When I was in college, I once signed up to attend a dinner where I
didn't know anyone. I did that on purpose. The dinner was hosted by the
Student Alumni Association, which was in charge of organizing a plethora of events for students
to attend, and was just a small gathering of 12 people. This again, was
on purpose. Dinners for 12 Strangers is a UCLA staple and is in such
high demand that there are waiting lists to attend a dinner. Who wouldn't want to go? Once you get over the initial awkwardness of a "stranger in [your] house," you enjoy getting to
meet people that you wouldn't have otherwise met, dine on good food, and
probably go to an area of town that you hadn't explored yet, because the
alumni who volunteered to host the dinners lived all over Los Angeles.
Now, as a child our parents teach us stranger danger, but then as soon as you hit 18 there's a shift in the universe where
meeting strangers is not only the way of life, but encouraged. I once
heard the saying that all friends begin as strangers, and as a young
professional in a city that is constantly shifting, this couldn't be
more true. I love my friends, but knowing only one other Bruin in DC had
me yearning for a stronger connection to my alma matter, especially as
we were approaching March Madness. So what did I do? I signed up for an alumni
Dinner for 12 Strangers to meet some "strangers like me" in DC!
The evening began timidly, as is expected when you know you're going to be stuck hanging out with "strangers in the night" for a few hours. The first thing that everyone did upon arriving at the host's apartment was pour themselves a glass of wine, into the classiest yellow solo cups. Not only were the solo cups awesome because they complimented the blue plates that dinner would be served on, but they also had this chalkboard-like strip on them where you could scratch in your name. Since the dinner was an informal setting sans nametags, this was a brilliant way for everyone to avoid saying "that's not my name" all night.
Everyone was asked to pitch in by either bringing a bottle of wine or a side dish to accompany the meal, and our host started us off with a cheese plate set out for munching during our little cocktail hour. We schmoozed and warmed up to one another before our host suggested that we all grab a plate of food and "come together" around the couches.
Dinner consisted of homemade lasagna and garlic bread, a fresh salad, the extra sides that guests brought and a whole lot of reminiscing. From the way the campus and Westwood have changed since we all graduated to getting the scoop from a former Daily Bruin reporter on local scandals and campus history, I was in good "company" the whole time.
Recalling some of the greatest UCLA student traditions we experienced like camping out for tickets to basketball games, attending Spring Sing and sneaking into the underground tunnels, "my generation" had some pretty awesome moments at school, probably just like the generations before us.
And just like that it was five hours after we all knocked on our host's door, no longer strangers. You know how the song goes, "make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold," though I guess stranger danger got thrown out the window when we were all taught that tune. This sing-song life lesson is the cornerstone of Dinner for 12 Strangers and I'm excited to see these new friends again, especially to (cross your fingers) root for our Mighty Bruins this tournament season.
In the meantime, here's an eight-clap shout out to the new strangers in my life: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 - U...C...L...A... U-C-L-A FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!!
No comments:
Post a Comment