Princeton Packet

Out from behind the computer, people meet face to face.

Time was, people feared the Internet would be the end of society as we know it. With all of our needs met online and no need to socialize, we would all become pale-skinned hermits behind our computer screens.
   They could not have been more wrong.
   Far from eliminating the need to socialize and meet people, the Internet has created a new and easy way to create communities virtually, and then in reality.
   There are multiple web sites set up for the purpose of meeting people with common interests and goals. Yahoo! Groups (http://groups.yahoo.com) allows you to create an online group based on any interest or demographic.
   In a similar vein is the Meetup web site (http://www.meetup.com). Tagged as "Groups of people ... living near you ... sharing an interest ... and meeting regularly," Meetup encourages its members to get together on a monthly basis.
   On either site, a quick search allows you to find groups that match your interests, and with the click of a button you can find local stock market connoisseurs, scrapbookers or outdoors enthusiasts. You name it, it's out there, and if not, you create it. Voila! Instant access, instant community.
   Take Prashant Palsokar, for instance. A few months ago, the 31-year-old Plainsboro resident created the Princeton Outdoors Yahoo! Group. He knew a few people in the area who enjoyed hiking and canoeing, but liked the idea of an online space to communicate and bring more people together.
   "You can't just wander around and meet someone here," he said. "There are lots of people out there, but they don't have an outlet. They do want to get out there and, say, ride a bike or something, but they don't know people if they are new to the area, or even if they've been here a while."
   Now Mr. Palsokar can go online anytime and post a message if he feels like going for a hike or canoeing down the Delaware & Raritan Canal. He stressed that even though he created the group, he is not the only one in charge. "It's up to the members to initiate things," he said.

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   Kellie Nevin is no stranger to meeting people online. Five years ago, the then-34-year-old "fell in love online and moved here" from Australia. Since then, the East Windsor resident has used Internet sites like Meetup and Yahoo! Groups regularly to create a social network nearly 10,000 miles from her native Down Under.
   Ms. Nevin is a member of Mercer County Croppers, a scrapbooking Meetup group organized by Dionne Jewell of Hamilton. The group meets once a month to share their ideas and techniques, including an all-night scrapbooking extravaganza on Aug. 26 and 27.
   "I found the group through Meetup," said Ms. Nevin. "I did a search for scrapbooking. I'm actually a member of three scrapbooking Meetup groups."
   "All we do is talk," said Ms. Jewell, as she worked on her latest masterpiece. "We sit and socialize, and show each other new techniques. I have met so many good friends through scrapbooking."
   For the overnight scrapbooking event, long tables were set up and overflowing with colorful paper, special scissors and books of ideas. The members of Mercer County Croppers, typically in their 30s and 40s, create bonds and relationships through their meetups with people they would otherwise never meet.
   "I knew nobody, and everybody is friendly and helpful," said Ann Martin, who attended the scrapbooking meet up with her daughter, Marilene. "I could never do this at home. I need people who share the same passion that I have. They inspire me."
   Online communities are not limited to people interested in doing a particular activity. Sometimes groups are more interested in sharing knowledge and learning from each other than they are about actively pursuing a hobby.
   Owen Leach, a 59-year-old retired market researcher from Princeton Borough, is the organizer of the Investor's Business Daily Meetup group.
   "This is not a substitute for a singles' bar," he said, "Not in this case. We're serious people, mostly in their 50s and 60s, who sit around and discuss investments."
   The group meets monthly at the Lawrence Public Library to talk about Investor's Business Daily, a financial newspaper.
   "We don't spend a great deal of time getting to know everybody's life story. People come and go as their investment needs change," said Mr. Leach. And then, laughing, he added, "So far, no dates, no marriages. And if you could see us, you'd know why."
   Of course, some groups are more focused on simply creating friendships (and, yes, meeting that special someone) than they are on pursuing a particular interest or discussing a particular topic.
   New Jersey Young Professionals (NJYP, to its members) began as a Yahoo! Group in February of 2004 when Laura Occhipinti moved from Bergen to Somerset with "the intention to make some friends." Since its debut in northern New Jersey, the group's membership has exploded to nearly 4,000 members. Events are held regularly in the Princeton area, including monthly happy hours at Big Fish in MarketFair and a recent wine tasting at Mediterra in Palmer Square.
   While the group is incredibly active online (evidenced by the number of e-mails that flood the inbox of anyone brave enough to join in on the online discussion), members regularly break away from their Internet connections to forge actual connections, and have multiple events each week all over New Jersey.
   "We're very online-based, but we're about getting out from behind the computer and meeting face to face," said Ms. Occhipinti.
   So there you have it, the Internet, boon to social lives everywhere. Your biggest worry will no longer be figuring out what to do with your spare time, but figuring out how to keep up with your active and busy life. No worries, though — there's bound to be an online group devoted to just such a dilemma. And, if not, you can always start one.

Photo by Frank Wojciechowski

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