Year of college has taught that dining alone is OK

As I leaned sloppily against the hostess stand at Applebee’s Restaurant, where I spent most of… As I leaned sloppily against the hostess stand at Applebee’s Restaurant, where I spent most of my summer days, I glanced at the clock, only to realize a whopping two minutes had passed since I last looked. If I hadn’t been working with Kayla, I probably would have died of boredom.

Kayla’s sarcasm never failed to entertain me. She always had a comment to make about everyone, whether they had messy hair or a huge pimple. If Johnny Depp, who I consider to be a picture of perfection, had walked through the door, Kayla would have said his shoes were a shade too dark for his belt.

One day a man came in holding “The Da Vinci Code” in one hand and glasses in the other, and asked for a table for one. After taking him to his table and making some small talk about how everyone in my family had read “The Da Vinci Code” except me, I returned to Kayla at the hostess stand.

Only seconds passed before she shamelessly uttered, “I would rather not eat than go to a restaurant by myself.”

A year ago, I would have agreed with Kayla. I wondered why anyone would want to walk into a restaurant alone. I would have never gone to a public place to eat alone. I was worried that people would think I was a loser. But now, after a year of college, I’ve realized that those who fly solo for some grub have nothing to be embarrassed about.

Why are people so afraid to do things by themselves? Many women can’t make a trip to the bathroom without a companion, and teen-agers are mortified by the idea of attending a dance dateless. This says a lot about our culture.

In a country that supposedly encourages individuality and independence, people fear being alone because they’re afraid other people may assume that they actually are alone in life — friendless, family-less, whatever. Or maybe people fear being alone because they want to avoid thinking about themselves and their own lives.

Since I’ve been on campus, I’ve noticed that many of my fellow students eat alone. I didn’t consider any of these people to be losers, so why would anyone think that of me if I were to eat alone? Since this realization, I’ve been comfortable with, and have come to enjoy, eating alone.

Of course, college is different from the rest of the world, but the principle of accepting those who eat alone applies everywhere.

Through my restaurant experience, I’ve formed a list of reasons why someone may dine alone: Maybe they are on a lunch break and are tired of inhaling greasy, artery-clogging burgers. Perhaps they just moved into town and don’t know anyone yet. Or it could be that they just want some alone time. Would it be better for them to eat with people they don’t even necessarily like, just for company’s sake?

It’s possible that someone may eat alone because he or she doesn’t have any friends or family to dine with. When I see someone who appears lonely eating alone in a restaurant, I can’t help but be more appreciative of how fortunate I am. My parents would drop everything to pick me up and take me out to dinner. I have friends who would gladly postpone studying if it means going to Wendy’s for some chicken nuggets and a Frosty.

I feel lucky to have friends and family whose company I value, and who value my company as well, and I can’t imagine what my life would be like without such people.

Nonetheless, friends or no friends, people gotta eat.

We should not expect people without mealtime amigos to cook or speed through a fast food drive-thru just to avoid sitting by themselves in a restaurant.

I used to pity people who ate by themselves. Now, the only sad thing is how I assumed that people couldn’t be happy unless they were surrounded by other people. I hope that one day we live in a world where eating alone is acceptable and people don’t mutter insincere “awws” when they spot a lone diner.

If you’ve never eaten alone, try it. Grab a book, order your favorite dish and prove that sometimes you are your own best company. You may surprise yourself.

Sit alone with Anjali Nair at amn17@pitt.edu.