Among Friends

[Anita Hug]

I love being alone also. My friends and family often try to get me out because they think it will be good for me. The problem is, the things I like to do out of the house, are not the same things they like.   I'd rather go to a quiet peaceful lake with a peanut butter sandwich... than have lunch at a restaurant. I'd rather have iced tea in my back yard with a friend than go to a movie or shopping with them.

I don't try to get everyone else to spend more time alone for their own good! I wish they would stop trying to make me do things I do not enjoy! 

I'm not antisocial!  I really do enjoy having company. I prefer smaller gathering to larger parties.. And as much as I enjoy the company of my loved ones, after a while, I'm ready for them to go so I can take a bubble bath and read a book, or do something creative. 

[Desertdi]

They think I'm "cheap" because I live in a modest house.     Well, I think THEY are flashy, flamboyant, and I know for a fact, overextended.

[MyGirlsMom]

The fact that I love to shop on line, anything from sweets to furniture.

[Mary Bailey]

I'm another that enjoys being alone.  DH & I are both homebodies.  Holiday get togethers are enough.  Otherwise I go begrudgingly, just so they will leave me alone for a while.

eta: 

I'm happy after I get there and always glad I went. I love my family and we have no issues.  My job as CSR is taking at least 100 calls a day.  I'm all talked out. 

[151949]

I have always enjoyed alone time too , which made DH & I a perfect matchup. He had to travel for his job and I would have days off during the week. Now we are both retired and it just drives me crazy - he is right here 24/7.I get NO alone time and can't seem to make him understand I need some time just home without him.I too am not adapting well to the change. I just want a tiny little bit of peace and quiet.

[corita]

         Well, I also like to be alone!  I often say...I'm alone, but not lonely!! I start getting fidgety when people stay at my house for more than several days.

         The other thing is...I like to be on time!!  Makes me burn a bit ...when friends show up to an apt/event/lunch/meeting  from fifteen to thirty minutes late!!  Most of the time, they don't even seem to be aware of the tardiness or just make excuses!

[happygolfcartrider]

I love my friends, I am outgoing and Happy. I try to be a good person. What people do not inderstand about me is the fact that I nor my husband wants to stay in anyones home when we travel. We prefer a hotel. If we can't afford a hotel we do not go.

I too like my alone and quiet time but since DH retired I don't get much of either anymore.

[CareBears]

I spend almost all of my time alone, I no longer socialize with anyone except 1 friend on the telephone,I have been hurt over and over by so many people (including family) that I am not willing to risk who I am for anyone ever again, at this point in my life I feel that I need to protect myself for fear of just disappearing, no one understands this, but those are the same people who have hurt me and want to control me to fit their version of who I should be?

I do love spending time with my husband, he is the one person who accepts my quirks and never judges me when I am at my lowest points, however, his job requires many hours per week, so I have learned to appreciate my own company.

[hckynut]

@151949

I think a majority of those retired do want alone time, from humans, and their spouse. We have a big home with lots of rooms, and plenty of furry ones to keep each of us company.

We had a home theater room/gym before much of it was destroyed by water, which caused thousands of $$$ of expensive equipment to be ruined. We could be very much alone by choosing which room we preferred. Our beautiful scenic 4 season patio room, or a full blown 110" screen tv screen in also a once beautiful setting.

Now we have our patio room/65" curved 4k tv with Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound, or our master bedroom with a 40" HD tv set, also with a surround sound system. Smaller room/smaller tv screen, but still better than most others options.

You have no separate rooms in which to be alone? We each have a tablet/smart phones, and other options of things to do any time we want "alone time". My wife likes to be on the move since she retired, and I could not care less, if I never left our home.

I too am a "people person", as another poster mentioned, and I have been all of my adult life. That however does not mean I need them to filo any void in my life. Around people, as was also posted by someone, my wife also says that I have never met a stranger.

Unless your home is very limited in rooms, and/or space, you cannot find some alone time in your own home? If not, I guess your are stuck with an option. Be around your DH 24/7, or find your alone time somewhere else. Maybe a quiet library? Just a thought.

All I got 4 ya

hckynut(john)

[Hooty]

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@Mary Bailey wrote:

I'm another that enjoys being alone.  DH & I are both homebodies.  Holiday get togethers are enough.  Otherwise I go begrudgingly, just so they will leave me alone for a while.

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@Mary Bailey, even holidays are quiet with us, except when the grands come over!  I guess many people would call us anti-social, but we enjoy our own company and do not have to be surrounded by other people, just the two of us and our dog, Max!