Girls Just Wanna Have Fun...And 100 Ways To Stay In Touch

So, right up there you’ll see a picture of some pretty awesome (and obvs very fun) women. The three girls with me in this photo have been some of my very best friends since college. It’s Madeline, me, Freda and Kelly. I love them dearly. Problem is, we all live in different states right now. And 10 years ago, before social media, before unlimited texts and nationwide calling, we may not have been able to maintain our friendships.

In college, the four of us hung out after class, ate lunch together, went to movies together, visited each other at work, and we were each other’s home-away-from-home. But now, what happens to that dynamic when you aren't together?

Making new friends after college is rough. Outside of work, it’s hard to connect with people. I mean, sure, there are people you reconnect with, or people you meet at a yoga class or book club, but I just don’t think it’s ever quite the same. Man, the Saved by the Bell kids made it look so easy!

I guess the point is, I've been missing my friends. Madeline’s going through a major life change, Kelly’s a newlywed who’s coming down with a case of baby fever, and Freda’s traveling through Korea. Geographically, we are far apart, but even in our lives we seem far away from each other. Without being with them, how close can we actually be?

Then, the clouds parted and voila! Blackberry Messenger and Skype Conference Calling came into our lives. I Blackberry Message Madeline daily. I know she finally sold her couch, and her air conditioner is too small for the windows in her new apartment. Tonight, Freda and Kelly and I talked for over an hour on Skype. I know what the showers are like in Korea, and I know that Kelly‘s dog got a haircut today and it was a, uh, sub par look. Then we sat and watched You Tube videos and laughed. It felt like no time had passed. That we are each away for the summer.

And sure there’s nothing I’d rather have than for my best friends to live close enough to go shopping with me, or grab a drink after a long day, but with Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Skype, BBM, texting, and free long distance, it feels like there’s no excuse NOT to stay close.

It makes me think, though, that maybe the reason it’s so hard to build new friendships is because there are so many ways to maintain the old friendships. I mean, how many great friends can we handle? I do think that people have the capacity to love hundreds of thousands of people. But a great friendship isn’t just about love. It’s about companionship, it’s about sharing heartache and joy. And sure, the world may read your Facebook status and know what you ate for breakfast, but the great friends are the ones who actually care.