[amonith]

Not OP, but most of the people I know above 30 don't "go out" on weekday evenings nor regular weekends tbh. Even people without kids. Various trips and meets in friends' houses during the day (usually Sunday) is the main form of socializing.

[vladvasiliu]

I'm in the "over 30 without kids" category. I used to do the go to bed / wake up early thing. Used to be great for the same reasons OP mentions.

Then I found there actually were things I wanted to do on weekdays. These tend to happen later in the evening, like 8-9 PM. Think taking up some sport / dance / other kind of class. Clubs usually meet in the evenings, too.

In my neck of the woods, people usually start work around 9:30 and get off around 6:30 - 7. You basically need one hour to get around town, so you can't reasonably hold an event earlier than 8 and expect any amount of people to show up.

[rakoo]

And that's without mentioning participating in NGOs, collectives, unions, or dare I say activism.

The current system is not built for free time, it is built for work time and if you're lucky you can shove some quality time with your kids between your employer and your sleep but that's optional.

If we didn't work so much, used all the producittvity gains to actually work less as was promised, this wouldn't even be a discussion, but alas.

[tnel77]

For the most part, going out just sounds awful. The parking, the people, the price for mediocre drinks. I’m good lol.

[v-erne]

But have you really tried any? :)

Because I go out regularly and does not have any problems with parking (uber / public trans. / choosing places with plenty of parking generalny solves this headache) , the people (you know that you can choose who you meet), prices (free meetups rules) and mediocre drinks (not drinking is an option ,but if somehow not, craft beers seems to work)

[tnel77]

I think it depends on a variety of factors. The given city, day of the week, popularity of the establishment, etc. Going to a great brewery in Columbus on a Wednesday is a great time. Going out to a super packed bar on a Friday night in Los Angeles is a different experience.