Ritual. The usually friendly patterns of eye contact, gestures,
and words exchanged at midday while consuming food products.
Usage: We "do lunch," schedule luncheon meetings, and conduct
business over lunch because eating together a. reduces anxiety
as the parasympathetic nervous system switches to rest-and-
digest, and b. promotes sociability through the reptilian
principle of "acting alike" and "doing the same thing" (see
ISOPRAXISM). Courtship. Because lunch is conducted in the light
of day, it is an effective venue for the early exchange of love
signals. As in the more serious dinnertime rite (usually
conducted after dark; see below, Media), couples find eating
together less stressful than conversing without the shared focus
of utensiles, food, and drink. Media. "The next day, Vicki
offers to cook Gary dinner at his apartment. Thinking quickly,
Gary says his place is too messy; they decide to have lunch at
the ranch instead." --Young and Restless (Soap Opera Digest
synopsis, May 2, 2000:114) Corporate cult