We have certainly come a long way and perhaps this pleasant, friendly gathering does not paint the whole picture.

"I hate to leave such a friendly gathering, but Staff Meeting time is here."

-Wine can be a great addition to a nice meal, a friendly gathering or a quiet night at home.

It was not a grand dinner--a little friendly gathering: no evening dress.

If I'd done it, it would have been more of a friendly gathering of frogs."

Rugby's traditions include fierce combat on the field followed immediately by a friendly gathering around a keg of beer.

(2/19) Liberals assailed President Clinton's welfare-reform policy at what was supposed to be a friendly gathering.

Today ConFest is a family friendly gathering ran bianually by volunteers attracting a diverse range of people.

In Argentina, Friend's Day is often a good excuse for a friendly gathering and greeting both current and old friends.

Padmasiri or "Padme" as known by his colleagues is having a friendly gathering with a mudalali businessman in his village.

There are other less important institutions, but these are little more than mere friendly gatherings of old boyhood chums for purposes of mutual companionship.

She had thought it was just a warm and friendly gathering, even though they had talked about "honoring" the Mother and she knew what that usually meant.

It was an informal, friendly gathering where drinking was allowed, knowledge would be exchanged and they could all relax together away from Central Control's formality and military constrictions.

Sudek's flat was a popular place for friendly gatherings of many artists, among them the poet Jaroslav Seifert, painter Jan Zrzavý, architect Otto Rothmayer and many others.

Composing haiku, and painting accompanying pictures, was a common pastime of Edo period aesthetes, who would pursue these activities in their spare time, or at friendly gatherings as a communal form of entertainment.

While Bulgarian cafe culture is largely oriented toward espresso and cappuccino, Turkish coffee has been an essential part of the Bulgarian social fabric, especially in friendly gatherings and in reading fortunes.

Today, commercial chocolate fountains are a common fixture at well-to-do galas, weddings, and catered parties; while home chocolate fountains are more commonly seen at birthday parties and friendly gatherings festival.

Dogs barking, occasional voices of children and young people, and also the sounds of domestic animals; some homes had music drifting from them, some the sounds of a party or friendly gathering coming out of the gardens.

"I've learned the only way not to be misquoted is to shut up and not to talk," the Illinois Republican told a friendly gathering of the Chicago Bar Association on Thursday, veering far from his ostensible topic of judicial independence.

But, if you had judged from the numbers of people on their way to friendly gatherings, you might have thought that no one was at home to give them welcome when they got there, instead of every house expecting company, and piling up its fires half-chimney high.

Showers can have themes, such as kitchen or honeymoon; they can be of a personal nature, with gifts centered on lingerie and bath items; or they can simply be friendly gatherings with gifts purchased according to the couple's registry list.

The purpose of ELFcon was to present scholarly papers on any subject relating to Tolkien's invented languages, and then to discuss the paper amongst the attendees, and to serve as a friendly gathering of folks who share a common intellectual pursuit.

Disturbances at the track are rare, by most accounts, although the Rev. Tom Elam, one of 12 Raceway Ministries chaplains at each Nascar race in Bristol, said marital strains or family problems sometimes arise even amid such friendly gatherings.

In June, between 400 and 500 people attended the Party Against the Pipe near the Shell compound in Aughoose, a family friendly gathering with craft workshops, music and food to mark the tenth anniversary of resistance to Shell's activities in Erris.

Perhaps the proprietor of Rigoletto's, a new Italian eatery in New Canaan, recalls the opera differently, for the menu states that "the character of Rigoletto . . . typifies the feeling that my restaurant expresses . . . camaraderie, humor, warmth, a friendly gathering place."