Can Online Friendships Feel as Close as Real-Life Ones?

[drizzle]

I really didn't look into it, Jimmy. I recall one of my Egyptian teachers has a name #### Ali Ali Ali Ali Ali then some other name.

I thought it's easier to just say her name then Ali⁵.

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

Oxenfree?

 

[drizzle]

 

[Borek]

Major Major Major Major?

 

[Lacy33]

Borek has been friendly to me in a material way. He very generously helped me to obtain copies of genealogical records from the Polish State Archives.

Borek has been helpful to me too with genealogy. Thank you Borek.

 

[genericusrnme]

I don't really know anyone here :shy:
I just try and help people over in homework and coursework

I'd like to be everyone's friend though!

 

[netgypsy]

I'm another newby who missed the wonderful camaraderie I had as an undergrad in the physics study lounge in college and decided to seek it out on the internet.

I've met some really wonderful people on here in the few months I've been on, got some great recipes, learned more about eggplant than I really needed to know, helped with homework until I ran out of yellow legal pads which I've finally replenished, and had a lot of fun in the relationship section and random thoughts.

My fish is the whale shark because a baby whale shark thought my boat was its mom and it laid its head on my dive platform and cosied up to the boat for quite a while. it was very cute in a very very large sort of way but I have no idea why I was asked for "my fish".

I posted a long poem for Borek to help with weird English but don't know if he saw it.

In all my other forums I personally know many of the members but so far on here I haven't run across any I know. I'm game for that Aruba meeting so I can see the goats in the dividivi trees one more time.

 

[Evo]

learned more about eggplant than I really needed to know,

I actually have more information on eggplants...

My fish is the whale shark because a baby whale shark thought my boat was its mom and it laid its head on my dive platform and cosied up to the boat for quite a while. it was very cute in a very very large sort of way but I have no idea why I was asked for "my fish".

You didn't get fish whacked?

 

[netgypsy]

I actually have more information on eggplants...

You didn't get fish whacked?

Please share the eggplant info

Nope?

Speaking of naming, I know many girls who have been named after their fathers. My grandmother's name was Williamena after her father William, my next door neighbor's daughter was named Clintandra after father, Clint, and mother, Sandra. A female friend was named Michael after her father.

 

[Dembadon]

Some of the most genuine people I've ever met are members of this forum. I'd like to think I've made a few friends here, even if it hasn't been explicitly stated or made official by any means.

 

[George Jones]

Please share the eggplant info.

My wife makes baingan aloo.

 

[Evo]

Nope?

THWACK!

You are now officially initiated into Physics Forums.

 

[dlgoff]

I don't really know anyone here :shy:
I just try and help people over in homework and coursework

I'd like to be everyone's friend though!

haven't been here for longer enough for that.
Maybe sometime in the future, hopefully.

Quantum Physics and Optoelectronics? :!)

Sounds like friends material to me.

 

[turbo]

Quantum Physics and Optoelectronics? :!)

Sounds like friends material to me.

Without motorcycle mechanics? We need more "stuff". Some sciences are "interesting", but lack substance.

 

[dlgoff]

Without motorcycle mechanics? We need more "stuff". Some sciences are "interesting", but lack substance.

Well. Anyone who can consume Ghost Peppers without blinking has to be a friend of mine; motorcycles or not.

 

[turbo]

Well. Anyone who can consume Ghost Peppers without blinking has to be a friend of mine; motorcycles or not.

OK, there are reasonable exceptions. The first year that I had a garden here, my neighbor walked up here, and I picked a couple of ripe Savinas as we cruised the garden spot. I ate mine. He nibbled on the end of his, and took it back home with him.

 

[Integral]

I have met Ivan Seeking & Tsu(They are practically neighbors), Janus, Om Cheeto, Astronuc, Gokul, and Kerrie.

Seems like Astonuc has met the most different members.

 

[ThomasT]

I have only met Astro in person, but have had nice times with his wife and kids. I'd like Chi to come up this way, but he has better mountains closer.

Other PF friends that I can't lose are Evo, Drizzle (Gad), Rhody, Danger, Zoobie, MIH, Pooh, and Mr. Borkowski. (probably many, many more, too, but I just can't list everybody.)

The people that are listed in my profile as friends are there either because they asked me to be a PF friend (the distinct minority), or because I asked them due to some feeling on my part (after reading dozens, maybe hundreds, of their posts) that I had gotten to know and therefore trust them in some simpatico sense. You, turbo, are one such person.

I've never met anybody in person that I've conversed with online, though I still trade emails with people who I became acquainted with more than a decade ago via other websites like the old mp3.com, soundclick.com, usenet's sci.physics.com, and various science oriented yahoo and google groups that I no longer frequent.

It's interesting how one can get a certain measure and estimation of a person's personality, etc. from online discussions.

I fairly recently resumed contact, via the internet, with an old friend (an old roommate and close personal friend) who I hadn't seen in almost 40 years, and who a mutual friend and I thought had passed away.

But that's getting off-topic. Anyway, to reply to your OP, no I don't have any close PF friends, but there are at least a couple dozen PF contributors who I consider to be online friends (in the simpatico sense, ie., I think I know where they're coming from and generally like their posts) -- and I'll get around to asking some of those who aren't now on my PF friends list to be PF friends. If they accept, then great. If not, then they can go to hell.

Nice topic as usual, turbo, and interesting comments.

 

[Borek]

My fish is the whale shark

Ouch.

I posted a long poem for Borek to help with weird English but don't know if he saw it.

I did.

You didn't get fish whacked?

Nope?

How could it be? But I see Evo already did the honors

Keep us posted about how you feel after you get back from ER.

 

[wukunlin]

Quantum Physics and Optoelectronics? :!)

Sounds like friends material to me.

i thought matching making services is that $\uparrow$ way.

Thanks though, I know who to hassle the hell out of when I need help with the QM details the laser diodes now

 

[Astronuc]

I've met Tom Mattson, Cyrus, Moonbear, Ivan Seeking, Integral, Greg B., Gokul, ZapperZ, turbo and George Jones. I'd certainly like to meet more folks from PF.

I exchange messages at PF or other forums, and chat with others.

I was at a symposium and a student from MIT recognized me. As far as I know, he's not a member, but periodically browses the forum.

 

[turbo]

Your father has the same name, Turbo? This is rare over here, a few people might name a child after his father, only if the father passed away, same for girls. But again not common.

My niece named her daughter Harley, too. She is a precocious little thing. Then my (much) younger brother had a daughter and they named her Hayley because Harley was already taken.

Hayley

Harley

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

The only member I actually met was SpaceTiger. I watched him give a lecture after the defense of his PhD thesis. I spoke with Gokul43201 and with turbo on the phone. I just missed meeting Chi Meson when I visited his campsite in NH. He was away at the time.

 

[drizzle]

My niece named her daughter Harley, too. She is a precocious little thing. Then my (much) younger brother had a daughter and they named her Hayley because Harley was already taken.

Hayley

Harley

Oooohahahooo, cutie cutie cutie little girls :!):!)

 

[turbo]

Oooohahahooo, cutie cutie cutie little girls :!):!)

They are both as cute as can be. Harley will sit quietly when visiting, but as soon as she is free to roam, she hunts for a rock. It doesn't have to be a pretty rock, or special in any way. She just wants a rock. My wife and I love rock-hounding, as as Harley gets older, we'll take her on field-trips. She could become a geologist.

 

[netgypsy]

How could it be? But I see Evo already did the honors

Keep us posted about how you feel after you get back from ER.

She did? Must have been a metaphysical whale shark

 

[Moonbear]

I've met ZZ, Astronuc, Greg, Gokul, Russ Watters, and SpaceTiger. Zz and I actually went to Disney together (what a surprise we'd pick that destination for meeting!) and have gotten together a few other times.

It turns out that one of Redbelly's contra dance friends is my former choir director, which was one of those surprising "It's a Small World" discoveries, but I haven't met up with him yet. Maybe if a visit to NJ coincides with a contra dance appropriate for beginners...

 

[turbo]

Darn! I thought the Contras died off when Reagan's secret Iranian money dried up.

 

[netgypsy]

Ahhh - I found it - metaphysical whale sharks take longer to reach one than physical whale sharks, I guess. ?

 

[netgypsy]

My wife makes baingan aloo.

what is baingan aloo? Is it similar to baingan bharta (YUMMM)??

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

Maybe if a visit to NJ coincides with a contra dance appropriate for beginners...

This group meets in Princeton for contra dancing every Wednesday and on the 4th Saturday of each month. The dance starts at 8:00 pm, but there are beginner lessons at 7:30. Let me know if you ever get a chance to go and I'll try to meet you there. Here's their site with detailed information.

Princeton Country Dancers

 

[turbo]

There are Contras hiding out in NJ? This immigration problem is getting serious!

 

[Jimmy Snyder]

Actually, it's a variant of contra dancing called contravariant dancing, dual to covariant dancing. Apparently there was a primitive man taken from the jungle and shown just such a dance. When they asked him if he knew what the dancers were doing he said that he did, but he wondered why they were standing up.

 

[Integral]

Actually, it's a variant of contra dancing called contravariant dancing, dual to covariant dancing. Apparently there was a primitive man taken from the jungle and shown just such a dance. When they asked him if he knew what the dancers were doing he said that he did, but he wondered why they were standing up.

Reading this makes me tensor.

 

[Moonbear]

This group meets in Princeton for contra dancing every Wednesday and on the 4th Saturday of each month. The dance starts at 8:00 pm, but there are beginner lessons at 7:30. Let me know if you ever get a chance to go and I'll try to meet you there. Here's their site with detailed information.

Princeton Country Dancers

Do you do contra dancing too? I've only done it once, and it was fun, so I'd give it another try if the timing was right and there were other PFers interested in attending, but it's not a requirement for me to attend a contra dance to get together with PFers in NJ. I visit NYC several times a year (the boyfriend is still there and still a boyfriend) and south NJ about once or twice a year (the sister and nephew are still there...and I usually welcome excuses to spend a few hours away from the brother-in-law if he does something silly like have days off from work when I'm visiting, which was when/why I met up with Russ in Philly the first time).

My biggest problem is that I tend to pick random days of the week to head there, and on short notice, so most of my long-time friends are working when I visit. I just take whatever days I can get as I see a clearing in my schedule. I can certainly let you know whenever I'm headed that way if I will have some unscheduled time (sometimes I do, sometimes I don't). For example, I was in NYC last weekend, and had all day Friday free while my boyfriend was at work. I could have made a trip into NJ, or had someone from NJ meet me in NYC, but most normal people were working.