New In Town (Pittsburgh, Lawrenceville, Oakland: for sale, apartments, home)

[Chris Kerri]

My husband and I just moved here, from out of state: he for work purposes, me because I married him. We are young, in our late 20's, and have no children. We did some research on the area before the move and thought it wouldn't be too bad. And in most cases, it isn't. We bought a lovely home in a quiet and roomy neighborhood, which we were thrilled to find! The problem, there are no young people around us. We have really nice elderly people who have seen the neighborhood evolve and can tell us some really interesting history about the city, but as far as a shopping buddy, nadda. The same goes for church: very lovely and friendly people, but mostly retired folks with grandkids. I joined some groups there hoping to find close friends with my similar religious views, but the young people don't seem to be able to keep commited and leave before I can get the chance to connect.

I am missing my close friends and family, who I was always doing something with. I was a very active and social person when I was familiar with my surroundings. Now that everything and everyone is new, I am really starting to have a problem with my/our lack of inactivity with peers my/our age. There are alot of days when I wish I could undo the last few major decisions and have been content at home with the familiar. Back then, I couldn't wait to jump head first into the "good life."

I am not a wall-flower but am quickly becoming one, because I just can't find a happy new life that I thought I would be able to find here. Any sensible advice to a shell-shocked newlywed?

[vwscottie]

Use a search engine and look up groups in our area that reflect your interests, look for meeting dates and give it a try.

My fiance and I are attending a meeting next week. It is "supposed" to be a reactionary group whose "supposed" focus is to enrich Frick Park, which we both love. I am going to introduce ourselves and voice a few opinions on how things are or aren't being handled. Another thing we plan to do together is get involved in the election this year.

[londonbarcelona]

Originally Posted by Chris Kerri

My husband and I just moved here, from out of state: he for work purposes, me because I married him. We are young, in our late 20's, and have no children. We did some research on the area before the move and thought it wouldn't be too bad. And in most cases, it isn't. We bought a lovely home in a quiet and roomy neighborhood, which we were thrilled to find! The problem, there are no young people around us. We have really nice elderly people who have seen the neighborhood evolve and can tell us some really interesting history about the city, but as far as a shopping buddy, nadda. The same goes for church: very lovely and friendly people, but mostly retired folks with grandkids. I joined some groups there hoping to find close friends with my similar religious views, but the young people don't seem to be able to keep commited and leave before I can get the chance to connect.

I am missing my close friends and family, who I was always doing something with. I was a very active and social person when I was familiar with my surroundings. Now that everything and everyone is new, I am really starting to have a problem with my/our lack of inactivity with peers my/our age. There are alot of days when I wish I could undo the last few major decisions and have been content at home with the familiar. Back then, I couldn't wait to jump head first into the "good life."

I am not a wall-flower but am quickly becoming one, because I just can't find a happy new life that I thought I would be able to find here. Any sensible advice to a shell-shocked newlywed?

I can understand how frustating that must be. I miss my family too, especially since they are the ones I hang out with most. Since you are so young, how about volunteer work? Or like someone mentioned, google social groups, grab your husband and go! I live in a very young area (waaaaaaaaaaaaaay out there in Venetia) and our neighbors are quite the friendly type. Our whole street gets to together for wine parties, picnics, parties, walks, bunco, all sorts of things. Just walking around we met most of our neighbors.
I don't know what to say if you are in an older neighborhood. I suppose you will have to go our of your comfort area to find someone younger. It'll be a pain in the arse, but probably well worth it.

[Katarina Witt]

I have moved several times and know the feeling. It's not much different in any other city. You might try churches in the growing suburbs (way north and way south) where there will be younger people. Lots of families, but probably lots of childless couples as well.

[fleetiebelle]

If you haven't already done so, check Craigslist (craigslist: pittsburgh classifieds for jobs, apartments, personals, for sale, services, community, and events) There are sections for groups (it's where I found my movie group) and activities, and other people looking for friends in the Strictly Platonic section. There are other sites, too, like meetup.com, and meetin.org.

[MissShona]

Hello and welcome to Pittsburgh!

This metro-region is still laden with an older population. However, the young people that are here, from my experience (from living in two other metro areas) are quite on the activist-side and really a bunch of "go-getters" overall. Depending on your interests, you can find a group of like minded people by taking a gander at craigslist: pittsburgh classifieds for jobs, apartments, personals, for sale, services, community, and events or visiting some of the areas of town frequented by the younger populace like Oakland (which is college student land, but there are many graduate students, so late-20ish people there as well), the Southside (a lot of bars, but some of the coffee shops and restaurants have postings of things going on), Lawrenceville (ditto here for what I said about the Southside) or Squirrel Hill.

If you are into indie music and art, I know a lot about what's going on in those scenes; you could send a PM my way if you're ever looking for something to do.

Also, if you are looking for an easy way to find a lot of different Pittsburgh blogs online (which are often times personal and/or narrow in scope, but it's more comprehensive and easier to find your interests and a way to point you towards the right direction) try Pittsblog .