📘 Part 3: Food

This episode's vocabulary

To thrive (verb) - to grow, develop, or be successful.

Necessity (noun) - the need for something.

Store-bought (adj.) - store-bought food is bought in a shop and not made at home.

Diet (noun) - the food and drink usually eaten or drunk by a person or group.

To dominate (verb) - to be the largest, most important, or most noticeable part of something.

Generalization (noun) - a written or spoken statement in which you say or write that something is true all of the time when it is only true some of the time.

Varied (adj.) - containing or changing between several different things or types

Small-scale (adj.) - small, especially when compared to other things like it.

To oversee (verb) - to watch or organize a job or an activity to make certain that it is being done correctly.

Sympathetic (adj.) - agreeing with or supporting.

To underlie (verb) - to be a hidden cause of or strong influence on something.

To host (verb) - to provide the space and other things necessary for a special event.

Questions and Answers

M: Do people in your country grow plants at home?

R: They do indeed. In fact, I'd say there was a thriving house plant industry, given the number I see in the homes of the people I visit. As for the types, though, they're as varied as the people, frankly. You can see people with many olive trees, and even some jungle plants. Others have bond size and things like that. The variety is amazing.

M: Are there any difficulties with growing plants at home?

R: Not unless you're completely disorganized and unaware that you haven't watered the plants in a while. And usually, that's obvious from the condition that they get into.

M: Do most people prefer vegetables from shops or grown at home?

R: Well, that's probably more a question of necessity and preference, to be honest. Not everyone has the time and resources to grow their own vegetables, even if they are better for you. So they opt for store-bought things. As a result, more often than not.

M: Which food is generally popular in your country?

R: Like many Western countries, it's easier to list what isn't acceptable compared to what is popular. There are all kinds of choices, and people eat a very varied diet by and large. I suppose it's dominated by meat and vegetables like beef and potatoes, but that's a very broad generalization in what's a very varied market.

M: Why do some people prefer growing food as themselves?

R: Well, it is rather cool when someone says that, and it marks them out as an independent person who can support themselves in addition to being knowledgeable about small-scale agriculture. So there's a status element to that, in addition to the economics of it.

M: Will there be more and more people planting food in the future?

R: Well, I mean, if the population is increasing, it seems obvious this trend will continue, just in terms of sheer numbers. However, technology is advancing, so we may find in the distant future, machines will be doing most of the agricultural labour, and people will just be overseeing it. They might even be overseen by machines. Now that I think about it.

M: Why do people like to have a big meal at special events?

R: Well, usually, these things play host to large groups of people, so it makes sense that provision should be made for them. I'm sure I've read somewhere that's like a sympathetic response. One person in the crowd gets hungry, and soon everyone feels that way.

M: Is it bad for people to look at their phones during a meal?

R: Well, surely that depends on the reasons underlying it. They might have an urgent call or an emergency or something like that. But if it's just doing it when someone is, you know, hosting you, then that's usually considered quite bad manners, at least in my country. As the guest, your job is to engage with the host.