You might have heard Americans are lonely.

• While maybe only some of us are having dinner parties, most of us are still running errands. And we don't need to do them alone.

🛍️ Enter the "errand friend." Also known as a "chore hang" or "errand date," these companions embrace the art of socializing while doing mundane tasks, Axios' Natalie Daher writes.

• Doing otherwise boring things together gets us off our screens and out of our heads, and builds intimacy and trust.
• It leaves us feeling accomplished: The shoes were purchased! The dinner ingredients were gathered!

🎧 What they're saying: "I'm trying to make more of my friends here in LA 'errand friends.' We get together and run errands. That's the hang. If other things happen, sure," podcast host Sam Sanders said on a recent episode of the show "Vibe Check."

• Sanders has talked about wanting to "concretize" routines or hobbies — whether it's exercise or listening to music — by doing them in community.
• TikTokers and Substackers also have embraced the habit.

💭 Natalie's thought bubble: Because I've lived my adult life in cities, I do most of my errands or routine tasks on foot — returning a library book, going to a Pilates class, getting a manicure.

• I'll often call up a friend who lives nearby to join me and catch up.

🛒 One of my favorite 2024 errand dates was my first-ever trip to Costco. This errand required a rental car.

• Together we navigated the widest aisles I've ever seen to get rotisserie chicken, frozen salmon, and a 25-pound bag of rice to split between our households. I still have toilet paper from the outing. (It was in May!)

Chores and errands can also help relieve tension in more intimate situations.

• For people who are dating, errand hangs are a helpful way to learn your prospective partner's personality in ordinary spaces, unlike a movie or dinner date, a relationship therapist told Well+Good back in 2021.

👩‍👩‍👦‍👦 Time with family — yours, or especially a partner's — can also be a lot more comfortable when everyone's able to channel their energy into necessary tasks.

• "Vibe Check" co-host Zach Stafford shared the experience of a friend who recently met his boyfriend's parents for the first time.
• The friend asked to be "shoulder to shoulder" with his new boyfriend's mom — cooking, for instance — rather than face to face.
• Moving around and forgoing direct eye contact can reduce anxiety and feel less formal.

📦 So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and invite a friend to drop off your UPS return with you.

💭 We'd love to hear YOUR errand/chore innovations: [email protected].