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I have a variety of interests that I like to share with other people. It's usually not hard to find other people online, but sometimes a person just wants to do it in person, even if it's nothing more than going out for dinner or a movie. One of my interests is home brewing and I have no problem finding other local homebrewers, clubs and events. But not all my interests are quite so universal and I end up sharing them online only. 

There exists a web service called Meetup, https://www.meetup.com/ that attempts to match people with similar interests in their local districts. When you sign up, you give your location and list your interests and then they periodically email you with a list of relevant meetings and events in your area. I was wondering if anyone else has registered for this and what their experiences have been. If not, would you be willing to give it a try?

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I have found that the list that they send is always provocative, but none are comfortably close to my location. Apparently I live in a backwater of culture and civilization. The most interesting events are all at least an hour's drive away and often after dark. Since my night vision is not what it used to be and I'm not as adventurous in the winter, it hasn't helped.

Sounds like you and I live in similar backwaters, PTB; most of the stuff I'm interested in is 2 hrs. away.  I do belong to 2 local meetup groups. We're only meeting right now online, of course; I look forward to when (if?!) the lockdown's over, I prefer face2face meetings sometimes. Both groups are pretty good; even before the lockdown though, there weren't that many meetup groups in this area. They're a lot of work to run; so it's understandable, I guess. Plus, I think that as happens sometimes in some places, this area is one of those nothing-to-do-but-bars-and-churches places.

This is sorta kinda related to meetup, I guess. Earlier today I was on another site griping about how at local meetup.com and other local groups, I have experienced being looked down on for not having "an education" (college degree). And I've met a lot of other high-school-diploma people who have told me the same thing. 

Welp, this guy replies to my discussion & says I shouldn't "define" myself by that. (I told him it's not *me* defining myself by that that's the problem, it's other people defining me as that.) And--get this--he goes on to say that his wife doesn't have a degree & she's still a wonderful, accomplished person; but here it comes: he says how's he's glad that when he met her he didn't know she didn't have a degree because he *used to be* an education snob. Talk about proving somebody's point for 'em...whatever, guy.

There is a flip side to that sort of bias. Around here, I find myself more socially acceptable when I fail to mention that I do have a college degree. There is a deep mistrust of anyone with an education, perhaps because people with degrees are perceived as elitist, (probably with some justification). I have learned that it is better, even on resumes, to downplay my school history. Years ago, I joined MENSA, hoping that would enhance my resume. Now, I have not only discontinued membership, but rarely even acknowledge any connection to them.

That's true, PTB. I think part of what's going on in this area (both the education snobbery & the distrust of "over-educated boobs" [a comment I literally heard]) is due to this being what was a rural area with a university added, so we've got some of that old "town vs. gown" conflict. (I too joined MENSA years ago and then later discontinued my membership; I kept hearing about the problems with the standard IQ tests so for that & other reasons got disenchanted with the whole thing.)

Here its mostly industrial, shuttered up  out-of-business industrial. No intown university. Those who leave town to get a degree don't come back (except me apparently).

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