For someone who is religious or at least not antagonistic to religion, I think a church is one of the best social groups, especially if the pastor is good.
Good observation. I almost wish I could be more open to the whole religious scene, because there can be a very positive social aspect with that group, but I just can't.
OTOH, DW does volunteering through her Church, ans she is sometimes exposed to some petty in-fighting and control-freakish, ego battles that would have me just saying 'I quit'.
Groups that are based on hobby interests may also offer friendship, but my main experience is with ballroom dancing and these people are dancers, and if the focus of a get together won't include dancing, they are rarely interested. IMO, same is true of mountain climbers, skiers and sometimes bicyclists.
I've experienced that too. Many of these people are so focused on their hobby, that is pretty much all they do. I like to dabble - a little interest here, a little there. Just taste everything, not make it my meal, day in day out.
Drinkers can be very inclusive, but you had better not go on the wagon.
Ha
By far, the best hobby group I've been involved with is my beer home-brew group. It seems like all these guys (and a few gals) have a wide range of interests, and they are all interesting to talk with. Every one is a pretty serious food person as well, food-beer pairings, recipes, cheese making, sausage making, komboucha, gardening (some are growing their own hops). And beer involves history, geography, chemistry, biology - it just goes on and on.
I know you don't do beer due to keeping low-carb (though there are a few craft-beers that are probably pretty low carb - a Saison is very, very dry - I doubt there are much/many residual carbs there). The Saison that I brewed finished at 1.002, and a dry wine finishes ~ 0.990 ~ 1.000. A more typical beer finishes ~ 1.012~1.016. Water is 1.000, sugar is heavier than water, alcohol is lighter than water, so the final specific gravity gives you an idea of how much residual sugar remains in the beverage (though you really need to know the original sugar content to know the amount of alcohol versus the amounts of sugar).
Anyway, a wine making or whisky/whiskey appreciation club is likely to be more open than other hobbies. Though many of the beer club members are far more 'intense' than I am about it, but they still seem to have plenty of outside interests. Or maybe the alcohol just loosens people up to talking about other things?
-ERD50
