Online vs. Real Life Friendships

[croak]

May I ask you what's the longest online friendship you've had?

And, by online friend, what exactly does that mean to you? Is this a gamer friend or do you talk often in chat?

I would say around six years.

Well, it does depend. Some are people you kinda just sit around chatting about whatever with. Then there are those you might also talk to outside of general chat, get to know better. A lot of them I've met and/or talk to on an online roleplaying game I play (well, most of the time I'm out of character just chatting. xD). There's kind of a line between an acquaintance and a friend, and I'm not sure exactly where it is, both on and offline. I tend to say friend as a matter of convenience, which isn't to say I don't have good friends, both on and offline. My closest friends are online, though.

I can somewhat agree. But, in the real world I'm more inclined to talk for an extended period about subjects while online I'm just too damn lazy to explain and explain through typing.

Man, that can get really tiresome. xD And especially when a gesture could suffice. But no, you have to type it out. My fingers get plenty of exercise.~

There's a lot of stuff I can't really discuss IRL. Religion, for example, my friends don't care about it at all, or I'm loathe to discuss such a contentious topic with people I need to work or live with. Other stuff I like is fairly obscure stuff, and my friends and acquaintances have more mainstream interests.

I totally understand that; it's the same with me. I don't talk about lots of things I discuss online. That's a benefit of the Internet: you're not alone.

 

[Troublemane]

online is good for maintaining friendships when you work an insane schedule like I do. i never have time to just chill out with friends, so i usually have to do it online. or because they live thousands of miles away. so for me, online and RL are the same.

 

[Buttercup]

Sorry, I missed this post somehow.

I seem to have a hard time keeping friends IRL and online. But it's my fault. I'm awesome, we all know this, so it's not a problem of people not liking me, it's a problem of keeping in touch. I can't be bothered. I don't like talking on the phone. It drives me nuts, and most people can't handle the "I'll call you when I wanna hang out, but other than that, don't expect to hear from me" kind of relationship.

I would absolutely understand and LOVE you for all eternity because of this trait...I'm the same way. When I want to hang out with a friend, I'll usually send a text. Only one friend gets her panties all wedgied by this behavior but she gets over it. I HATE talking on the phone.

Other than that, nope, not a big friend person.

I find that extremely hard to believe. I've always pictured you to have millions of friends.

 

[Buttercup]

online is good for maintaining friendships when you work an insane schedule like I do. i never have time to just chill out with friends, so i usually have to do it online. or because they live thousands of miles away. so for me, online and RL are the same.

I can see how that could happen. Have any of your online friendships extended to phone calls?

 

[Circle_One]

Sorry, I missed this post somehow. I would absolutely understand and LOVE you for all eternity because of this trait...I'm the same way. When I want to hang out with a friend, I'll usually send a text. Only one friend gets her panties all wedgied by this behavior but she gets over it. I HATE talking on the phone.

I find that extremely hard to believe. I've always pictured you to have millions of friends.

I have a lot of acquaintances. A lot of people know my name, and I can go to any bar in Montreal and find people I know and like to hang out with, when I'm out at that specific bar. But as for people who's phone calls I answer on a daily basis, there's really only two: Jay and Dean. All the other people that call me during any given day, I'll let my phone go to voicemail and I'll call back when I feel like talking. And a lot of the time, I end up forgetting to call back, haha. I don't do it on purpose, it's just the way I am.

Don't get me wrong, I like a lot of people, and I'm sure there are tons of people that consider me their friend. I just don't have the staying power to keep in touch with people, and if they get upset by that, it's not my fault.

I'm actually the same way online. I HATE MSN and all those chat thingies. I'll give someone my msn, talk to them for the day I gave it to them, and then not log back in for months, haha. I just don't like being so easily accessible, I guess.

 

[*Anne*]

True. I learned long ago to not discuss religion or politics unless your companions are like minded. Otherwise, it makes for an awkward evening.

I got verbally clobbered this past Easter for making what I thought was a rather innocent (but politcal) comment. Never again.