The older woman in front of me in the checkout line at Trader Joe’s in Fresno mentioned to the clerk who was scanning her groceries that the sprinkler system at her home was not working. The clerk, who was about her same age, responded by telling her his own sprinkler system woes. He had a repairman to his house three times in the past week and he was still having problems. By the way, these issues are important when it was 95 degrees at nine in the morning and headed to 108 by the afternoon.

As I waited, I looked around the room and noticed that all of the other shoppers in the store were senior citizens in their 70s and 80’s. Some were carefully inspecting the fruits and vegetables. A numbered had gathered around the new product tasting bar and were engaged in animated conversations with the clerk and one another. And no one was in a hurry. That is what made the scene so attractive. They had time to talk with each another. Trader Joe’s was more than a grocery store for them. It was a social network.

George Vaillant in the book Aging Well says that as we age and suffer the loss of mates and friends, we must learn to replace our lost companions with new friends. Grandchildren work spectacularly well by the way. Early morning at the grocery store may be another place to meet new people. And if your sprinklers don’t work, I know some folks who can steer you in the right direction.