I know WHAT to do, just not WHERE

Kilgore Trout

I recently finished a grad degree and have started an internship working regular daytime hours. It has been about a month now and things are going well professionally, but I'm starting to have trouble with my off-time. Namely I HAVE off-time for the first time in years. Now don't get me wrong, this is not the problem nor is my problem the "what do I do with all my spare time" quandary. I do some work with a couple non-profits so I have plenty of work to do with communications strategies and policy reviews and such plus I've rediscovered the joy of reading books because I want to and not because the prof said to do it.

The problem is that I am used to doing work on campus in my shared office where it was a quiet, productive environment but there were constantly other people either just around using the office or walking around nearby. Now that I don't have my office I am spending all of my time in my one-bedroom apartment where there is literally nobody but me. I feel weird going to campus now since I don't have my office and I would prefer to not be a walking cliche university grad sitting in a Starbucks working on my laptop or reading. Still, it would be nice to have somewhere to go where I can work and still be around other people. Not necessarily interact with anybody, just physically be in a place where I am not literally the only person.

Now to complicate matters (because what would an H/A question be if I wasn't being at least mildly part of the problem). I have fairly limited in that I have no car and public transit to where I live is lacking after 6:30 PM. I also live right on the boundary between the university and a retirement community. Since I've psychologically written off being the creepy guy who is on campus but isn't a student, going to campus feels like a big no to me (unless all else fails). Also, because of the retirement community the local library is full of mostly retirees who although nice people lack the joie de vivre and energy I am looking for. Many of them are clearly unwell and it's moderately depressing and makes me feel just as uncomfortable as being alone all the time. The library of course is right smack-dab in the middle of the nearest shopping mall which clearly has the same... age related problems. Finally, there are - for some reason I cannot comprehend - absolutely no pubs in walking distance.

On the flip side, wifi is not an issue because I can work without it and I don't mind paying a few bucks here and there in order to justify taking up a seat or table for an hour or two. So forums: take it away. Anybody have some advice on some places I could go to work and be around people? If not, which is the least douche-y of the other two options: hang out on campus or hang out at a coffee shop (which given location would literally be Starbucks)?

PS. Irrelevant point. Just realized that perhaps I should have looked at more than "proximity to campus and groceries" and "cheapest rent I could find" when I chose this apartment.

Terrendos

Are there any parks in the area? Weather permitting, you could always go outside. I actually prefer to do my reading outside with natural light.

Iruka

I do understand the issue you are having. When I was single I found it really awful to be in the house all day, but I found it equally awful to draw in Starbucks. If you have any friends with a similar schedule and free time, find a work buddy. When I moved back near my campus, sometimes a few of my old college friends would just get together to sketch, and this was always a good vibe. You need to find people who appreciate the need to work and not mistake it for "lets have a long conversation time" but it can work out great.

I found Barnes&Noble to be a better space than starbucks, usually quiet and with more space, and still is a starbucks if I want coffee. I don't know how you would escape the old people or college kids without a car. You may find that all you really need is to break up your evening with a routine walk, to get you outside.

Had I been more stable money wise and knew I would be there for a while, at the time I would have probably gotten a cat to make home less lonely. There are a bunch of other factors that may make that not an option, but pets do a lot to lower loneliness and depression.

illig

look for shared office space in your area - these are common in large cities, but i've also seen these in much more suburban locales (b/c people who work from home sometimes feel the need for human interaction - just like you do)

here's an example:
http://workattheyard.com/