o I've
been in Atlanta for about 8 months now. No social life to report as of
yet.
This isn't to say I don't enjoy my time with my fiancé. We've only been
together for 2 years, so we're madly in love with each other right now - the
deep-seeded bitterness will settle in after the 3rd year.
No, it's that neither of us have found company outside of each other. We've
been hacking and slashing in co-op PS2 games, going to restaurants, cooking
our favorite dishes, seeing new attractions, sharing milkshakes 50's era sock
hop, testing new pharmaceutical drugs... but no friends.
It's the eeriest thing - I mean, I'm not used to being in an area for any longer
than a few months without having some friend base. Here, I've got nothing
(no offense hon').
Part of it is because I'm not going to school, so the classroom acquaintances
aren't there. At work, people are in their 30's with children, so it's not easy
to make time for social outings when you have to worry about cutting in on your
"family time".
Last resort
Edgar is my only companion thus far, but his Cochny snorting gets on my
nerves sometimes...
For a try, we resorted to looking for social groups online. It's the
creepiest thing to be honest; it's like "lonely-friendless losers anonymous".
OK, maybe that's harsh.
Anyhow, we were looking for L.F.L.A. sponsors at an "outdoors club"
one night. Seemed like a good idea at the time - I like camping, Anna
likes camping, gotta' be a good match! Right?
At the night of their social meeting, we arrived and were immediately intimidated
by the crowd we saw. Everyone seemed to average 10 years older than ourselves.
It was like a last ditch effort for singles to meet their dream wives, and the
number of men outweighing women reflected this theme.
Somehow we (Anna, myself, and her coworker) approached the party and began
nodding to busy talkers with a pair of forced grins: "hi, we're happy to
be here - very happy. Yes, really happy." We found an empty spot
and perched uncomfortably, when I was immediately intercepted by one of the
guests. What ensued was a locked conversation with a aeronautical engineer I
could not escape cordially. Anna was swooped by a group of intrigued men, eager
to exchange witty banter with one of the party's scarce women. The evening dragged
on for an hour, and we left with crumbled newsletters in hand.
Next last resort
About a month later, we ended up in a similar situation, this time with a "new
to Atlanta" club. This time, the atmosphere was a little more disarming
- last time was at a highbrow brewery, this time at a night-clubbish Irish pub.
Beer, to me, is the ultimate disarmer (if that's a word).
We got in the doors at 7:30 and met our like-purposed group: people who are
just trying to make friends in Atlanta. This time, the crowd was younger, which
I suppose made a difference for us. We could almost see these people as facsimiles
of friends elsewhere - the guy who looks and drinks like Don, the girl who kinda
looks like Michelle, the dude that speaks like Yanchak... well, not quite...
Actually, it was a good time. I could tell, because I was pissed by the end
of the night. Anytime I leave a place drunk, I had a good time.
The lesson learned
The fact of the matter is, Atlanta is a crossroads. It's like the spot
where everyone in the Southeast flocks to find a job, and as a result, leaves
the area devoid of community and warmth. This entire town is filled with license
plates from all 50 states and people who are on some hop of their careers, coming
from somewhere or on their way to another place. What results is a place with
not a lot of friendly, sociable, open people.
It's going to take some getting used to, but I can honestly say nowhere else
has been like the city I'm stuck in now. What's even funnier is that fact that
I don't fear people taking offense to my attacks on Atlanta, because there's
only about 55 or 60 original "Atlantans" left. Everyone else
is still getting used to I-285 and the Midtown connector.
It'll be interesting to see how the next year goes in this town. But, I'll
say one thing - I'll be more careful with the online friend-finding. It's bad
enough people are out there searching for soulmates online. The last thing I
need is to be looking for new "pals" through the Internet. Pish
posh, indeed!
(PS: If you live in the surrounding Atlanta area and appreciate PS2 and sporadic
binge drinking, write me at lfla@georgekovats.com!)
o I've
been in Atlanta for about 8 months now. No social life to report as of
yet.