A principle focus of any college student is, at some point, alcohol. Hence: Striation

Palmers is the bar.
Jason holds court
traversing burgundy to whiskey
Rick samples the menu
If you’ve never smoked it’s hard to hold a cigarette

Sweat’s a tell tale
a bar?  A real bar?
My thoughts race to beer, easy
But they’re 21 and I’m 18 and
order a grasshopper, thinking suave, it’s a drink right

Enjoy your toothpaste, Jason says.

You tend to meet your biggest influences in college.  For me it was my friends Jason and Rick, and later my friends Steve and Mark. But my first trip to a real bar where I was going to actually fake enough sophistication to order a drink was Palmers.  Jason and Rick, having been there many times and being of legal age, ordered with what I saw as flair. I was still trying to pick up smoking and my illegal drinking was confined to beer, which was easy to get and understand.  Now the world’s menu of drinks was at my fingertips.

I did indeed, order a grasshopper. Jason indeed, bid me enjoy my toothpaste.