52 New Friends

First of all, I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for this endeavor.   Last Wednesday night, I asked my Facebook friends for referrals of people I might not already know.   I figured this was a safe way to meet new friends but frankly, I wasn’t sure how it would go.   Apparently, I struck a chord.   As of today, my blog has had almost 500 pageviews with numerous friends approaching me about potential friend referrals.   One of those was a gentleman named Kurt.   Kurt and I were part of a network marketing company almost ten years ago.   Every now and then I will see something from him pop up in my Facebook feed but he is one of those friends who would have probably disappeared into obscurity if it wasn’t for social media.   He said:   “I have a friend named Melissa who would love to make a new friend.”   So I messaged Melissa.   Neither of us was working on Friday afternoon so I suggested we grab some coffee. ...

Last fall I had a revelation.   Something wonderful happened to me…and I had no one to share it with. I am a forty-two year old, divorced, childless woman with a family that has done a very good job at alienating themselves from me.   If life were a big, patchwork quilt, I feel like my portion is a single, solitary patch that has been left on the floor and forgotten.   And in quiet moments, I am lonely.   I’m embarrassed to admit it but sometimes, I even feel sorry for myself.   Silence gives you plenty of time to pick apart all your flaws.   Over the past two years, I’ve done a lot of online dating but frankly, I think the over-forty-and-single category needs more therapy than they do dates.   I’ll even include myself in that observation.   And then, a few weeks ago, I went to a charity walk for suicide prevention.   I told myself I was there to support other people but as I stood in the crowd of nearly two thousand people w...