So, as much as I talk about going out and parties and hanging out with friends, the real truth of the matter is, I am an extreme hermit. I force myself out of the house to have fun at least once or twice a week, and I typically have an awesome time once I'm actually out there, but generally I'd much rather stay at home with the dogs, a bowl of cocoa puffs, and my Tivo. I don't like talking on the phone. I'm capable of carrying on an enjoyable conversation while in the waiting room at the doctor's office or when I'm smushed into the middle seat on an airplane, but I'd really rather people would just leave me alone so I can read my book.
I just find my own company very enjoyable, thank you very much!
Anyway, this tendency toward the hermit lifestyle is all well and good when I have an established set of friends who realize that sometimes it's just better to email than call, or that there are going to be nights that I just want to stay at home and it's nothing personal. But when I'm in a new place and I'm forced to make a new set of friends, it's a little more complicated. Let's face it. I spent 2 years in Little Rock before I finally made friends with a group of girls that didn't drive me insane, and even now there are only three people that I'll really miss when I leave. (I counted.)
I've also always had the convenience of school or a very well populated workplace to provide me with a pool of potential friend candidates. However, I probably won't be working for a while after we get to Washington, and to be honest, officer's wives kind of terrify me. Especially since I won't be a "wife" until November, and therefore not really a card carrying member of their club. If you know many officer's wives, you totally understand what I mean by this. The last thing I want to do is to latch on to Colby like he's my everything, and completely drain him of his life force. Been there, got the t-shirt!
I want to find a way to be an independent girl, with a life of her own, who won't spend her evenings moping around the house when her man is away. I really want to find a way to overcome my inner hermit, and be completely excited at the idea of being able to start all over with a new set of people and friends. I just really don't have a clue how to meet people, aside from the friend of a friend introductions at parties and such.
There are classes I could take. I've thought about getting back into dancing--not only would it be a good way to meet people, but it's exercise I actually enjoy. I loved dancing when I was younger, and if we hadn't ended up with a dance teacher that sat on our backs to "help" us with our splits I would probably have stuck with it for much longer. I love to sing, so I've been using my pal Google to try to find choruses or choirs that I could potentially join or audition for at some point... maybe... (Because let's not even get into my intense fears of both judgement and trying new things that I also need to get the heck over--that's another story for another time.) I have all of these grand ideas and am storing up my witty conversation openers, but I'm just afraid that I'll get up there, retreat into my cave and only send messages to the outside world through my dogs, whom I've convinced myself are fluent in English.
You can probably see how that would, ultimately, not really be enjoyable for anyone involved.
In happier news, Colby has officially been selected for promotion to Captain this summer, which mostly just means a lovely pay raise. So, you know, he must have been remembering to breathe right on schedule for the past 3 1/2 years. Congrats to him!
