Has The Way We Socialise Changed Forever?

The future of friendships.

“It’s hard to imagine a world where buffets exist again.” An announcement from a healthcare expert on the news the other morning made me look up from my toast.

No buffets(!)

Other than that time my friend treated me to a buffet-style bottomless brunch at a swanky Sydney hotel to celebrate a *certain* birthday (and we ate everything from doughnuts to prawns to roast beef, as you do), I hadn’t given them much thought.

This comment just sounded so ... specific. A statement that might seem like a bit of a LOL, and frankly, the least of our worries, but it signals the change in the way we socialise, and interact with each other, forever.

Think about the way we got together pre-lockdown. Sharing food … Getting a jug of cocktail and all touching the handle … “Shall we order a cheeseboard??” We didn’t give it a second thought. We blew out the candles and shared the cake.

Fast forward to mid-2020 and it’s a very different picture.

A picnic, this weekend – now permitted in New South Wales – consisted of <10 mates and all bringing our own lunch. No – albeit hand-sanitised – fingers dipping into a shared bag of chips.

But as restrictions ease and we slip back into our old ways, how is the future of socialising going to look? Does only having 10% of the patrons in your favourite pub or club mean 10% of the atmosphere you went there for? Bye-bye nuts on the bar, that’s all I can say.

So, how do the experts predict we’ll be getting together in future...?

Creating a Bubble

@tim.garbers

Creating a Bubble

A study from Oxford University suggests creating your own ‘Social Network’. The thinking behind it? Well, as social creatures, the likelihood of being able to follow complete isolation rules will wane as time goes on, but an achievable alternative might be to create a ‘bubble’ of ten people that you come into contact with. Not reducing the amount you socialise, but the number of people and, in turn, the risk. A tricky one – how do you tell Jo she’s in your bubble, but her boyfriend’s not?

Keeping It Local

While dutifully staying home, we’ve gotten used to not travelling any distance and switched our focus to supporting smaller establishments in our own neighbourhoods – the ones we want to see open on the other side – and that habit looks set to continue. As well as sharing new finds with our neighbours, the ‘in this together’ spirit and connections we’ve made with local cafes and restaurants has boosted our sense of community and togetherness.

Doing It For The Kids

Parents across the globe are breathing a sigh of relief at the extravagance of kids parties being brought right back down to earth during lockdown. Without the pressures of knocking the socks off every mum in the playground, baking a cake together and Zooming with grandparents have brought in new birthday traditions and lowered the bar to a more achievable height. Long may that remain.

Carrying our hand sanitiser everywhere