So I don't really know how to ask this question because I can't quite explain what I really mean or want to ask.
I am now 30 years old and I couldn't be in a better situation than currently. My job is fun and providing me enough money to live a happy life and pay my own built house (I am a nurse). I have way more free time than lets say even in my childhood. I remember coming home from school and feeling anxiety cause of exams. I remember nursing school, it was hell for me.
Now all I have to do is go to work and when my shift is done I am off and can do whatever I want whenever I want. I don't have to ask parents to drive me somewhere, I have my own money, I have my own house, I can play video games all day... and still, I don't know why but nostalgia is real.
I am not even sure if my feelings are real. I can only give silly examples like coming home from school, logging into world of warcraft with friends and having a blast. But I don't think it was like that. We were all just in skype and everyone was minding their own business in that game. We had good laughs though.
I don't know. My life should be so much better than it was 15 years ago but I miss the 2000s era. It all just felt so different. I remember the hot summers going to the lake with friends.
Now? I don't know. Maybe it is because it seems like I am the only one that has so much "time" and no one really joins anymore. While I have a wife and no kids and most of my friends don't even have a wife yet (so no kids....) they still are somehow busy and don't go to the lake anymore, don't play video games anymore, don't do anything. I actually wonder what they do all day.
Life felt more exciting back then. Maybe because I had goals and now I am "done"? But this should feel good. I am happy that I am "done". House, wife, job. Those were the things I wanted back then and now I am more than happy to have those things.
I feel you. I basically fell off the face of the earth for like 10 years. I was fighting just to survive and the only thing on my mind was to get to the next day.
I was too tired to even think about fun.
Now that I am out of that funk, I worked on getting back to socializing. I feel like a lot of peers I had before are in a similar funk that I was. Just surviving. Sometimes it is because of bad decision making. But usually, not... They did their best and it wasn't good enough to both pay the bills and have some time to enjoy themselves.
You might be able to hang out with folks that have a similar amount of free time as you. It doesn't have to be people you grew up with. You have a great opportunity where your own life is in a good spot, so you should have more time to pursue connections with people you would enjoy.
Good luck out there!