LogFAQs > #925009272

A friend of mine and his wife are having a birthday dinner at a local thai restaurant. They're gonna order the hot pot.* They're paying for the dinner. They gave me a casual invitation, along with several other friends.

The arrival time is 5:30.

My problem is that I don't eat that early. I have dinner around 8:00 or 8:30. I can imagine getting myself to eat at 7, possibly. But anything before that is out of the question for me. I won't be hungry, and forcing myself to eat would be likely to make me physically ill. I can't ask them to eat later; I'd never even consider doing that...

I know I'm strange. Most people eat earlier. I get that. Having said that, should I:

A) Make up some excuse, and skip the dinner? I'll miss time with some good friends. But at least I won't be the weirdo siting at a table, and watching people eat in front of him. I'd probably have to explain myself several times and garner an implied sense of judgement from them. (Even though I know they'd never actually feel that way.)

B) Just go. Maybe it's not as weird as it sounds to sit at a dinner table without eating? Plus I'd get to spend an evening with friends, laughing and telling stories.

*(For those who don't know, at this restaurant, you're able to order the hot pot. That's literally a large pot they set down at your table, complete with a gas-powered burner below it. You order raw meat, along with uncooked noodles and veggies. Then you're given little tools to dip the food into the pot. You get to watch it cook right before you eyes, and take it out whenever you want. It's not my favorite way to eat, but it tastes good and it's kind of fun! I've done it a couple times before.)
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