to me these days, as having moved out my parents home and being married does make me feel rather NT).

Since my teens, I've never even tried to blend in with mainstream culture. I'm not even sure what mainstream adult culture is like these days -- or even if such a thing really even exists anymore here in NYC, given how culturally diverse we are here. I've always sought out fellow oddballs of one kind or another.

In the various oddball subcultures I've hung out in over the years, we didn't usually go to bars. It was much more common to meet at a diner, coffeeshop, or inexpensive restaurant. There, some people opted to order alcoholic beverages, but at least half of us did not. Usually there was no pressure one way or the other.

One of the subcultures I was active in for quite a few years did feature a bar/club scene, but even there, it was perfectly acceptable to order something nonalcoholic such as soda or fruit juice, and getting too drunk was frowned upon by people in the inner circle.