15. Will absinthe make me trip?
No, it will not.
It's easy to find, on the internet, descriptions of alleged absinthe "trips". They were either written by idiots, or the substance upon which the describers tripped was something other than absinthe, or both. There are no psychoactive (in the sense of LSD, THC, etc.) ingredients in absinthe. Absinthe will not make you fail a drug test, either, unless the test is designed to find the ingredients in absinthe, all of which are legal substances. If absinthe makes you fail a drug test due to false positives for illegal substances, your problem is not absinthe, but an incompetent drug tester. Yes, you can find glorious descriptions of absinthe highs in 19th century literature. They're largely so much flowery hot air, written by poets. Poets tend to exaggerate things. There are odes to the divine attributes of whisky and beer. There are thousands of poems about wine. You get the point.
16. Then why drink absinthe at all?
Because it's a delicious, refreshing drink.
Because it's fun to watch it change color.
Because you can't get it at your neighborhood bar and you want to be exclusive.
Because you want to pretend you're Toulouse Lautrec (although it won't make you paint any better).
All kidding aside, some people claim to experience "secondary effects" from absinthe. By secondary, they mean effects apart from those due to the alcohol. Not all people claim to experience these effects, but those who do say that absinthe produces a markedly clear-headed drunkenness. It has to be experienced to be understood. It's subtle; it's NOT like being hit by lightning or anything. Other people say absinthe enhances their dreams. Many absinthe drinkers report no effects other than those youd expect from any high proof liquor.