QUIZ: ARE YOU STILL CIVILIZED?

Okay, so the weather is getting colder, and our dining options are once again becoming limited. We will soon have to forsake the delights of semi-safe dining in converted parking lots and spend perhaps the rest of our lives eating inside our own homes.

Now for some people, this is not a hardship. It is an Opportunity, a chance to spend many blissful hours in the kitchen happily trying out new recipes. These are people who use words like "saucing" and "infusing" and "carmelizing," and who to love to invest in things like $400 Le Crueset Signature Enameled Dutch Ovens. My nephew is one of these people, and this, for example, was one of his recent posts on Instagram.

I used to like my nephew. 

Other people are okay with the indoor thing because they are able to create aesthetically pleasing dining experiences no matter what the situation. The other night, for example, we brought Chinese take-out over to my mother-in-law's. When we arrived, her table was set with woven placemats, gleaming china, her good silverware, linen napkins (rolled inside of silver napkin rings) and crystal. The lights had been dimmed, and two candles glowed softly. 

I used to like my mother-in-law.

As for the rest of us, I think we're worried about being trapped indoors again because we have already given up the fight to stay even moderately civilized when it comes to eating. If you are not yet sure which group you belong to, see whether option A or B in the following descriptions best describes you. 

Planning 

A You scan websites like Bon Appétit or go through your personal collection of treasured family recipes to determine the menu for the week. You then order ingredients from Sunset Foods or Mariano's for delivery. 

B Planning? 

Preparation 

A You gather the necessary ingredients for your dinner, sometimes beginning your prep the evening before the actual meal. You chop, marinade, sauté, smoke, or braise, as necessary. 

B The night of the meal, you open the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets at 5:45, hoping to find something edible and/or unexpired. At 6:00, you call Grub Hub. 

Before the Meal 

A You lovingly set the dining table with complete place settings and perhaps a vase of flowers. (See description of mother-in-law's table, above.) You then bring out serving dishes with aromas so tantalizing that you don’t even have to call people to the table. 

B You go into the family room and sweep the newspapers off the coffee table in front of the TV. 

The Dining Experience 

A You begin the meal, ask about each other's day, and perhaps have a good-natured debate about current events. 

B You shovel the take-out food onto paper plates, tear off a few Bounty paper towels to serve as napkins, head to the coffee table, and turn on the TV. 

Après le Dîner 

A You clear the table, pour a glass of wine, and linger over dessert, just to enjoy each other's company. 

B You throw out the paper plates, instruct the dog to finish cleaning the coffee table and the floor around it, and continue watching whatever TV show you've turned on. 

Now maybe you don't fall into either category, exactly. Like, maybe you order from Jewel instead of Mariano's, and maybe you're still making a half-hearted attempt to COOK the meals you eat in front of the TV. But if you are already well on the path to Category B, what the heck, just embrace it. Your dog will thank you for it.