Meetup: Local groups & events 12+

It's tough for me to socialize. Even when I want to , it's not easy to find what will work. Meetup has given me a chance to connect with people based on mutual interests without feeling forced to socialize more than I want to. I started out with a movie meetup, something I often do alone.i had the option of socializing after too. Next I tried a local place where we could play video games and have snacks or drinks . I then found a group that meets up at a coffee shop to get paperwork done! I had been dreaming of finding something this, I even tried to place an ad for a buddy prior to meetup . I haven't tried started a meetup but it's also a possibility here. I found fellow sci fi lovers too, who knew ?!
There are lots of groups for outdoor exercise like hiking and biking and during this time of distancing it may prove to be healthy endeavor. The fact that I can pick and choose is ideal.
If you haven't tried meetup I say go for it! I am normally leery of people too and meetup provides a nice balance of meeting ,safety, interests and exploration.
The groups are generally closed I found that to join I can say a bit about my interests and check out other profiles. I love that I have been about to hang with a 70 yr old and a 20 year old finding common ground. I can leave if I want or stay for the duration. I can talk sci fi or knit ,color or draw , exercise or chill. It's all there in meetup !

Because I Recently moved to a new area with no friends or any idea were anything is, I cried many tears believing I had made a major mistake. Thank goodness for Meetup. It takes time to learn each groups rules and I have incurred a couple nasty people for breaking a rule I was not aware of. You can’t make a reservation and be late from work, or you are there but u don’t know them and they don’t know you so you are armed as a no show even though you pay for your membership in advance. I always try to be courteous and am willing to pay for a meal when I can’t find the location. I also got kicked out of a group for cancelling a happy hour when a close family member died unexpectedly. But those are only growing pains. These people go to a lot of work and time to make these opportunities available for us. I don’t fault them, I just wish they would treat new members as a new customer to their business. I have met some of the nicest people.

The app is great but it crashes on my phone every time. The software seems to be excellent and I have been making some nice friends. It’s a 10 in my book and am so thankful it is available. Much better way to meet other singles than a dating site.

The app lets you search for groups or activities or events by key word....or just scroll through all the events that meet-up groups have planned for the week and just click to join and get the info!
Some are totally open to everyone cuz and some have a short screener for safety. Never found any to be scams and all are just legitimate good people who want to do activities with like-minded people.
The only problem I’ve ever had is that sometimes ill sign up to join a meet-up event...like recently at a local festival ...and I get there and can’t find the group because the leader was too vague about the meet-up spot and didn’t have a sign or anything for new people to recognize the group. That’s happened a few times and is a bummer. But mostly it works out!
Also, if there’s not a group already out there doing something you like, it’s super easy to start a new group with your interest....I’ve been surprised at the response that new groups get.