The Awkward Dinner Party: Part I

In Part I of this two-part series I will talk about ways to minimize your own discomfort as a guest at an awkward dinner party. In Part II (check back later this week) I'll offer tips on throwing a dinner party your guests won't want to run from screaming.

The farther away in time I find myself from my college graduation date, the more dinner parties I find myself attending. Not the worst predicament to be in, but as a twenty-something, not the best either.

I have my theories as to why these gatherings have so much awkward potential for millennials:

• at this point in our lives, most of us don't make enough money to financially support such social shenanigans
•  our circle of friends is now an odd mix of college beer pong partner meets signer of paychecks at the office
•  they're tricky business to execute and we're simply inexperienced

This past weekend I found myself at one such awkward gathering. The twelve guests sat in uncomfortable silence as the host flew around the kitchen, overwhelmed by food prep and unaware of the social car wreck in the dining room.

As this isn't the first time it's happened, I've developed a list of guiding principles to help reduce awkwardness and maximize enjoyment:

• If you drink (and aren't driving) have a cocktail before you leave for the party, just to grease the wheels a bit. If you don't drink, God bless you and I wish you the best of luck.
•  Do an in-depth reading of the newspaper the morning of the party. This will give you much fodder for conversation outside the standard "And what do you do?" Memorizing the 10-day forecast will also make it much easier to shut down time-sucking questions like "How about this crazy weather, huh?"
• Finally, establish ahead of arrival what time you plan to leave. If you bring a date make sure to agree on the ETD. This way, if departure time is approaching and there's no lull in the "How about this crazy weather" talk, you or your date can declare "10:30! Wow, we must be going."

Hope these help and happy dining.

Photo Credit: By Contributor(s): Sunday Truth [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons