Reason #7 You Know You’re Crazy:
You are the inconvenient friend. Your friends want to spend time with you. However, they are confused by kashrut. And you have no idea how many friendship-time ideas involve food. Inevitably, people are confused about what kinds of activities they can do with you, which is wonderful because they care enough to spend time with you!
This also means that I need to be less lazy and think of ideas for spending time with my non-Jewish/non-observant friends. Because they don’t know the limits I have, it’s my responsibility to make suggestions of things that I can do without problem, while also being enjoyable. Of course, first school needs to chill out and let me have time to see the light of day!
These are my ideas so far:
Coffee dates
Bars or restaurants with a bar (Did this one already and enjoyed a beer during a birthday dinner!)
Movies (both at home or the theater)
Dinner/meals at my house
Outdoor activities
Dog playdates
Go to kosher restaurants, if available (they’re not in my case)
“Be a tourist” days/trips
Road trips
Comedy/theatre shows (we’re blessed with several comedy troupes!)
Any other ideas out there from lurker land?
I guess it goes along with dinner/meals at your house, but when I still lived in California I used to invite my friends over for Shabbos dinner. I'd kind of pose it as a 'dinner and board games' kind of night. My friends are nerdy enough that this worked. So people don't feel left out when contributing, you can ask them to bring beverages(both alcoholic and not), or do a dairy meal then ask them to bring a specific kind of dairy dessert, like a brand you know is kosher, or tell them to come over early and help you cook, that way it's in your kitchen. I always had a lot of success hosting Shabbos meals for non-Jews.