Old friends-
One way to know how many friends you are missing is when your emails won't go through. I switched from using a local ISP address to using gmail as my primary email address and since then, many of my friends' ISPs aren't allowing my emails through. When you want to avoid the spam, which is often generated by the online email services, you tend to block all the messages from that ISP, even ones from friends.
So, today, I made a point of calling a friend on the phone about it to see if some changes can be made from her end to see if my mail will get through. I have another friend I'll need to call and do the same thing.
But some of my friends are ones I met on the computer and have no idea how to contact them any other way. I got to chat with a couple of those tonight in IMs.
I met one in an AOL chat room. (a flirty one) We soon realized we liked each other as friends a lot more than we cared about flirting.
We met once with our spouses. He's chatted to my hubby online. His wife doesn't get online.
My other friend and I met in an artist discussion group. I still don't know how the person in charge of the group found me (or any of us) but Kelchen did a great job of finding an interesting and diverse group of artists, especially for being in HS at the time.
Wilfred is from Norway/ Finland. He was invited to take part in an art event in Portugal and fell in love with the country. Now, he has married and still sends his art back to the newspaper he worked for as a political cartoonist. When I talk with Wilfred, I forget English is not his first language. He's so very personable and knowledgeable and loves a good debate.
The years have slipped away from me. Just how long I've known these guys is pretty amazing when you realize we met online and they live very far from me. I can see changes in their lives. Progress. I've seen One have children, a better job, building a home. The other I've watched as he moved to a new country, started a new life with a family, gave up all sorts of vices I still have.
I don't feel like I've changed much at all in that same time. Still living in the same place, married, same three kids. Still doing my art, added a job and some volunteer work, but basically, my life remains the same. Kind of depressing at times.