What fun!

I wasn't going to go.  But something inside of me pushed me out the door.  I don't even know how to explain it.  It's a force that has pushed me to board a train to New York City, walk over grates, take an improv class, schedule my own gatherings with new friends, and so many other things.  

Tonight, my church choir director invited everyone he knew in my city to stop in at one of his favorite bars between 5 and 8.  It was a venue I had never heard of.  I figured there would be a few church people there but I also knew he ran in a lot of other circles so it would probably be filled with people I didn't know.  And it's cold here, most people I know are trying to hibernate in this weather.  And the bar is located a mile and a half away from my home - I really didn't want to go find my car and then worry about how much I drank before driving home.  So I can't tell you how much I wanted to just brew another pot of tea, cuddle up under one of my Grandma's quilts, and stay in.

But I didn't stay in.  I put on my shoes.  I bundled up.  And at about 4:40 p.m., I pushed myself out the door.

My choir director introduced me to a few people when I arrived, I found a drink, and then I sat down with a small group from church who slowly rotated in and out over the next hour or so.  But at some point as the evening wore on, I found myself alone eating dinner from the food truck and sipping another drink for just a few moments before my choir director ushered over an interesting lesbian couple who sat down and started up a conversation with me.  A gay couple who had sat down next to me quickly got pulled into our conversation.  I quickly learned I was meeting local celebrities as I found out they were back to back queens at a local event the last two years.  I was fascinated by it all but a bit flabbergasted at how I had managed to find myself in the middle of people I had never met before!

After an experience like this, I so welcomed the walk home because so much energy had built up that I need the walk to release.  I think back to an image of me laughing out loud as I cross an intersection and continue down the sidewalk and I marvel.

What if I'm not quite so introverted?  What if I just had a husband who drained so much of my energy, I just always felt the need to hide?  If I was truly introverted, wouldn't an event like this have drained me, not built up energy?  I don't even know what to make of that.