The "Real World" ... or is it?

I haven’t spoken a single word today. My vocal chords are literally feeling stale. Why the sudden quietness? It’s simply because I’ve got nobody to talk to. I live alone and don’t know anybody beyond the first name. This is not to say that I sat around watching TV all day (that’s scheduled for tomorrow). No, today was filled with such excitement as laundry, going to the library for homework, and working out at the gym. Heck, I even read a book for fun. I feel that it was one of my more productive Saturdays, but it still feels like something’s missing.

I’ve never lived alone so that’s also an adjustment. But grad school certainly makes it tough to meet people. I only have class with history students and the bulk of them are in their late 20s or older and already have their own lives, friends and relationships. Getting buddy-buddy with undergrads that I’m teaching would just be plain weird. Bumping into them at the bars is out of the question, at least until I know their faces well enough to avoid them. That basically means that in the city of beer I have to avoid the bars. Life can suck.

Is this what the “real world" is like? Or am I somehow missing something? I certainly hope it’s the second option. If this is the “real world” I’m definitely inventing a time machine and going back to when I was 10. At least then my vocal chords would get some use.