It's all about lunch

The easiest way to blend in an office environment is through food. As if by some ancient Filipino cultural magic, conversations over lunch are more socially binding than ones done, say, over cubicle walls.

For example, I can talk better to people when I have food with me. Food can cover all conversation stages. You won't even have to think :s

INTRO: Want some chips/biscuits/fries/et al?
BODY: That's my favorite too! But I prefer mayonnaise to my fish rather than vinegar,
OR
BODY: Food is so ruddy expensive nowadays, I know.
CONCLUSION: Here, some chocolates for dessert,
OR
CONCLUSION: You've got to try the shawarma at my place.

In this generation, food is quickly replacing the weather as the topic of choice for starting a conversation.

There is something comforting in lunch conversations, in sharing a meal and a talk. Maybe it's got something to do with the whole people-are-social-animals fact. Or because you won't feel too alone when you're eating with somebody. Or maybe it's because food is a great icebreaker; topic choice is limited only by your gut tolerance for dirt and gore. Or, food is a universal language.

Or maybe because a collective lunch with people is a piece of home in the workspace, and you don't feel so lost when you're starting out in a new job. Sharing a lunch is like getting married - what lunch time has joined together, let no man put asunder! No one's going to eat alone ever again!

I think all offices should practice eating lunch together. In my previous work, you got memo-ED when you fail to join eating time at the dining table. Within a week or two from starting out, I felt at home, comfortable enough to poke fun at the people with whom I share a bit of table space. They don't seem as intimidating as when they are behind their desk, wielding their awesome powers. You see, even great powerful bosses like food as much as you do.

All this talk has made me hungry. Ima go and raid the fridge.

NOMNOMNOMNOMNOM :O