"Three minutes away, I felt nervous. I hadn't brought a friend to bolster me. In fact, I'd brought only a bowl of sweet potatoes. Suddenly, I got a tickle in my optic nerve like I might get a twinge of vertigo, then a tickle in my intestines like I might need the toilet. This occasion wasn't worthy of acute anxiety, I told myself. I resolved to be calmer."
"As I parked, I could see people waddling under the weight of their dishes. At the door, a couple introduced themselves as "Pam and Jim, like The Office." They'd arrived with Jim's mom's seven-layer salad. When I introduced myself, another women piped up. "My alias is Lola," she said. "Alias for what?" I asked. She refused to answer. So this crowd was welcoming and mischievous."
"I'd arrived at the International Cooking and Dining Club, a Meetup group co-organized by Graeme Newell, our host for the night. Newell has the chiseled cheeks of an aging Cillian Murphy and the warm swagger of a man of many friends, which he is. Two years ago, he took the reins from Michael Beck, who founded the club in 2016. Every month the community chooses a country, and members take turns hosting."
Nervous anticipation precedes arrival at a communal potluck, with physical signs of anxiety and a conscious effort to calm oneself. Participants arrive bearing dishes and playful personas, introducing themselves with names and aliases that foster a welcoming, mischievous atmosphere. The International Cooking and Dining Club meets monthly, selects a country, and rotates hosts; members who met online cook unfamiliar dishes for one another. The potluck structure divides labor among participants, transforming many small contributions into a shared feast that requires participation as both cooks and diners. Repeated shared meals convert strangers into familiars and sometimes into dear friends.
Read at Portland Monthly
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