One way to fill the empty nest...

Find people with common interests!

So, I'm admittedly freaked out by the idea of online dating, but I have found a very rewarding way to meet new people without the pressure or expectations of online dating—Meetup! 

Meetup: Find your people

www.meetup.com/

"Find Meetups and meet people in your local community who share your interests."

For me, Meetup offers an alternative to online dating because it offers the opportunity to get out and be social and meet other people who have similar interests without the pressure to impress anyone. I can sign up and attend an event, even bring a friend if I want to, and enjoy the activity while getting to know new people. I am part of a couple different Meetup groups for hiking, but there are thousands of groups to join depending on your interests, everything from arts and eating to fitness and careers.

This is a photo from my latest Meetup hike—the summit of Mount Monadnock. These guys are helping me fill my soon-to-be empty nest—and most of them don't even know it! I have met some great people through this group, most of them I just meet once and enjoy their company for the moment—we chat along the trails, have lunch together on the summit, share aches and pains on the descent, then go on our separate ways. It's a very low pressure way to find connections with other people. Occasionally there have been more significant relationships that have come about this way, (that's another blog post entirely) but mostly just friendships. It helps me be social while I continue to work on myself.

I love this sentiment, and try to live by it:

A man once asked his father, "Father, how will I ever find the right woman?" His father replied, "Forget finding the right woman, focus on being the right man."

It certainly takes the pressure off of worrying about my future, and helps me keep the focus on the one thing I can control—myself.