Hi all,

I live in Essex county and am looking to meet new people. Essentially all of my close friends and family (other than my immediate family -- I live with my mother, father, and grandmother) do not live in the area any longer due to things like work, school, or relocating for other reasons. I'm a 26 year old guy. I work part-time, and I'm on a leave of absence from graduate school where I was studying to become a psychologist. I'm hoping to return to school this coming fall.

I checked out the njr4r subreddit, and it didn't seem like what I was looking for, as most posts were sexually-oriented. I'm looking to connect with good people in person. Other than those two criteria, I don't have any exclusions and am open to meeting folks. I tend to be kind and genuine.

Until now, I've made efforts to connect with people. Here is a list of efforts I've made for that purpose:

• Reached out to people who I've met in the past and have wanted to get to know better

• Reached out to friends from the past where we fell out of touch, but we're both still in NJ

• Apps like Bumble (it has a dating and a friendship function) and MeetUp (meet with people based on common interests)

• Facebook groups in the area (haven't been able to find many -- ideas here would be appreciated)

• Finding ways to volunteer doing things that matter to me through MeetUp, VolunteerMatch, and contacting places/organizations/groups of people that are doing things I'm interested in

I think if I keep up with the above initiatives, I'll probably meet people I'll get along with and form nice relationships that I've been missing for a while. I have to get out more. I'd like to go back to what I've felt have been more "organic" or "natural" ways of meeting people before smart-phones became popular with dating apps, social media, and "knowing" of a person before meeting them. Back when you'd call people who you met in school or otherwise and just do stuff like basketball, hang out over common interests, etc. It's become a lot more complicated to connect with people in person for a variety of reasons, seemingly.

Overall, I'm seeking help with good ways to meet people in NJ to spend time with in person. I'm interested in growing as an individual (e.g., becoming kinder, a better listener, learning things, challenging myself, etc.) while enjoying with people. I miss the years growing up in school -- kindergarten through high school and then undergrad -- where it was simpler for me to connect with the people I love in person. It has been difficult to form new relationships in graduate school, because many of the people in my program seem to have their lives "set", there to get their degree, and closed to the idea of forming new friendships.

It's interesting how in today's society (can't speak to the past...) and at my age how so many people seemingly have difficulty with loneliness and having friendships and other relationships that they're satisfied with. You'd think we'd all be more connected with all of the technology created to more effectively connect us, but it seems we're in a time where connection is more difficult to come by (key word is "seems"... can't speak to the majority of people's experiences in our society with circumstances similar to mine nor people from the past).

Hoping to make new meaningful in-person relationships, as that has been an important aspect I've felt missing from my life since graduating from college. It has been difficult connecting with those who I love due to having long-distance relationships (friends and family) and also losing my dog who I was very close to for 14 years.

If this post is inappropriate for this subreddit, I apologize, and please do not hesitate to let me know or take it down. Not my intent to break the rules. I read them, and this content seemed fair to post about.

Thanks so much.

Ritty