Tried a new knitting group

After hearing all kinds of great stories from others about knitting groups that they attend, I've been a little jealous, and looking for a knitting group in my area. And it looks like I finally found one! Last night I went to a "Come Sit and Knit" group that's close to where I work, as in less than half a mile and about a 1-minute drive. (I could have walked, except it was nighttime and I didn't want to). I found them through meetup.com, which isn't just knitting or fiber arts related. I ended up joining a couple different groups, some of which aren't that close to me, but this is the first event I attended.

I enjoyed it. Despite the fact that I was the only newbie (to the group) and pretty much everyone else knew pretty much everyone else, folks were friendly and pretty welcoming. Our hostess even had pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and let's face it, I'm pretty much going to feel friendly to anyone who gives me a rocking chair to knit in and then offers me pie! There were about 6 other knitters there, all women, diverse ages as far as I could tell, and it seems diverse skill levels and years knitting.

I'm often amazed at what a great connector knitting is. I'm sitting amidst of group of strangers, in the basement of a woman I'd never met before, happily showing off my half-finished gardenias for the tote I'm still trying to complete, eating pie, and chatting about who's making what. And it never occurs to me that I maybe shouldn't feel comfortable, these people being strangers to me.

What is this power of sticks and string? I can't think it's just me who automatically assumes someone is approachable just because she (or he) is knitting.