Health & Sex

Women: Single and Loving It

New-Style Communities continued...

While Watters was figuring out his life in San Francisco, "my mother was leading a very parallel life. She was in her 70s, living entirely in this group of friends, and they did everything a family would do. She had a very fulfilling life," he says. Retired people have long formed these types of communities. It's people younger than 65 who are new to the concept, he says.

"Single women have helped provide the momentum for urban tribes," Watters tells WebMD. "The key thing is ritual ... the Tuesday night potluck dinner, so everyone can get together regularly. But you have to realize an urban tribe is an ephemeral thing, it changes. People leave, others come in. It's a very informal contract you make with your friends. But it never has a sense of reciprocity. It's about giving genuinely and freely."