This group is about exploring the riches of Los Angeles while enjoying the company of old and new friends.

There's a dizzying diversity of happenings going on in L.A at any given time, and any number of them might be posted here - events that might include screenings, theatre, music (world/ethnic, folk, rock, classical, Christian, Gospel, etc.), dance, sports, art walks, galleries and museums, spoken word/poetry, interesting restaurants, wine-tastings, visits to botanical gardens, English tea, flea market shopping, lectures, women's/men's events, intimate parties, etc.

Why so many potential things to do?  Because with this group, unlike the way most other groups tend to be structured, these meetups depend on what you feel like doing.  Think of Explore L.A. as a forum or bulletin board in which the members post events they want to do, so that others who are interested can join in.  So my question is: What are you up to?

If, for example, you're already planning on spending an afternoon at the Getty, or taking an L.A. walking tour, or listening to free jazz at the Downtown Biltmore, or attending a 70mm screening of Lawrence of Arabia, or checking out the free Shakespeare at Griffith Park, or the Downtown Artwalk, or that lecture on the history of the North American book trade, or eating Cuban food at Versailles or Korean BBQ at Woo Lae Oak or chicken and waffles at Roscoe's, or hiking on an early Saturday morning, or hosting a wine-tasting event at your apartment - you can post it here so that anyone interested can join you (you'll see that posting events on Meetup.com is very easy)  By posting events that you're already planning on doing, you're almost effortlessly inviting others into your world of experience.  It's even okay to post events that you find interesting that, for whatever reason, you're not able to attend, so that others might become fans, too.  (That said, there's no requirement that members post events; it's perfectly okay to attend events that others post.)

Hint #1: Whenever possible, try to include hang-out time before or after the event so that people can chat and get to know each other.  For example, consider scheduling a time of dinner or drinks at a nearby cafe (use Yelp!) to either precede or follow the play, gallery opening, concert, or knitting class you're posting.

Hint #2: When you post events, do it without expectations of any particular number of people attending.  From experience, I can tell you that the reality is: sometimes, several people will attend events you post, sometimes a few, sometimes none.  It depends on people's schedules, prior commitments, and of course their interests.  So just post your event and let however many people are going to come, come.

Personal note: My inspiration for creating this group stemmed from the fact that I attend a wonderful church with a large congregation of interesting, eclectic people who have a vast variety of interests.  Explore L.A. should make getting together, getting to know each other, and fellowshipping easy.  That said, all from ideological bents are warmly welcome to join!

Finally, please be a bit patient as things get underway with the group.  This group officially began the evening of December 3rd, 2011, at my home office computer, and will take a bit of time to build momentum.  If Explore L.A. seems interesting to you, please forward info about it to your friends and community group leaders.

And now, here's to having a great time of fellowship!

Steve