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Making friends in Boston [PA Cambridge meetup Thursday]
FirstComradeStalin
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So I moved to Boston after graduating and I'm finding it a bit hard to meet people my age. I moved in with three guys who are 26, 32, and 33 (I'm 21) and while they're all decent people they tend to hang with a 30+ crowd that I've had trouble meshing with.
I'm a very outgoing person in general, and overall I've made friends with the people I've met over the 6 weeks I've been here, mostly by hanging out with my roommates. But at the end of the day I think the age gap, along with a few other things (they're big into techno and hard drugs, and I just kinda like that music and tend to stick to weed), makes me always feel like an outsider.
I'm used to college where I'm surrounded by all these people with similar interests about the same age, and now all of a sudden I'm plunged into this place where I effectively know no one with no real forum to meet people (like classes, or dorms, etc). My job isn't much help, I'm the youngest by far, there are only three people who are 28/29, with the rest being 40+.
It's kind of messed up because it seems like Boston is such a mecca for people my age but because I don't go to school I have no way of meeting them.
So PA forums I ask of you, how do young nomads like me come together?
I'm a very outgoing person in general, and overall I've made friends with the people I've met over the 6 weeks I've been here, mostly by hanging out with my roommates. But at the end of the day I think the age gap, along with a few other things (they're big into techno and hard drugs, and I just kinda like that music and tend to stick to weed), makes me always feel like an outsider.
I'm used to college where I'm surrounded by all these people with similar interests about the same age, and now all of a sudden I'm plunged into this place where I effectively know no one with no real forum to meet people (like classes, or dorms, etc). My job isn't much help, I'm the youngest by far, there are only three people who are 28/29, with the rest being 40+.
It's kind of messed up because it seems like Boston is such a mecca for people my age but because I don't go to school I have no way of meeting them.
So PA forums I ask of you, how do young nomads like me come together?
FirstComradeStalin on
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I snooped around meetup.com but it was mainly people in their mid-30s, at least in my area.
Not that I can't talk to people out of my age range and have a decent time(I'm not trying to brag, but I'm much more intelligent and mature than your average 21-year-old and people always say so), but I'd like to meet people that are actually like me for a change.
Why did you move in with an older crowd, anyhow?
Since you're looking for kids your age, I'd suggest looking for events or other things around the college areas. Off the Red Line you've got Davis/Porter Square with Tufts, down a bit further is Harvard (though Harvard is... well, not always the best area for stuff to do socially). Stuff happening in Allston/Brighton fits into this, as well, as you get all the BC and BU kids. They seriously run that part of town.
I'd second meetup.
Otherwise it's a crapshoot looking for the right bars/events that will be both social and in the age range you're looking for. I'm not on top of the student hangouts, but those areas are probably your best bet.
Edit: I neglected to mention that the "college" areas tend to attract the post-college crowd. You'll find a bunch of obnoxious students, but also the 23-30ish range.
Note that it will be easier in the Summer and Fall, as come April all the college people already have established their friends for the year and are studying for finals.
If you want to meet up, I have a good amount of time all next week.
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
I'll second this. I hardly ever spend time in Allston/Brighton. Too many kids and too many hipsters. But if that's your thing, go ahead!
Camberville is the place for most of the older-young-ish crowd. I'd start there and use meetup/the Phoenix (local paper) to find specific things to do.
Again, a lot of it depends on where you are located, as getting from Allston to Somerville can be a long trek on public transport.
I could be convinced to come out for a Boston H/A meet-up, I'm in Somerville quite a lot.
In the same vein, search facebook for young alumni groups in Boston. I'd bet that they organize a happy hour every month or so. (If they don't, organize one yourself! It ain't hard.) I went to a pretty tiny school myself, but there are still PLENTY of alumni in "young" cities like New York, D.C., Boston, Seattle, and Austin who consistently throw small events for hanging out and networking.
Yeah, you might not have been friends with any of these people while in college, but you'd be surprised at the level of camaraderie you probably have with them, especially if you went to a smaller school. My roommate started hanging out with this guy that she barely knew from college just because they both lived and worked in D.C., and now they're pretty fast friends.
Meetup can be a crap shoot. I used it when I first moved to Dallas and didn't find anything worthwhile at first. Lots of older crowds (specially for single groups), but I finally found a group that clicked (Travel group). Most of my friends I met through that group now and we do things outside of the group.
I recommend for looking for groups a bit outside of your normal interests. Volunteering, archery, travel, beer group, rock climbing, hiking. Actually I found a lot of the outdoor groups have a good range of ages.
Good Luck!
This is actually one of the biggest lessons to learn about your social life post-college: your age range for friendship and social interaction now spans a much greater range than before.
I'm 26, and even when I was freshly out of school around age 23/24 I realized that I was meeting and befriending people who ran the range of ages from 20 to 40.
You're still pretty young, FCS, but there are few social activities that appeal to twenty-somethings that don't also appeal to thirty-somethings. Hell, some of my good friends are close to ten years older than I am. With one of my partners we don't meet the "half her age plus seven" rule.
You can't avoid the older folks, but you'll soon (within the next few years) realize that you have more in common with them than you do with the kids still in school.
btw, if you live in somerville and are into board games and pen and paper roleplaying, PM me because my bf moved there last year and he's still hasn't found many people to play with who aren't total flakes
And I guess I should check the alumni network, too.
Anyone interested feel free to come down, so far our best idea for a signal is to just walk in and start shouting "STALIN!"
Yes. This will be awesome.
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
TOTP....
Thursday, 730 @ The Field
Just let me know the final day/time before Wednesday morning!
Yayayayayayay!!!!!!!!
Bucking the trend and yelling "Lenin."
It could be a good idea to make a little "H/A" sign by folding over a piece of heavy paper.
Awesome times were had. People from the PA boards are best people. Looking forward to making more friends in Boston.
Mission accomplished.
Also, shouting "STALIN!" when there's no one really listening really makes you stand out... and awkward.
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!
Maybe we can swing something like this again, and I won't be already liquored-up and late?
Let 'em eat fucking pineapples!