friends: a mental state?

facebook versus life

Mark Zuckerberg's 'facebook' web site
www.facebook.com
is a strange development in human history.
Back when?
Friendship used to just kind of 'happen.'
It 'occurred.'
Often, people walked in and out of your life, before there was time to smack them with a label like 'friend,' 'enemy,' or 'acquaintance.'
I"m no expert.
Who is?
Freddie Mercury and Queen?
You know, that one song about 'friends' they did.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImFc5bOEWl8
Their guess is as good as mine.
During modern times, Jody Watley seems to get a little closer to the truth with her own 'Friends' song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQRVBFi2sII
Here's the thing.
Like enemies, friends make their 'status' known in the blink of an eye, or, from the German, 'Augenblick.'
example?
case in point?
fall, 1983.
parkland junior high school, mchenry, illinois.
exhibit a) fellow 6th grader Brian Kuhar takes look at Bob, asks other 6th grader, Mike Lazar: "is that guy a wuss?" Lazar: "No, he just has wussy hair." exhibit b) random thug: "Are you Jewish?" Bob: "No..." thug: (apparently not convinced by answer) "I have to hate you."
Leaving aside whether or not the guy was a Nazi......
winter, 2001.
One of my Uncle Walt's sons had made a card for Grandma and Grandpa Dwyer. The message was essentially: "Grandparents are always there when you need them."
The card had been left in a John F. Kennedy bio, and Grandpa had gifted me the book.
Rough day, paging through book, I saw card.
Somehow, seeing that card totally lifted my spirits.
I phoned Grandma & Grandpa as soon as I could, for no reason other than I wanted to talk to them.
spring, 1982.
hilltop elementary school, mchenry.
During football game after lunch, fellow 4th grader, Michael Haase delivers me a devastating tackle. As in, I was 'jarred.'
so, angry, I made a point of clobbering Haase the next time he had the ball.
He was way bigger than me.
But I clobbered him anyway.
This is the kind of guy Haase turned out to be?
He hopped off of ground, said, "Nice tackle!" and returned to game.
Guy has still yet to take a 'cheap shot' at me in 30+ years of knowing him.
End of rant.