I can relate. I love people but a lot of the time I don't like people. The people I like the most are the ones I feel comfortable enough to be around for more than ten minutes without saying a word. Solitude and silence are both peaceful.

I am very much the same way. I don't know if I'm getting more introverted as I get older, or am just more aware of it now that I'm coming to understand it more. I have the same conundrum of feeling lonely at times, but he thought of leaving the house and going out and about is more uncomfortable than staying home and feeling lonely. I absolutely identify with feeling lonely and wanting to be left alone simultaneously.

If I have the choice of being alone or calling someone, I almost always choose being alone. There are people I could call, but the thought of going through the decision, the where, the how, the who, the when... it just wears me out. It's so much easier to do what I want to do alone. I hate parties, girls' lunches, girls' weekends, bachelorette parties, showers and weddings, but they're sometimes somewhat compulsory. However, I do crave company once in a while, but one person, not several.... so an occasional lunch or dinner with one person who doesn't exhaust me is nice.

Introvert and solitude are not the same as lonely. Loneliness is when you feel you are not part of community or nobody cares about you and affects you mentally and physically. While solitude, specially for introverts, is necessary and part of a healthy life where one is immersed in oneself and doing activities that do not require social conversation or interaction, such as reading (though some would say that reading is having a conversation with an author), painting, walking. Solitude is good for health and loneliness is not. When one gets older one prefers more solitude, but normal thing is to require some social interaction thought frequency varies.

I too have always been in introvert. Making friends take a lot of time. You sound like you enjoy solitude. Solitude is not the same as as being lonely. You find a balance between being with people and being alone.

We need an Assholes unite group

Sounds like me other than I have a social job and children. However, when not working or with my kids, the older I get the more I prefer my own company

I have noticed that I prefer to be by myself more as I get older. The only times I really enjoy being with other people are at atheists meet ups & conventions. The older I get the more religious people seem to irritate. They just can't seem to keep their religion to themselves, even when they know me as non-religious.

I’m lonely, but I’m too much of an emotional wreck to do anything about it yet. Maybe next year?

At least you do well at interviews... I don’t even do well talking to my wife... I don’t have the feeling I want to be alone... I have too...

Well, I think the definition of lonely is that you don't want to be alone. So I don't think you can be lonely if you really want to be left alone. Lol If you're happy, that's the key. If you're happy being an asshole, then good for you. I get it though. I enjoy my alone time, and have appreciated it more as I've gotten older. But it's nice to have the option of not talways being alone. I have my kids that fill up 50% of my time. The rest of my time I appreciate that I can do with it as I please. But I wouldn't mind having some other options.