Open the meal, pick the video, and start eating.

For a long time, this has been my "standard trilogy" for daily meals, with the focus on the second step.

When you have a hot meal, you can’t eat it in a hurry. You must choose a video to go with it that you want to watch the most.

Some netizens joked that if you don't watch a satisfying drama while eating, the meal will be in vain. What you eat is no longer rice, but a feeling of emptiness.

Netizens have given these "eating" videos, audios and texts a new name - "electronic mustard".

"Electronic mustard" is not a new concept.

When I was a student, the "Children's Channel" at 12 noon included "Little Master of China", which was perfect for watching when I came back from school at noon and held my job.

The "Instant Noodles" in Japanese anime lasts about 3-6 minutes, which is just enough time to make a good serving of instant noodles.

Nowadays, no matter how long the video is, or the subject of the article is not limited, as long as it can make people feel happy while eating, it is a good "pickle".

There are a wide variety of “electronic pickles” on the Internet for you to choose from.

Different personal tastes bring different dining experiences.

Some people like to watch the male and female protagonists talking about sweet love when eating, which is more delicious than eating on a date; some people like to follow food bloggers to feast their eyes on the human fireworks in barbecue skewers; some people like to bring "5 minutes of happiness"

Talk show, and then lamented that the current living conditions include "moderate sadness, great sadness, and extremely great sadness"; someone smacked "That year there was a slight rain of apricot blossoms, and you said you were the King of Guojun" 108 times during a meal of takeout, and still

Some people prefer "heavy taste". For every meal, forensic doctor Qin Ming needs to perform an autopsy on a corpse.

People in Zhejiang even said that their "electronic pickles" are "1818 Golden Eye" and "Qiantang Old Uncle".

The ancient adage “Don’t talk when you eat, don’t talk when you sleep” is also confirmed by scientific data in modern medicine.

But the young people who "punk health" obviously don't care.

Compared with eating itself, how to make this free time less silent and boring has become an important issue in the "multi-threading" era.

It’s great to have someone to eat with, but “physical” friends are a luxury in the modern era.

Watching movies, eating hot pot, and going to the hospital alone is nothing new.

Some people shared on social platforms "How to eat hot pot alone without the waiter putting a doll on it" and "How to avoid having the tableware taken away when eating alone and going to the toilet."

The disadvantage of eating alone is ordering food. You salivate when you look at several large dishes on the menu, but your belly reminds you not to be too ambitious, so in the end you still order the "old-fashioned" fish-flavored shredded pork rice bowl.

Some people even invented the "actor eating method". Even if it is instant noodles with sausage, it can be accompanied by expectant eyes, hard biting, chewing with all your strength, and lingering nostalgia.

Anyway, no one will see you, so pretending to be lively is better than being really lonely.

There is also some loneliness that comes from fear of “table socializing.”

At this time, the "electronic mustard" comes in handy. You only need to take out your mobile phone, put on the earphones, and let the leader walk by. You can also pretend to be immersed in the video, avoid eye contact, and let people who are trying to communicate at the dinner table *

** Talk to colleagues at work and leave.

“It’s not just ‘electronic mustard’, it should be called electronic companionship.” Netizens said.

The proportion of contemporary people living alone is getting higher and higher. According to the 2021 China Statistical Yearbook, there will be more than 125 million "one-person households" in 2020.

"Electronic mustard" creates a virtual space in the increasingly routine meals that lack pleasure. It allows us to escape from the real world for a short time, using images, words, and sounds as companions to obtain both dietary and emotional satisfaction.

If you are lonely at home and want to feel more connected, just visit the Douban group "Can I try your 'electronic mustard'" for 5 minutes?

There must be a group of netizens who will enthusiastically recommend all kinds of "must-have" videos to you, so that in the space separated from each other, you can gain some kind of communion and happiness.

In the Japanese drama "The Lonely Gourmet" which aired in 2012, an uncle named "Goro" visits a small shop alone on the screen and eats attentively and quietly.

The state of enjoying food peacefully in a chaotic world seems to tell young people: Eating is a philosophy and a belief, and no reason is enough to interfere with eating.

One can eat well even without social or virtual company.

This requires strong and abundant inner strength.

"Electronic pickled mustard" is "pickled mustard" after all, and its function is to "eat food." It does not seem easy to obtain information in a fragmented ocean and eat such a profound spiritual feast.

What young people need is actually just a short period of happiness: the food is delicious, the drama is good, and they can continue to fight in life after eating.