Other Than Dinner

I didn’t realize how much socializing we did over food until after we received our first two COVID vaccines. Before that point, we weren’t socializing with anyone, or if we did see people, it was standing on opposite ends of a driveway or masked and sitting on a porch.

But after the vaccines, many people returned to eating indoors. And by this point, most people have returned to eating indoors. We have not.

We’ve stepped closer to our old life by dining outdoors this spring/summer. This works until it doesn’t work. We make plans, and then rain cancels them because we’re not moving indoors. Or the air quality is terrible. Or it’s just too hot to enjoy the meal. When it works, it feels like old times. Like things are normal. When it doesn’t, it makes me feel apologetic for being careful.

A case in point: Cup of Jo recently posted a list of things to do with your friends that aren’t dinner. I opened it eagerly to see what else I could do to socialize beyond walks. Two of the thirteen options were… essentially dinner. And the others had a food component (pizza and a movie). There were interesting suggestions in the comments, but my point is how much socializing contains eating indoors; the only thing you can’t do inside if you’re still masking.