Among the women, a spontaneous cheer went up, which Liz was surprised to find herself joining, and this was when {she was on her fifth drink} she realized both that she was completely drunk--not just tipsy, not merely buzzed--and also that she was much happier than she'd been an hour or two before. She felt a retroactive remorse for all the Eligible contestants she'd deemed trashy and idiotic from the comfort of her living room; apparently, like teriyaki pizza and bee venom facials, getting wasted on a reality-TV show was not to be knocked until tried.
In a moment of unexpected joy, Liz found herself caught up in the excitement of the women around her, realizing that she had succumbed to the effects of alcohol more than she anticipated. As she drank her fifth beverage, she came to the realization that she was not just tipsy but completely drunk, yet this state brought her a sense of happiness that she hadn't felt earlier in the evening.
This newfound perspective led her to reflect on her previous judgments of the other contestants on the reality show, whom she had dismissed as unworthy from the safety of her living room. Liz learned that some experiences, like indulging in the chaos of a reality TV competition, could yield surprising enjoyment, much like peculiar food pairings she had once overlooked.
