The Parrothead Saga

It started in August 2024. I decided that I like “Margaritaville” by Jimmy Buffett. Quite a bit, actually – it’s a total vibe of a song. After listening to it dozens of times on walks that summer, I began to think about the lyrics, and realized that to me, they’re a scathing critique of alcoholism. I saw them as the portrayal of a downward spiral, and coming to terms with that spiral. On the side I’ve included the full analysis of the song I wrote at the time.


These stats are real. I took the second half of 2024 on Island Time, what can I say?

  • In Margaritaville we see a critique of alcoholism, this self destructive behavior born out of pursuing island fantasy. The song is a painting of directionlessness leading a man to a choice of direction, any direction — even if it’s a downward spiral There is a recognition of this within the song, as he sings progressively, after “some people claim there’s a woman to claim, but”

    • I know it’s nobody’s fault

    • Hell, I think it could be my fault

    • I know it’s my own damn fault

    It’s not just a depiction of a spiral, it’s a self reflection on the choices he’s made and is continuing to make — choices he never had to. It’s his fault, no one to blame but himself for throwing his life away. Meanwhile, in the culture of Margaritaville’s aftermath, we see a fetishization of immolation, a subclass of people dreaming of slow cooking themselves to death in a broth of booze This is not a misreading of subtext on their part, it’s an open embrace of text in its absolute value. At the same time the creator of that text, that critique, becomes a billionaire in the wake of this culture by selling this dream back to people through restaurants and resorts You don’t need escapism if you’re happy with your life. Margaritaville is a coat that people dissatisfied with their own status quo (likely older, likely financially stable) put on and take off, fantasizing about letting go of responsibility in life at the expense of themselves. But they don’t think about the wasting at first, they think about the freedom It’s an embrace of, a longing for, carelessness

    Careless: lack of care, but also fucking things up (Mexican cutie tattoo)

This got me thinking about Parrotheads…

… Wait, “who are Parrotheads,” you say?

Parrotheads are Jimmy Buffett superfans. They are, almost exclusively:

  • White

  • If not retired yet, then retired soon

  • Wealthy

  • In their words? People who like to drink.

This photo is from the Emerald Coast Parrot Head Club.

  • Not to get ahead of myself, but a Parrothead told me that “ParrotHeads are not a monolith.”

    Counterpoint: if not them, then who?

Anyways, with that out of the way…

Do Parrotheads… see this irony? Surely not, right? Does Buffett acknowledge where his career has gone?

With this, I began conceptualizing a puzzle, themed around Margaritaville’s essence, to try and show people the irony. It was an incompletable puzzle, the same way that reaching the island state of mind is a fantasy you can never achieve, the pursuit of which will destroy you in the process.

I came into Capstone confident, because let’s be real, it’s a damn clever idea. I researched Parrotheads a bit, their aesthetics, their language. I even read a bit of scholarship about Parrothead culture and the ways they grapple with the corporatism of Margaritaville, Inc. Then, in week 2, my professor asked me a question:

“Before you settle on your idea, why don’t you go talk to some Parrotheads?

Huh. I guess I can do that. Didn’t really think about it.


So I started emailing as many Parrothead clubs as I could, explaining I’m trying to start interviewing people about Parrothead culture. Many of them didn’t get back to me (though one OG Parrothead from the Atlanta club did, and I interviewed him virtually), but the president of the Chicago club wrote back, and asked me to explain more. I did, and he said, “well, our monthly meeting is next Wednesday if you want to come, in Downer’s Grove.”

Huh. I guess I can do that. Didn’t really think about it.


So I chatted with some people, listened to some stories, and took notes on truly some of the most buckwild quotes I’ve ever heard. I’ll share a smattering:

“It’s like the phrase It’s 5 O'Clock Somewhere, you come home from work and have a drink to say you’re off the clock. You’re in the chill mode, and having that’s really important I think.” 

(She is retired, she is always off the clock. She’s never on the clock)

“What’s the point of a Jimmy Buffett concert besides drinking?”

“Alcohol is an integral part [of being a Parrothead], it’s a party, and a party involves alcohol. I don’t think you have to drink, but… this isn’t sober October.”

The President was genuinely shocked to see me actually show up, and I earned some respect for being there and not being an ass or belittling them

I walked out of this meeting saying to myself that I was more right than I could have ever imagined. But… there was a problem.

Needless to say, at this point I was in genuine anguish trying to figure out what the fuck to do here. 2 days later, I spent 2 hours brainstorming with a friend, where it hit me…

A drinking game.


A drinking game for Parrotheads.

Take their mantra, “Party with a Purpose,” and gamify it. Make a game where if you win, you donate money to charity, and if you lose you drink. 

Thus began the design process for maybe the world’s first drinking game designed to get old rich white suburbanites to drink less and bond more. I wrote 50 different cards of prompts, and the rules are below:

Party with a Purpose: The Parrothead Drinking Game

Party with a Purpose is a team-based drinking game that runs on island time! Play in groups of 5, 7, 9, etc. Decide, as a table, on a charity at the start of the game.


Whoever had the most recent birthday starts as the Head Parrot. Everyone else partners up with the person next to them. Then, the Head Parrot reads the top card of the deck*. 


Each team discusses the question and determines who has the best answer to it. After every team has chosen their answer, they present them one by one.


The Head Parrot ranks the answers from favorite to least favorite. 

  • The team with the favorite answer donates $5 to the table’s charity!

  • The team with the least favorite answer takes a sip of their drinks!


Now, fins to the right! The Head Parrot role now shifts to the person to their right, and everyone partners up again to form a new team.


After everyone has been the Head Parrot, whoever donated the most money to charity can write their own question on a blank card and shuffle it into the deck! They also have the floor to ask anybody to share more of a story, or share a story of their own that they didn’t get to before. Then, reshuffle the table! Move around, try to sit next to some new people. And with that, the game repeats!


One glass is all you get! If you run out of your drink, you have to sip water for the rest of the game.


*If you don’t have, or don’t want, the cards, no problem! Head Parrots can instead ask any question they like, and at the end of the round the person who has donated the most can decide what the next question is for the start of the next round

_____________

Playtesting was a massive success. They barely focused on the drinking and shared some wild anecdotes. It was great, and they loved it!

From here, I wrote 50 different prompts, had a friend make some art for me, and got the game officially produced. At the April 2025 Chicago Parrothead meeting, I gave them the finished, shiny, produced game.

And here it is, finished!

Oh, and one more thing…

After the November meeting, the second meeting I attended, I got an email…

I am a Parrothead.

I baked cookies for the January meeting.