Yum!

     In the 1970s we used to remind one another “You are what you eat.”  Some people posted cutesy signs to that effect on their refrigerators and I imagine some people even read the book by that name by Dr. Gillian McKeith.  But recently I’ve been thinking of a different food-related identity:  You are what you share.
     This moniker specifically relates to our Friday night gatherings.  For years we have let it be known among our friends that we are ‘at home’ on Fridays between 5:00 and 7:00.  They have a standing invitation to come over for two hours of visiting – winding down the week just past and gearing up for the weekend.  We supply the beverages and they bring the appetizers.  The food is always delicious, the drinks refreshing, and the talk is never boring.
     I have noticed, though, that most people who come are somewhat predictable about their food offering – especially the ‘regulars.’  It’s not that the food, itself, is the same every time, but people do tend to run true-to-type in certain ways.
     Take the Experimenters.  They often arrive at the door already apologizing for a concoction that didn’t “turn out just as expected, but oh well…”  I hasten to say that we have never found any of these culinary excursions to be inedible. Quite the opposite.  But, we have found that certain of our friends seldom stick to the tried-and-true – they have a need to innovate, even with food.
     Then there are those who were Too Busy.  Perhaps they just got off work or had a late appointment.  They usually grab something at Jack’s or Okie’s or even at Oysterville Seafarms on their way here – chips and dip or cheese and crackers or pickled herring.  Often their choices are exactly what mine would be in the same situation.  Well, not the herring…
     One of our friends is a total Sweetie.  If it isn’t sweet, he probably doesn’t consider it food.  He most often brings a box of chocolates which absolutely horrified me the first time. Not by any stretch can I consider chocolates an appetizer.  But, amazingly, they consistently disappear by the time seven o’clock rolls around! As I always say, there is no accounting for taste.
     Another group falls into the Gourmet category.  Like the Experimenters, they like trying something new.  But, unlike the Experimenters, they are following an intuition developed after years of taking specialty cooking classes and making exotic recipes.  Often one of their appetizers becomes a favorite and they are prevailed upon by our guests to bring it again and again.
     I have yet to work out whether these appetizer characteristics can be extended as personality traits.  I’m working on it, though.