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I can say with complete impunity that first-time fatherhood ranks highly among life experiences that cry out for a strong drink (or three... or seven). And now there's a debaucherous party to commemorate the occasion. It's called a "dadchelor party" and like its semi-grown-up big brother, the bachelor party, says Katherine Bindley in the Huffington Post, it's when an expectant dad has a last drunken night out to kiss his few remaining freedoms goodbye. (And yes, he does this while his largely pregnant wife sits home, sober, with swollen ankles.)
I have to admit that reading about these parties left me feeling a bit robbed. The dudes in Bindley's article fete the father-to-be with "drinking, sporting events, gambling, and more drinking." One group even spent six days in Mexico! Where was the genius who dreamed this up when it was my turn to take the leap?
I can just imagine what might have been... Mad Men-style celebrations with Marlboros, bourbon and strippers. We could have had an all-organic themed party by taking in a Phish concert with a variety of products from California’s Humboldt County. Or maybe a case of beer and a campfire in the woods would be more appropriate, given the earthy, mundane nature of fatherhood.
When I mentioned all this to my wife, she noted that it was typical of men to come up with an excuse to get falling-down drunk at a time when their pregnant wives would feel intense guilt about sneaking a mere sip of wine now and then from someone else’s glass.
But there's something to be said for giving dads-to-be a chance to feel supported by their friends -- since, let's be honest, going on a bender is often the guy version of sitting around and discussing our feelings. Or at the very least, it will give the poor bastard a something to think fondly of when he's in the sleep-deprived haze of new parenthood and up to his arms in dirty diapers.
