I think I can relate to you in that I'd like to find a community to be able to interact more. I've been an active lurker on HN for 4 years now. I learn so much from HN but feel like I'm just eavesdropping on "the smart kids." I love programming & technology as a whole and have been involved since I was a young preteen, but my career path just didn't happen to go that way and I have too much going where I am to change career fields, bittersweet.

However, I've never been somewhere that stays "on topic" so well, so to speak, but then again it's hard to socialize as I don't work in the field and don't have much input that I don't think will make me look stupid.