in which I whine

Monday marked my second full month of living in Chicago.

I'm loving this city; there's so much to do and see and eat and drink. but, if I told you it was easy to meet people and make friends here, I'd be lying. I find that I'm surprised by this, somehow. wherever I've lived, I've been surrounded by people I know, and have made a few random friends along the way. when I learned that we were moving here, I figured "oh, I've got blog acquaintances and there'll be a larger population of people our age, it'll be easy to make friends..." so far, not so much.

Rob's the social butterfly, and he's the one with the job. we hang out with his work buddies and their sig others a lot, which is great and they're young and fun and genuine. they're really cool, but I still sorely miss having a backbone crew of my own that I can see in person. of people that really get me. I haven't found anyone here yet that I can wander the aisles of Target with for no reason. or who know silly stories about me. or can read my expression well enough to know when I'm being sassy. don't get me wrong, I'm not shopping for Midwest versions of anyone out here, but I'm finding most relationships to be lacking something. everyone here is so damn nice, I'm still in search of a similarly sarcastic a-hole like me. sometimes, that gets old.

I'm fully aware that the power is in my hands. and that everyone I meet is a potential friend, and that I've gotta put myself out there and all that jazz. so what am I doing about it?! I'm working with two separate organizations as a volunteer, and I'm optimistic that something will come from it. firstly, I'm hoping that a relatively blank canvas will shed some light on learning about myself and what I want in a career. ideally, I'd also love to make some friends along the way. so aside from the warm n' fuzzies I'm getting by helping out, I'm trying my damnedest to introduce myself to people and get lost in those initially awkward 'getting to know you' small talk convos. my comfort boundaries are defintely being pushed upon, and I'm antsy for some results. that's where those two months come back in: am I being impatient? sure. did I think I'd be well on my way to friend-dom by now? yep. do I have any idea how to sit back and wait on things that are completely out of my control? ahhnope.

I know I have to give things time, and that it takes years to really feel like you're part of a community, but that's much easier said than done, amirite?!

hell, you can find anything in the world online...there should be a match-a-friend site or something. maybe it's my calling to create one...