None of my friends are online only. In fact, most of the folks I speak to online are people I've at least met in person once.
When I was a teenager, I had at one point 34 penpals. They were the best friends I had. The best of them I also talked to on the phone after awhile, and I met four of them in person. (My family actually spent vacation with the family of one of my penpals when I was 16).
The difference you're seeing may have to do with the definition of friend. There's "friend I eat lunch with at work", "friend I like to go do things with", "friend I can call at three in the morning in an emergency" - I realize that this ranges from "friendly acquaintance" to "bosom buddy", but unless I'm feeling nitpicky, they all get lumped under "friend".
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2004-12-14 05:03 pm (UTC)When I was a teenager, I had at one point 34 penpals. They were the best friends I had. The best of them I also talked to on the phone after awhile, and I met four of them in person. (My family actually spent vacation with the family of one of my penpals when I was 16).
The difference you're seeing may have to do with the definition of friend. There's "friend I eat lunch with at work", "friend I like to go do things with", "friend I can call at three in the morning in an emergency" - I realize that this ranges from "friendly acquaintance" to "bosom buddy", but unless I'm feeling nitpicky, they all get lumped under "friend".