Good job on 7 days JayTee!
Alcohol is a liar. It says social situations are too scary to deal with without it. In reality of course the worse they can really be is tedious and oftentimes they can be more enjoyable than we were expected. In contrast, the most common way to turn a social event into a humiliation is to consume lots if alcohol.
I'm glad you enjoyed swimming and that your friend was so positive. It sounds like a good start.