One of the reasons I moved to Richmond was for a greater sense of community. I loved living in DC and had a strong sense of pride for the city, but at its heart, DC is transient. Most of my friends slowly migrated out of the city – first to nearby suburbs when they had children, then more farther afield as jobs carried them and their spouses to other cities and states. For those who stayed in DC, the addition of vacation homes meant they weren't around as often.
In any case, as I started to see retirement creeping up in my (verrrrry) peripheral vision, I realized that I wanted to be somewhere that had a hopping cultural scene AND a rich, stable friend group. I also realized that making friends later in life wouldn't be as easy as it was in my 20s, so if I wanted to be surrounded by good friends before I'm using a walker, I'd need to start actively working to meet people NOW.
I say all of this explain why, Wednesday night, as I sat in a lawn chair listening to a porch concert, I had an overwhelming sense of satisfaction with my move. Let me tell serve up a summary of this past week so you can see why I'm so happy here...
Sunday, 4pm: I met up with my dear friend Kelly (whom I originally met through the Georgetown coaching program back in 2014) for what we thought was going to be a Jazz Concert in Byrd Park... but it turns out I had the date wrong (by a week!) so we just ended up tossing a blanket and catching up for an hour.
Sunday, 8pm: I ran over to Dogwood Dell, where – as part of the annual Arts in the Park program – "Something Rotten" (a Broadway musical that I first saw at The National in DC a few years back) was playing. I didn't know how long I would stay (since 8pm is often my bedtime!) so I didn't bother inviting anyone to join me. Not to worry – I was seated next to a nice couple who chatted with me until the curtain lifted. It was a quality production that rivaled the touring company I saw in DC!
Monday, 9am: I met up with friends at Bryan Park to play pickleball for an hour before work.
Tuesday, 6pm: I stepped out onto my front porch and saw my neighbor, Paige, out rocking her four month old baby. I went over to visit with her. Within minutes, we were sitting there with her husband and neighbors from two other houses, sharing a bottle of wine.
Wednesday, 7am: As I finished watering the flowers on my front porch, my next door neighbor returned from walking her dog. We had a quick visit and I offered to babysit her son next week so she and her husband could go to a concert. As we were talking, another neighbor walked up in his pajamas with a mug of tea for a morning porch visit.
Wednesday, 8am: I went to Bryan Park again to play pickleball with two new people I met a few weeks back. At 9am, my other pickleball friends, Paula and Roxanne, showed up to join us.
Wednesday, 6pm: I walked to Byrd Park for my tennis clinic with Coach Victor and two other women who were new to me. We all traded numbers so we could meet up to play some other time together. (I started lessons back in March and have met a dozen women who I see off-and-on twice a week for Doubles and Clinic. A few of us have met up for concerts and pool time outside of tennis.)
Wednesday, 7:30pm: I went to Michelle and Roxane's house for a porch concert. I originally met them a couple months back at a Coming Together Virginia meeting and invited them over one night. They repaid the favor by inviting me to their porch concert – a really talented musician (Gabriel Wheaton) who is touring the US giving concerts. Check out this video:
Thursday, 7am: I walked over to Byrd Park with my neighbor, David, to play tennis with his friend Rob, and him. While we were playing, completely uncoordinated, Coach Victor showed up to offer some encouragement.
Friday, 6pm: I walked over to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts for "Rhythm on the River" – a weekend-long festival celebrating music in Richmond. This event was held in their outdoor Sculpture Garden, and I joined my friends Roxane and Michelle and their friends who were down from Fairfax. While there I also got to visit with two neighbors from my block who stopped by with their dogs.
Saturday, 9am: Tennis at Byrd Park with Coach Victor and three women I've played with before.
Saturday, 5pm: Alan arrived for our regular Saturday night date!
OK. I realize this is NOT a pithy post and is more like an accounting ledger, but I've had a lot of friends ask me what Richmond's like and if I'm meeting anyone. Here's hoping I've answered THAT question!
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