DaveJ - do you have any "rules" on the sep - as in, is it "time to figure ourselves out and we'll revisit in 3 months" type of thing? Or is it "separation before a D"? Subtle difference but there is a difference there. There's a book called "Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay" about "Controlled Separation." It tends to lean towards staying apart unfortunately, but it's nice in that it gives you some guidelines. I'd be cautious about giving it to her as it'll feel like control or pressure, but it might be a good read for you.
What things are you interested in or have you been curious about? See if there are any meetups about it, and you could go. I know it's a little intimidating at first but I've gone to a number of meetups in my area and have really had a lot of fun. A few critical things to look for are make sure they aren't selling anything (some of the wine tasting ones are actually sales pitches for in-home wine purchase parties, for example). Also look at their recent events and see how they are rated, and if people are showing up to the events. Especially at first I'd recommend finding a pretty active group with large attendance - it can be scary enough going to a meetup the first time, but it's worse if no one else shows up.
That said - it's been a GREAT way for me to meet new people and do new things. I highly recommend it!
I see lots of them in Phoenix are singles ones, which can be tricky. I did join one and went to a few dinners and movies with the group - but it was very clearly labeled as NOT a dating group, just a "tired of waiting around for the phone to ring on a Friday night" group. Most of the people in the group were clearly not interested in any type of R, actually (many newly D'd and sooo not interested in dating). So you could try one of those if an event coming up appeals to you.
And I posted the Phoenix "top" list above. I'd start on the right hand side with the "largest" groups to find ones that are more established. A special interest one is great if you have hobbies etc. Otherwise here are a few "general" ones that I thought looked intriguing:
Mingle and Munch Bunch: http://diningout.meetup.com/315/ (this one keeps their info private so you have to get permission to be added to the group before you can see the calendar)
Another social networking one: (it says it's "active couples and singles" - kind of a weird title but they're highly rated) http://couples.meetup.com/302/
And there's much more... just wanted to throw those ideas out there because I have had such good luck with meetup.com, and I know the site can be a little intimidating at first.
Me 35, H 38; Together 13.5 yrs, M 7 Bomb 1 10/07/06 Sep'd 1/14/07 - 4/15 Piecing: 4/07 - 9/07 Bomb 3 10/11/07: Never loved you, let's separate 2/08 slowly improving 7/08 Piecing (7/25/08 rings back on!!) Current thread
