Drinking hot chocolate and the first momets of Serpico

Last night I began watching Serpico (1973) at about 1230am, determined to watch at least a solid portion of the film to keep up with my own crushing pace. Predictably, I found myself in bed by 1am, justifying my laziness with pride for having even started the film in the first place. Other than being immediately aware of the directorial brilliance of Sidney Lumet for what feels like the hundredth time, I'll save my final appraisal of the film for later. Also, this weeks list has changed to this one;
1. Colors (1988)
2. Serpico (1973)
3. Bullit (1968)
4. The Naked City (1948)
5. Act of Violence (1948)
Optional: Beyond the Law (1992)

I've just finished drinking an excellent hot chocolate at Stumptown coffee on Pine, where i'm waiting to hear from my flaky co-worker "Big Terry Jones, or Tare Bear." We're meeting to shoot some pool, as i've made it a lifetime goal of mine to excel at all of the non athletic gentleman's leisure activities. First i'll conquer pool, then i'll move on the golf, bowling, ping-pong, skiing. Even archery and horseback riding are possibilities. Normally i'd have ordered a short drip coffee with an inch of room for cream, but as i've already had one cup of coffee today, and will be having another when I meet my older brother in a few hours, I thought I'd opt for sugar, rather than caffeine. The point of my writing this is to pose a question, and the question is this;
Why must we feel stimulated beyond the basic intellectual appeal of interacting with one another? Why do we meet to ingest coffee, or lunch, or dinner? Why do we see a movie together, or play pool? Obviously I enjoy eating or drinking, or being entertained as much as anyone else, but if the intention in making plans with someone is to see them, then why can't we just meet in one of our respective residencies and look each other in the eye while posing questions to one another? It isn't so much a complaint as much as it's an observation. It seems that we're all so wrapped up in ourselves that we must seek out convenient distraction disguised as social facility to avoid fully experiencing one another's "infinite nature (to quote Naomi Watts)." Also, if you haven't seen this video of James Franco being hilarious, it's worth checking out.
-Ben