Most of the time, when conversation turns to confusion over kissing as a greeting, people are talking about non-American customs (here are some examples of what is, reportedly, typical in parts of Europe). But I’ve found myself getting confused since moving cross-country (and back).
For American men, east or west, the norm seems to be a handshake. I’m sure there’s plenty of variation: some close male friends hug (often with some firm back-patting thrown in at the end), some do the combination of handshake and shoulder pats, some probably fist bump. But for American women, the more common gestures (outside of the office) tend to be cheek kisses or hugs.
When I moved to New York, I found I had to un-learn hugging as a greeting and get used to cheek-kissing. It was so confusing! Which side? Do just our cheeks touch? Or do my lips touch their cheek? Or is it an air kiss? (No.) It led to some fairly awkward “hellos” and “goodbyes.” And then, just as I had it down (and had come to really appreciate the gesture), we moved back to California. And everyone hugs!
The hug has its own problems: some folks bend at the waist and hug your shoulders and it just feels sort of insincere and limp. Give me a firm handshake over that any day! Some folks hug way too long and you start to wonder if you’re being consoled for something. Aron agrees that it’s the pull-away-time discrepancy that leads to awkwardness. And then there are those times when somebody stinks or is sweaty (maybe it’s you!) and you really envy those folks who are able to just back away and wave.
Honestly, I came to like the cheek kiss: you’re in and out and that’s about it. Once you get it down, you’re golden.
What do you and your friends do? (And what do you wish you could do?) I’d love to hear.
Aron and I were just remembering how it was one September, a few years ago, that we were here (or there, rather), in Sardinia. My goodness that was lovely. I just went back and updated the Sardinia Travelogue with some new photos and an upsizing for the others.
Have you heard of reservation bots? I hadn’t. Here’s the story… in light of the difficulty one experiences getting a table at SF’s hip State Bird Provisions. (via Serving Seconds)
Some closure, perhaps, on the question of how Chris McCandless* really died. (*Made famous posthumously in John Krakauer’s Into the Wild)
I’ve only just signed up, but I’m so excited about the possibility that this startup, Unroll Me, can clean up my inbox!
Speaking of which, we’re coming to NY for a week in December and I’d love tips on good (1 bdrm+) apartments to rent in Manhattan. Anywhere you’ve stayed and would recommend?
Hudson is only halfway through his second week of nursery school and already it’s becoming clear to me that I need some help shaking up my lunchbox routine. He eats a packed lunch there three days a week, and so far I’ve sent him with almond-nut butter-and-jelly sandwiches (wow, that’s a hyphenation nightmare—did I get that right?) enough times that he now says the name of his school when he sees a jar of nut butter out on the counter!
We’re lucky that his school is fairly flexible (while he can’t have items containing peanuts this year, he can have all other nut derivatives; and there are no rules against things like grapes or baby tomatoes). But even if I don’t expect to ever receive a note judging the contents of Hudson’s lunch, this post on the New York Times’ blog “Motherlode,” “The Lunch You Packed was Nutritionally Inadequate,” does have me wondering: what would they think of me if I just kept sending him to school with the same sandwich all the time?
(The funny thing is, I only ate one sandwich all through school, as far back as I can remember until the time I was buying my own lunch in high school: chicken salad on white with the crusts cut off. I used to call them tuna, until I learned I hate tuna salad. My mom wrote little love notes and I got a dessert every day!)
Being that Hudson is two (just barely), most of the contents of his lunch box seem to return home with him. I try to include some protein, good fat, and fruits and/or vegetables with whatever starch I know he’ll surely reach for first, but the nut-butter and jelly staple is the only thing he always eats. He also gets a small thermos of milk (or occasionally a yogurt drink).
Here’s my goal:
Start with a protein—could be meat, but could also be eggs, nut butter (if allowed), strained or greek-style yogurt (check the label for protein content), beans, soy, or cheese (including cottage cheese). A pre-made quinoa salad could be good, too.
Add fat, if necessary—most protein will already have some already (especially items like nut butter, hummus, and whole dairy), but there’s also the option of adding fats like avocado or whole-fat sliced cheese.
Add nutrient-dense starches—I often reach for items like apple-sauce and pretzels out of convenience, but I’d like to choose snap peas, blueberries, carrots, and the like more often.
At this point, my idea of “suitable toddler lunches on-the-go” includes mostly finger foods, items that I would actually be able to throw together the morning-of and which can be out of the refrigerator for a few hours or served without heating.
What are your go-to, packable lunches? What did you have in yours growing up?
P.S. I love learning about what people had in their lunchbox growing up. Anne Lamont has a great chapter in Bird by Bird about practicing writng by talking about the funny details of school lunches. And I once heard a great NPR Marketplace Money story about kids using their fire-hot Cheetos as playground currency. Also, can you imagine the pressure if you had to always make cute Bentos? (like these trendy, adorable Bento lunches
in Japan?)
[Photos via bleubird‘s lunch box series; boxes by Goodbyn
