Jenna Bacon, Campus Carrier arts and living editor
Spending time with friends is one of the greatest joys in life. It’s one that many people have much more appreciation for since living through the nightmare of 2020. The way that social gatherings have changed as the years have passed is interesting to me. My parents used to spend full days at the mall and bike home with their friends in the evenings. They did this all without access to cell phones. My grandparents told me stories of drive-in movies and community dance halls. When I was in high school, my friends and I would go to the movies, grab a bite to eat, or hang out at the local soccer fields.
Spending time with friends seemed so simple when I was younger. But what happens when I’m not in college anymore? How do grown-ups have fun? This is the exact question that I was asking myself when I picked up a copy of my grandmother’s “Southern Living” magazine. In this particular issue, there was an article about the best dishes to serve at a dinner party. The pictures showed adorable table settings, yummy foods, and smiling faces. One photo showed the party in the living room engaging in a game of cards.
After seeing this article, I had a revelation. We need to bring back dinner parties. We put so much money and effort into our homes, just to leave them anytime we hang out with friends. Dinner parties don’t have to be super extravagant. If each person invited brings a dish and a board game, that makes the gathering much more affordable than a night out. There’s no need to spend $100 or more at Top Golf to have a fun time with friends! All you need is a group of friends, some snacks, and a couple of party games.
Hosting dinner parties can also be a lot of fun! It would be nice to actually use the nice dishes your parents gave you as a housewarming gift instead of waiting for a “special occasion” that never comes. If you are of drinking age, a dinner party would give you the chance to try new cocktail recipes. You can even make the food part of the experience. For example, you can host a “Make Your Own Pizza” night with your friends. Each person would get to make their own small pizza.
The fun thing about dinner parties is that they can be as casual or formal as you want them to be. If you are having a birthday dinner party, then you may want your guests to dress more formally and your food to be something other than finger foods. For something like this, you can create your own DIY place settings and set the table with flowers. The possibilities are endless when it comes to this type of party. Going forward, we should all be more open to enjoying our homes with the friends that make life special.