making friends at 47!!

[whatisforteamum]

me again im on hols this week and with the husband deciding his golf was more important than us all getting away ive had such a boring week.
I ve said before my life has been all work no play..i work shifts and when im not at work im doing chores and cooking for the kids.THis has been fine for ten yrs.However now the kids do their own thing and so does the husband ( or he is asleep as heart pills make him tired).This week it has occurred to me that if i had female friends i could meet up with them for a giggle.i have been invited out loads by the girls i work with and we do have a great laugh but they are in their 20,s.
so i would like to know how to meet people at the same life stage as me.I had considered evening classes but with shift work i couldnt do anything on a regular basis.I cant spend all my life at work just so i dont feel lonely or invisible,any ideas ladies?

Any sport that you'd fancy doing, that you could take up at any time shifts allowed? You might meet folk who go the same time every day / week, in which case you might take a few days / weeks to catch up again, or you might meet someone as random as you.

Would your shifts allow you to make it to perhaps 75% of classes or clubs i.e. It'd be worth signing up for something that you could some or most of even if not all? Or a drop-in type club / group, whether for a new or existing craft or interest?
Is charity work of any kind your sort of thing? Again, you just offer yourself up when you're free, doesn't need to always be the same time every day / week. Depending on the "charity" either fellow volunteers or charity "users" are potential friends.

And what do other folk from your work do? If they work similar shifts, presumably they've got the same issues for committing to something regular? So, where are they acquiring friends from :-)

Look on the site" Meetup" there are lots of groups in many areas of the Country/ World. I've joined several and have met lots of new friends.
I'm in my 50s. I've even got my husband in a few groups as well.

Hi the people i work with are mostly 20/21 YR OLD singles so they go out for drinks meals etc.THey are all very lovely but i would feel a bit odd tagging along with them.
Sad to say i hate sport watching or doing but maybe i should sign up for crafts or sewing as i was a very keen embroiderer when i was younger and you are right if i miss the odd one it is still better than nothing at all. thanks for your replies.I work part time but some of my colleagues do 50 + in a very busy enviroment so freetime is spent sleeping :)

I've just joined my local Meetup group (meetup.com) and I went bowling with them on Sunday. Real mix of people from 20's up to 60's (I'm 45). They do loads of really different things e.g. they are meeting for drinks tonight, lunches next week, climbing wall, walks, bike rides, badminton etc and you just dip into what ever you fancy!

I have loads of friends but just fancied extending my social life a bit more!

I took up rock climbing and archery as the centres are always open. Its amazing fun:) I meet people of all ages and have made already a couple of friends for life:) and its a total new lease of life. Plus its all year round due to indoor climbing centres.

I'm going to take up chess as well. I'll be crap at it, I expect, but you never know.

Have a look at interesting talks and things nearby. It takes some googling, and visiting museums, art galleries and such, but there is always something- if you're into technology for instance, try buzz feed for meet ups. Just think of things you might like, like archeology in your area, they'll be talks and stuff. You don't have to sign up!

If you like embroidery, contact the v&a, and find out about learning to do it with gold and silver thread. Its fascinating ( am hopeless myself!) but its a niche interest and you could end up repairing the cloaks of ancient kings:)

Failing that:) the local sewing shop will have a board:)