Friends

I have recently been working hard to connect and reconnect with friends.

Even though I'm married to a wonderful man and have two cats, I've still been feeling somewhat lonely. Virtually all of my friends and family are scattered all over the country, CA, CO, AK, TX, IL, IN, TN, OH, PA, VA, upstate NY, South Jersey, MA. I feel a loss that there isn't someone right here that I can just call up and say, "Hey, are you free right now? I'd like to come over." I used to have a Thursday night "Girl's Night". We watched Friends, Scrubs and Will & Grace and talked. We shared feelings, supported and encouraged each other, laughed and had fun. Then she moved to Southern CA.

People used to stay in the same town, or at least the same area or state. Now, so many of us travel far away from home for college. Some people move back, but others go on to yet another location for grad school, and then yet another location for that job, and then they get relocated.... It is so much more likely for people to move in and out of our lives for short periods of time.

It can be so difficult to keep in touch. Some of the friends we have will continue to be friends even after moving across the country, and others will drift away.

I realized though, how pervasive the internet is, and how I enjoy keeping up with the lives of a few friends who update their blogs regularly. It's not sharing a night of prime time TV, or talking over ice cream, but it is keeping in touch. And we can respond to posts, and the author can respond back. We can receive encouragement and support, a good laugh, interesting information and still maintain a friendship!

Last night I did have dinner with a friend, who by the way is moving to Boston, and we decided to make a joint effort to write blog entries every day for a week. So, even though she will be in Boston and I will be in New Jersey, we will be doing something together, and encouraging each other to maintain our blogs! That's cool. :)

What a thing, the internet!