I can go for a long time without people, but in the end it still gets me, and then it's like everything I do goes round in ever-decreasing circles, and I have to get out and meet people again.
So I make sure that I'm with people some of the time. Even so there's usually a strange "chimeric" feeling to it, as if whatever happens between us is somehow nothing like as good as it should be. Something inside me can't wait to get away from people, I guess it's fear of making a mistake. I feel better with people I'm very familiar with these days, but even there things can quickly become very wooden and minimal. Still, it's better than days of isolation.
I really think I'm better off limiting my social contact to situations where we have a definite task or purpose to achieve together. I hope I accomplish that kind of thing with a certain amount of warmth, and I think the social stuff that comes from that kind of thing is somehow better quality. I get a lot out of helping to run a small music club, though I don't hang around to make small talk with the others. I guess I don't see the point of "pure" socialising, I mean if there's no common purpose, what's it good for? It's a strange attitude for me to have, preferring to work with people rather than play with them. It'd make more sense if I had a huge work ethic, but I don't, I actually like to "deflate" people who wax too lyrical about the virtues of working hard.