I’ve been living in the suburbs just outside Austin for about eight months now, and I’m really starting to feel the isolation of not having a local social circle. I work remotely, so I don’t get the natural office interactions, and I’m at the point where I need to be more intentional about finding community meetups for new friends. The problem is, I’m on a tight budget—between rent and student loans, I can only really afford free or very low-cost events.
I tried a couple of things already that seemed promising but fell flat. First, I went to a board game night at a local shop called Dragons Lair that cost ten dollars to join, but the group was already really cliquey and I spent most of the time just watching. Then I tried a hiking group from Meetup.com that was free, but the pace was way too fast for me—though I’ll admit I’m not exactly in peak shape, so that might’ve been partly my fault. I also looked into a weekly trivia night at a nearby brewery, but the cover charge plus drinks would’ve run me about twenty dollars, and I balked at the cost.
How do you all find the cheap or free events that actually have a welcoming vibe for newcomers, especially when your schedule is limited to weekday evenings and you don’t want to commit to a paid membership or a recurring class?
I tried a couple of things already that seemed promising but fell flat. First, I went to a board game night at a local shop called Dragons Lair that cost ten dollars to join, but the group was already really cliquey and I spent most of the time just watching. Then I tried a hiking group from Meetup.com that was free, but the pace was way too fast for me—though I’ll admit I’m not exactly in peak shape, so that might’ve been partly my fault. I also looked into a weekly trivia night at a nearby brewery, but the cover charge plus drinks would’ve run me about twenty dollars, and I balked at the cost.
How do you all find the cheap or free events that actually have a welcoming vibe for newcomers, especially when your schedule is limited to weekday evenings and you don’t want to commit to a paid membership or a recurring class?
