Let me categorize three sets of friends as an example. First are the friends that I made decades ago. They are a unusual and dare I say (Dare dare) strange group of people. In some cases, we spent most of our college career seeing just how much trouble we could get into. In some cases I have literally fought alongside and bled with them. (Look up the SCA and don't be fooled, Rattan wrapped in duct tape HURTS!) I don't always agree with them and sometimes I question their sanity, but I love them all dearly (Yes even you, TC)
The second set is drawn from that same group, but the bonds go much deeper. I have friends that are my family that I would gladly give my life for. People like my brother in all but blood, BB and his amazing wife SCB (I'd call her my sister, but that might sound a little odd since she married my Brother.) It wasn't that long ago, we reconnected after decades not seeing each other through the miracle of the Interwebz? The first day we met in person, it was like we had never been apart. BB, Shag, PP and others are still my family after all these years.
Then there is the third set. I think I shall call them "Friends, the Next Generation(tm)" Through the miracle of the Inerwebz, I connected with a huge number of people that now share my life. I read about their lives, joys and sorrows every day. I share their losses and their triumphs. Now most of these people are only loosely defined as friends. I enjoy seeing their comments and laugh at their posts, but it is only a tenuos connection. This doesn't mean I don't care about them, just that our bond isn't as strong.
Of this group, there are a couple that I have never met that I feel the same sort of friendship or kinship that I do with the first groups I mentioned. People that seem to know me so well and that I know just as well. People like the larconic and often times silly Kevin or the insanely creative and funny Ken W. make my day brighter and I appreciate every single one of them.
Long ago, Penpals were a popular thing. People would write and connect with other people around the world. Later on, Ham Radios added voices to the words. I am certain if you were to speak to the people who did these things, they would probably tell you that they felt a connection to these faceless people that they would probably never meet. The modern Interwebz is a technological extension of those early versions of social media and things like Facebook, Twitter and others are changing the very way we define friendship.
In the end, what exactly does it mean to be a friend? If you speak to someone every day and share each others lives, does it really matter if you do it physically or online? I think, as time moves on, we will come to understand that friendship and even love is spiritual not physical and that how we experience that friendship is completely unimportant.
Brew Long and Prosper
