Eating outside has obviously gone on since we began. Pictures of what we call picnics date ack to the 15th century. The term picnic is something that was documented in the 18th century. It meant something like a potluck - everyone would contribute something to the feast.
It was the wealthy who had elaborate movable feasts. Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management described all the components of an outdoor meal. There were plenty. Victorian times seemed tough to me - a lot of standards and rules.
What do we think of picnics today? Ther will always be the potluck picnic guide describing things like etiquette, what culinary contribution to bring, serving utensils, keeping food safe in the cooler, labeling the serving dishes clearly. Perhaps we have Victorian traditions still in us.
Being a post-Victorian, the major change that has happened in my lifetime is that it is acceptable to bring things from the grocery store in the grocery store packaging, especially Costco, a brand that has a religious-like following.
My potluck mentality goes back to my childhood. We made all the food that we put out on the picnic table. I do remember lots of jello, which today would be a great novelty. The only thing prepared would have been things like the condiments and the hot dog buns.
What would happen today if everyone had to make a dish for the potluck? It might be chaos. That's a very funny scenario.
Considering our technology today, I would expect the "smash hit" of a potluck would be a 3D-printed cake. That would be very exciting.
So considering how things have changed, I found a few potluck jokes for my generation:
I brought weed and poker chips to a potluck picnic last week. Apparently I missed the memo on what a "potluck dinner" was.
And this joke about a church potluck written in "baby boomer slang":
A man calls his friend to remind him about a church potluck coming up. "Ok," he says, "My wife and I will bring the cheese, and you and your wife need to bring the bread." His friend, who is kind of an anxious mess says, "Oh man, that's a lot to remember. I'm kind of freaking out. I don't know how I'm going to keep all of this information straight!" "Woah woah woah," the first man says to his friend. "Take it easy, man! Just remember: cheese us loaves you."
