I swear I more and more have the feeling that everything remotely ’social’ is revolving around food these days. Or maybe it’s just me?.
I’m guilty as well. I also invite friends over to share a cup of tea and a slice of cake. But I’ve come to realize that I do that just because it seems to be the only really accepted (and acceptable) social convention to follow. Personnally, when I want to see my friends or family, I couldn’t care less about having something to nibble on. I would be just as happy with a glass of water, no food on the table, and chatting happily will the people I like.
But somehow, I have the nagging feeling that if I were to do that, sooner or later rumors about me being very ‘rude’ would arise. Because it seems so ingrained in our society that social gathering = food, and that going against that isn’t appropriate.
And this bothers me.
It bothers me because it makes me feel forced to do something I don’t want to do.
It bothers me because I have to plan, make sure I have stuff to serve to my guests, and if someone shows up unexpected, either I don’t have anything to offer them, or it means I have to store foods I don’t want to have around me. How long do a few bags of cookies last in my pantry if there’s no one else than me to eat them? Answer: not very long.
It also bothers me because, every time I am invited to someone else’s house, I have to worry about exerting portion control and not eating [insert random crap here] for the only reason that it’s here in front of me. (I don’t mind having a cookie or two if they’re good and I feel like it; it’s just that when everybody around you is eating and eating and eating from the plate, it’s not a matter of ‘willpower’ anymore.)
People will say that I am ‘obsessed’ about food and shoudn’t worry my head about it. I suppose I should also stop worry about being 100 kgs by the time I am 40 (and trust me, if I don’t watch myself, I will be 100 kgs by then; either you gain on weight easily or not, after all). Right. Being worried about food or being worried about my cholesterol, health, how long I’ll be able to walk alone without being in pain, etc. Food is still the least evil.
I know things won’t change, and if they do, it’ll likely be after a long time only. Nevertheless, I am miffed about that. I like good food. I like enjoying a well-cooked meal. I don’t mind a social gathering centered around food now and then. On the other hand, all the time gets damn tirseome, and I don’t like being faced with temptations to which I know I will give in without actually especially liking them. (Junk food is so banal and second-rate. Seriously. I eat it out of boredom, because I like munching on something, but not out of sheer pleasure for such foods–not anymore, at least.)
Oh, well. I guess I just had to rant a little about that. Eating as a whole is tiresome when it happens too often. And it seems to happen so often no matter where I go.
Can’t we just enjoy each other’s presence without having to place a box of cookies between us?
January 17th, 2008 at 18:29
Wow, I totally agree. I find it SO hard to come up with activities to suggest with friends that aren’t food-centered. It seems like the most acceptable things are “let’s meet up for dinner” or “let’s go out for drinks” or “let’s have coffee sometime.” I would LOVE to say “let’s go for a walk in the park,” but unfortunately, most people would think I was crazy. Especially when it’s 12 degrees out.
January 17th, 2008 at 20:39
Yep, and it’s really too bad. If someone were to ask me “fancy going for a walk?”, I’d be pretty glad. But all they ask is “fancy eating some cake at home later on?”. Uhh.