Comment on Did it really used to be common for guys to go to a bar every night like in Cheers or The Simpsons?

SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

• Chronographs@lemmy.zip ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

  I wish we could have third places that don’t involve fucking up your body.

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  • litchralee@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Even with NA (low/non-alcoholic) beverages, it’d be nice to have third places that don’t come with an obligation to spend money.

    To be clear, I’m not asking for places that ban spending money, but there are third places like parks (eg NYC Central Park) that are destinations in their own right, but one can also spend money there, such as buying stuff and having a picnic on the grass, or bringing board games and meeting up with friends. Or strolling the grounds astride rental e-bikes. Or free yoga.

    Where there’s an open space, people make use of it. But we don’t really have much of that in the USA, that isn’t tied up as a parking lot, an open-space preserve (where people shouldn’t tred upon to protect wildlife), or are beyond reasonable distances (eg BLM land in the middle of Nevada).

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    • nimpnin@sopuli.xyz ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      Parks and libraries are really nice. Most other third places seem to want you to spend money, that’s my experience here in northern Europe anyway.

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      • merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        Also, in places with significant winters (including Northern Europe) parks aren’t an option in winter.

        Northern Europe seems like the kind of place that would realize this is a problem and invent some kind of community building which was open in the winter and had a shared kitchen, a stock of board games, a court for indoor sports, etc. That’s certainly not going to happen in the US.

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    • captainlezbian@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      Everywhere I’ve lived in the US has had plenty of public parks. As a teenager I’d hang out with my friends in them. Hell I’ve been to big community picnics at a park.

      The thing is it’s easier to hang out online all the time and people aren’t looking to socialize at parks when there aren’t events.

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      • last_philosopher@lemmy.world ⁨6⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

        The problem is in parks everyone is too spread out to talk to strangers. There needs to be a park with a bar to bring everyone together.

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      • litchralee@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        I’d say the qualities of the average American park leaves much to be desired, when compared to NYC Central Park, San Diego’s Balboa Park, or SF’s Presidio.

        In suburban areas, the municipal park tends to be a monoculture of grass plus maybe a playground, a parking lot, and if lucky, a usable bathroom. Regional parks are often nicer, with amenities like pickleball courts or a BMX park, though asking for benches (not rocks or concrete verges, but actually bench seats) and shade might be a stretch.

        My point is that the USA has fewer parks and public squares than it ought to. I don’t mean just a place to go jogging or to push a stroller along, but a proper third space where people actively spend time and create value at. Where street vendors congregate because that’s also where people congregate. A place that people – voluntarily, not by necessity – would like to be. A destination in its own right, where even tourists will drop by and take in the air, the sights, and the social interactions.

        Meanwhile, some parts of the USA actively sabotage their parks, replacing normal park furniture with versions that are actively hostile to homeless people, while alienating anyone that just wants an armrest as they sit down. Other municipalities spend their Parks & Rec funds on the bare minimum of parks, lots that are impractically tiny. Why? Because a public park can be used to exclude registered sex offenders from a neighborhood, leading to the ludicrous situation where whole cities are an exclusion zone. Regardless of one’s position on how to punish sex offenses, the denial of housing and basic existence is, at best, counterproductive.

        So I reiterate: the USA might have a good quantity of parks, but not exactly good quality of parks. People will socialize online unless they are given actual options to socialize elsewhere. And IRL options would build value locally, whereas online communities only accrue to the benefit of the platforms (eg Facebook, WhatsApp) they run on.

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    • Flax_vert@feddit.uk ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      Church

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      • JeSuisUnHombre@lemmy.zip ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        We need church without religion

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      • SomeAmateur@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        People downvote, but you’re not wrong and it’s probably the most common example in rural areas

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      • Warl0k3@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        Even if you find one where there isn’t an emphasis on tithes or donation, that’s not exactly a space set up for public socializing. It’s a private space, used by a dedicated and defined group, for socializing within that group. Outsiders may be welcome, but they’re only welcome within that structure.

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    • HubertManne@piefed.social ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      Are you talking more indoors as there are a lot of outdoor stuff but only the library and churches are indoor stuff I can think of and in the one case you need to keep quiet so not great for socializing and in the other you have to follow wierd precepts or whatnot.

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  • skulblaka@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Honestly I’m cool with fucking up my body to have a good time, I just wish it didn’t cost me $200 for the privelege.

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  • Okokimup@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Check your library. They do all kinds of activities.

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    • Chronographs@lemmy.zip ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      I should tbh

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  • usrtrv@sh.itjust.works ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Hacker/makerspace

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  • Cevilia@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Public libraries are great third places. Larger ones often have classes, groups, and social clubs. And you’ll meet like-minded people just by becoming a regular.

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  • Usernamealreadyinuse@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Your local gym? CrossFit box? Football/soccer club? Community centre? Library? Outdoor? Scouts?

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    • Chronographs@lemmy.zip ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      Community center and library sure, I wouldn’t really consider the rest a third space.

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      • howrar@lemmy.ca ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        Depending on the gym, some are a lot more third-spacey than others. I’ve been to a smaller gym where people just hang around after their workouts to socialize, with occasional impromptu dinner outings when the gym closed for the night. I miss that place. You still meet people at bigger commercial gyms, but it’s not the same.

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  • Nastybutler@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    For the non religious, that’s where clubs like the Shriners, or Lions come in. Social clubs that don’t revolve entirely around alcohol

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  • danc4498@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    May I introduce you to your lord and savior Jesus Christ? He’s got a third place for you.

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    • Chronographs@lemmy.zip ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      N o

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      • danc4498@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        😂

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  • BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    It used to be the Mall. It was always a place to hang out, meet friends, window shop, eat, see a movie, etc.

    When I was a kid, the local mall even included the local library. I thought that was a great idea, but I never saw another mall with a library.

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• danc4498@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

  I’ve never heard of a concept of a third place. Seems like everybody should have one.

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