I Want to Improve My Social Life
So it's Thanksgiving here in Canada, and I'm home alone browsing SW posts. I have no family in the country other than my daughter, who is spending the day w/ her bf (and I'm totally fine with it... she used to spend Thanksgivings with her mom and step-family, although she often hated it, so this year she's in better company). Lately I've been struggling to find anything meaningful to do with my spare time, which until recently was almost non-existing.
I thought I should take the opportunity to "be more social", "go out", etc. I thought maybe I could go for a walk on the beach or something. But the truth is, a middle-aged man wandering around alone is just seen as creepy. If someone is "alone", then there must be something wrong with him. If someone has no friends then there must be something wrong with him. Oh yeah, how come I have no friends anyway? Well, coming to a new country at 35, married to a jealous wife who insisted on spending every spare minute with me (and I cheerful obliged), then after four years she suddenly decided that she wanted to marry someone else instead... Then my ex being "too busy" to spend weekends and most evenings with my daughter (then a toddler) meant that I was almost "single parent" with zero time to socialize...
Fast forward 15 years and I look around and, yes, no friends, no social life. I'm a creepy old man who lives alone. In the past I would sometimes go out for hikes, walks on the beach, etc., but I realized that any middle-aged guy wandering alone is, like I said, creepy, so I rather stay home instead of needlessly freaking out people.
I don't see any way to "improve my social life". Any suggestions (other than committing suicide, which I have already duly considered)?
I thought I should take the opportunity to "be more social", "go out", etc. I thought maybe I could go for a walk on the beach or something. But the truth is, a middle-aged man wandering around alone is just seen as creepy. If someone is "alone", then there must be something wrong with him. If someone has no friends then there must be something wrong with him. Oh yeah, how come I have no friends anyway? Well, coming to a new country at 35, married to a jealous wife who insisted on spending every spare minute with me (and I cheerful obliged), then after four years she suddenly decided that she wanted to marry someone else instead... Then my ex being "too busy" to spend weekends and most evenings with my daughter (then a toddler) meant that I was almost "single parent" with zero time to socialize...
Fast forward 15 years and I look around and, yes, no friends, no social life. I'm a creepy old man who lives alone. In the past I would sometimes go out for hikes, walks on the beach, etc., but I realized that any middle-aged guy wandering alone is, like I said, creepy, so I rather stay home instead of needlessly freaking out people.
I don't see any way to "improve my social life". Any suggestions (other than committing suicide, which I have already duly considered)?
