I’m very public about my obsession with my iPhone. I admit it. I can’t get enough. I got to thinking about who else in the area may have the same obsession. Turns out there’s an app for that! This is how I discovered the phenomenon that is Meetup.

With all of the excitement surrounding social media, Meetup is the perfect blend of behind-the-keyboard and face-to-face. I’ve been having fun exploring parts of the city I may never have known before and have met some really awesome people. It gets me out doing things I may normally not ever do. It’s easy come, easy go as far as picking and choosing how involved I want to be. Their tagline is “Do something; Learn Something; Share Something; Change Something” and I’ve found it to be absolutely true.

I’ve been having a ball on hiking expeditions, happy hour and trivia Meetups so far. Here are a few more groups I’m thinking about checking out in the future:

• The Atlanta Graphic Design Collective on Meetup
• Sky’s the Limit Adventures ATLANTA
• Atlanta Web Design Group
• Georgia Adventurers Group
• Dog hikers of Kennesaw Mountain
• Atlanta Wine & Dine Group
• Atlanta Chocolate Meetup

Just like an app, there really is something for everyone. I have found myself saying, “There’s a Meetup for that!” For example, here’s a few more ‘unique’ groups happening in the ATL area right now:

• The Atlanta Dungeons & Dragons Meetup Group
• Atlanta Firewalking
• Atlanta Jugglers Association
• The North Georgia Pet Chicken Meetup Group
• Cobb County UFO Experiencers
• Hundredth Monkey Sangha

…and the list goes on!

Don’t find what you’re into? You can always become a group organizer for your “OTP Underwater Basket Weavers”. Currently there are 7.2 million members with 46,000 Meetup topics in 45,000 cities registered with the site. A few quotes on their site sum it all up:

“Meetup allows people to find people who would never find each other in the regular world. It’s begun to change interpersonal communication.”

“For instance, if you’re into dressing your cat up like a Star Trek character, you’ll find someone else out there that does the same — it brings people together.”

Meetup’s been a great social networking experience for me so far! If you want to do something, learn something, share something or change something, check it out.