Friday Question #118
How do you prefer to keep in touch with your friends – in person, via phone, email, instant messaging, texting, facebook, commenting on blogs, or other? How does how you prefer to keep in touch compare with how you actually keep in touch?
I think most of us would say that we prefer to keep in touch with friends by seeing them in person, but how many of us actually have that luxury? The friends I went to college with mostly live in different states, and honestly, we barely communicate at all. And while I have friends that live in Chicagoland, well, while they live out here, that doesn’t mean they are close*. The friends that we see the most live either 40 or 50 miles from our house. We mainly see each other on weekends. Or, if they work in the city, during lunch breaks (which is great).
So, I usually communicate via email. And sometimes (not always!), those emails only happen because they are stemming from a blog comment that one of us left. When I think about this, it makes me wonder if it is an artificial relationship – would we even be communicating if we weren’t blogging**? I mean, most of the friendships I have are with other bloggers, so I can’t make light of the fact that blogging is how the relationship started, but… I think I am just craving more. I think I just feel lonely sometimes, despite all the cyber world connections.
And, don’t get me wrong. I love personal emails and appreciate so much that someone would take the time to write something to me***. I just wish I could have more personal interaction from time to time.
*Except for Tori, who is a mere 5 or so miles from my house – why don’t we get together more often?
**What is interesting is that when I blog less during the week, I have less personal emails as well.
***Interestingly, two of the people I email the most (Gina and Courtney) are bloggers I have never met in person! And we just email – it’s rarely an email based on a blog comment.