Lincoln, NE isn't a bad place to live, considering the fact that people are yelling things like "Gooooooo, biggggggg, reddddddd!" all the time.

No, she was in Iraq the same way he was (or maybe military, I can't recall what akwater said about it exactly). She wasn't an Iraqi.

Ah, that explains it. For a moment there, I thought akwater had balls the size of a bull's ;)

Well... that's besides the point. ;)

I can relate. It's just one town, though, and they're all different. Rest assured if you're bitter and hate everyone, there's at least a few awesome people like you (misanthropes unite!). They can be hard to find, though. Maybe consider another job in another town or state? I definitely don't recommend moving all over the place. I did that and just wound up restless still.

I find it's best to let things happen organically. Is there anywhere you know a lot of people? Perhaps your hometown or nearby? Just having a few good people has helped me a lot. Where I lived last, I didn't really know anybody, and found tremendous difficulty making friends for the most part, despite many occurrences. Seems harder than ever to make friends and meet people these days. Such is modern life I suppose.

As for things to do, consider what you love...art, games, music, martial arts, squirrel trapping? I don't know. :)

This seems like the best advice I've read so far, moving to another place might be good but it can become a habit, which would be detrimental to your goal of meeting someone Akwater.
Just finding some people that are friendly and good spirited helps and from there they should give you enough opportunities to find that special someone. Unfortuantly most people are like your co-workers (drama freaks that act like their still in high school) mostly because age doesn't define maturity so most never make it.
The only solution to that I can suggest is to see how these "friends" act towards others once they seem comfortable around you for example............
The way they talk to someone face to face and when their not around can be a good indicator of if they are @$$wholes
When they tell a story about something that you were present to experience how do they change it (cause I mean everyone will change a story if for no other reason then brevity) do they make themselves a HaXor and all others newbs well if yes they might be an @$$whole

Past that hang in there man I can relate to how it feels (I mean not exactly of course) I suffer from brutal depression (my last episode lasted 8 months filled with drinking and mutilation and one satanic sermon)
This site really does have the best community eh if this was steam there would be calls for the whambulance and people suggesting you drink bleach in typical internet douchebaggery.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll look into them. (not trying to kill my liver though)

I was bored after one week... took up a couple hobbies, kind of almost died this weekend... It was awesome while it lasted but I suppose if you can not get some supplies locally you should not do the activity or something that is what I keep hearing.

I've been told to give it time, and I am trying. I just would have figured this would be like any other place I've been. I'd come to work just wtf pwn it kick ass take names and scoop up the dopiest honey just because I'm the effing man.

Bah... and now.. to the salt mines..

Well it sounds like you're unlikely to be happy there, I'd say treat it like a refresher in working in america and look for other work after about 6-12 months. Maybe move down here, teach something at the university (doesn't matter what field, you'd be better than most of the ones they have), I'll make pizza and we can hang out

As for something to do, get a PS3, Gran Turismo 5 & a Logitech Driving Force GT wheel and meet me online for some serious (and thoroughly unskilled) racing

Small towns can be great if you're an outdoor hobbyist / enthusiast. For one, there are probably a bunch of folks who will enjoy those same activities. The internet is your friend when it comes to other hobbies.

My wife and I lived in a big metro area (in the top ten) and couldn't stand it. There was just too... much. Couldn't get away from anything without holing up in the house or driving forever to get away from the place - and then we'd just bump into all the other people trying to do the same.

Not sure what you consider 'small town', but we went from a 5+ million metro in one part of the country to a village of 4,800 in another part, and couldn't be happier. Obviously there's a huge range of towns in-between those two sizes and the nearby "big city" is somewhere around 60,000 with the attached metros. This small metro is a bit of a relief for us. However, each person is different and maybe your time in the Mideast has changed you in ways that make the hustle and bustle a necessity for your day-to-day sanity.

So I guess there are two pieces of advice to give:

- take some time to try the activities the local area offers (motorcycling is a good time and money sink, with some great people to meet) and see if that's enough to calm that restlessness and wash away the work woes.

- or -

- try some other cities. No sense sticking around an area if you give it an honest try and can't make it work for you.

Visit Poland. Drink, Be happy.