The Dining Divas Attempt a
Monthly Dining Event in Isolation

It was about two weeks into the work-from-home/stay-at-home/social distancing orders, and, man, we were struggling. The Grafton Diva hadn’t hung out with people in about a month, trying to keep herself safe from all illnesses, especially the Coronavirus. The Single Diva found herself stressed as she tried finding a new job in the midst of all this uncertainty. And the Social Diva was going nuts reliving “Groundhog Day” every single day. Every day was the same, and she needed a change.

So, they got on a phone call during one of their many lunchtime chats and decided just because we had to stay home, it didn’t mean we had to call off this month’s Dining Divas get-together. For almost 20 years, the group has been getting together for dinner once a month, and we’ve never missed a month. So, we wouldn’t miss it this time either.

We have a diverse group of women, at many stages of life, and in many different careers. Married. Divorced. Mothers. Aunts. Professionals. Retired. Widowed. Professional travelers. And so on. One thing was for sure. We    are all at different stages of understanding technology, too. So when we invited the ladies to a virtual Dining Divas, the first thought was “Facebook Live” or some type of video app. Facebook Live would mean we’d all just see one person, and that wouldn’t be fun for that one person. And the more we discussed, we decided to try to make it simple, without video, at least until we figured out how to not all talk at once.

So we simply invited everyone back to the Facebook event page we created at the defined date and time, and we’d gather there and chat and share and hopefully enjoy each other’s company. Three of us were “moderators.” We asked questions and encouraged people to respond and post pictures. Questions like what’s your view? And what’s for dinner? (We are the Dining Divas, so we had to include that.)

The list of dinner menus was amazing. It was supposed to have been the Cardinals home opener, so several Divas had “ballpark fare” like hotdogs, burgers, bratwursts, and Italian sausages. And there were BBQ pork chops, Italian beef, salmon, fish, and chicken. These gals can cook (or pick up carryout)! In fact, the Epicurean Diva had prepared a different recipe for 20 days in a row! (Ten days later she was up to 30 recipe.)
We also inquired about what people were doing to keep busy or if they had any favorite apps or games they were playing. Words with Friends has had a resurgence with this group, and social media is at an all-time high. And aside from working, seems like what most of us are doing is eating. Maybe next month we should make it a Virtual Exercise Divas.

We asked about books and movies and television shows. And what celebrities people are following on social media that they find entertaining (Garth Brooks and Ellen DeGeneres were the most popular). It was scary to hear the enjoyment several Divas had watching “Tiger King,” but it also piqued many of our interests.

We planned to hand out “awards” like the Chatty Kathy Award for the person who commented most or the Captain Crabby Pants Award to the first person to complain, but we decided against any “awards” after the first one was delivered. The Dunce Cap Award went to the first person who basically needed more instructions on how to participate in this attempt at the Virtual Dining Divas. Those of us moderating got a kick out of the confusion she had, but we didn’t want to offend her or anyone else who may have been slightly challenged while trying to follow along the Facebook event page. The Dunce Cap Award couldn’t have gone to a blonder Diva. And we love her for that.

We ran into technical difficulties, and a few times, we wondered if we broke Facebook. A couple Divas commented so quickly on others’ posts that Facebook thought they were scammers and no longer allowed them to comment. It was hard to keep up with all the different comments at first, but once we got going, most figured it out.

It wasn’t like a normal Dining Divas because of the obvious separation, but for this Diva, it was the closest thing to normal I’ve felt in a while. And although some Divas did not enjoy the virtual event and were too confused, I was so happy to just catch up with all the girls and laugh too. We were even treated with a Former Diva who joined us from Dallas. What a bonus that was!

It looks like we’re going to have to come up with another virtual option for next month. And I’m happy to do that because the experience was such a comfort to me. Perhaps we’ll try video although not having to get fixed up was a nice benefit. And hopefully by then, we’ll find the mute button.

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us