📘 Part 3: Meeting friends

This episode's vocabulary

Company (noun) – companionship or friendship. → They meet because they enjoy each other's company.

Monotony (noun) – lack of variety and interest; tedious repetition. → Surprises break up the monotony of everyday life.

Unexpected (adjective) – not expected or planned for. → It’s fun when something unexpected happens.

Creature of habit (idiom) – someone who likes routine and does not easily change habits. → Some people dislike surprises because they're creatures of habit.

Disruption (noun) – disturbance or problems that interrupt an event, activity, or process. → Surprises can be a disruption to a busy schedule.

Run into (phrasal verb) – to meet by chance. → Funerals are occasions where people may run into friends.

Bonding (noun) – the development of close emotional relationships. → Meeting regularly helps with emotional bonding.

Neurotransmitters (noun) – chemicals in the brain that influence mood and behavior. → Seeing friends releases bonding neurotransmitters.

Modicum (noun) – a small amount. → Even a modicum of coordination requires planning.

Coordination (noun) – the organization of people or things so they work together well. → Planning helps with better coordination of events.

Climate (noun) – the weather conditions in an area over a long period. → The climate might influence what people wear to an event.

Magnitude (noun) – the size or extent of something, especially a disaster. → A high magnitude earthquake causes massive disruption.

Detrimental (adjective) – causing harm or damage. → Smaller detrimental events can still lead to positive change.

Collaborate (verb) – to work together to achieve a goal. → People collaborate to solve community problems.

Foreplanning (noun) – planning in advance. → Big events require serious foreplanning to avoid chaos.

Get-together (noun) – an informal meeting or gathering. → We’re planning a small get-together with friends next weekend.

Agenda (noun) – a list of items to discuss or act upon. → Business meetings usually follow a set agenda.

Spontaneous (adjective) – done without planning. → Sometimes spontaneous plans with friends are the most fun.

Mutual (adjective) – shared by two or more people. → They have mutual interests, which is why they get along.

Reunion (noun) – a social gathering of people who have not seen each other for a long time. → The school reunion brought many old friends together.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Why do friends generally meet?

Rory: Generally, probably because they enjoy each other's company and want to experience it as much as possible. It's nice when you have a good relationship with people, and normally people like having as much of that in their lives as they can get.

Maria: Why do some people like surprises?

Rory: Well, it's a nice safe thrill that can break up the monotony of day-to-day living, I suppose. I mean, if we all do the same things all the time, then life gets a bit boring. Though it's fun when something unexpected happens, especially with someone you know you like being around.

Maria: And why do you think some people dislike surprises?

Rory: Well, a lot of people are creatures of habit and pretty much married to their routines, so they might find any disruption to that to be a bit bothersome. If you're a particularly busy or orderly person, you might see surprises as something that gets in the way of more important things to do.

Maria: On what occasions is it easy for people to run into friends?

Rory: Well, any time when people with shared connections might need to get together, really. Birthdays and funerals are likely the most common ones, and everyone has at least one person in common there. And if they were friends with the person the event is about, the chances are they would have been friends too, since usually they share things.

Maria: Why do friends meet regularly?

Rory: Well, why does anyone do anything with any frequency? They enjoy it. They enjoy being around each other and feel drawn to their friends in some way, shape or form, and by meeting they get a chance to have that experience – get the bonding hormones and the neurotransmitters flowing and reinforce the likelihood it will happen again.

Maria: Are there any meetings that people need to plan in advance?

Rory: Anything that requires even a modicum of coordination will need some kind of advance planning, just so everyone knows what they're doing. For example, if it's a birthday party, people will need to know when and where to go and what to bring, and even what to wear, since the location could influence that just through the climate alone.

Maria: How are unexpected events beneficial for society?

Rory: Well, I imagine that depends on the scale and nature of the events themselves. If it's something like a random high magnitude earthquake, then that's probably not going to do much good for people, since they'll lose a lot and have their lives massively disrupted. However, smaller scale things, even if they are detrimental, could be helpful, since the society has a chance to react and cope with the issue appropriately, like a mild homelessness problem in a community. People can easily get together and organise to resolve that somehow, and everyone benefits when people come together and collaborate either materially or mentally.

Maria: What kind of meetings have to be well planned in advance?

Rory: You're asking the wrong person. I think everything needs to be planned ahead of time, frankly. It makes me feel safe. However, if we speak more generally, then anything with any significant value invested or expected as an outcome is probably going to demand some kind of foreplanning. This could be something like a major business summit, where people expect to make a lot of deals and money, so in order for that to happen as productively as possible, certain things will need to be decided before it happens, even just to prevent chaos at the big event. Otherwise it could be a huge waste of time and resources.