Through the ingenious medium of an interactive scrapbook, we play as Connie, glueing in photos, notes and memories of her friend after years of separation. The game begins with several attempts to write Connie a letter, before we cut-out, stick and sort the story of their lives together.
But here's what nobody tells you: while everyone's busy accumulating hundreds of "friends" on social media and casual acquaintances at happy hours, those of us with just a handful of close friends might actually have it figured out. Psychology research is increasingly showing that people who maintain smaller, tighter social circles display unique strengths that often fly under the radar. We're talking about genuine advantages that most people completely overlook or even misinterpret as weaknesses.
The "Blade Angels" are about to take off. That's the official trio nickname for Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito, the figure skaters representing Team USA in the individual women's competition. They voted on the name last month (it was Liu's suggestion) and were re-introduced to the world this week in a video narrated by none other than Taylor Swift.
If it's been awhile since you've sought out a new friend and you're feeling a bit rusty, try developing what Vellos calls "friendship intuition." That means knowing who to prioritize, how to spend time together and what to do if the vibes just aren't there. In a conversation with Life Kit, Vellos shares insights on how to turn a stranger into a friend, based on scientific research and her work as a friendship coach. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
My friend said, I am going to be very selective about who I include because there are some people who seem to think the more, the merrier,' and we just can't have that. The time you asked me to include your mother at Easter, my table was at its max capacity. I was shocked. That request was made 10 years ago and was cheerfully accommodated.
Get to know and be friends with other gays," said one. "Meaningful, genuine, healthy romantic relationships come from friendship. Not from passionate s*xual encounters with strangers. And focus on your health, your style, hobbies, mental clarity through expunging all the toxins built up from ... mistreatment in your childhood.
Ever wonder why you're exhausted trying to maintain relationships with everyone from your high school lab partner to that person you met at a conference three years ago? Here's something that might surprise you: anthropologist Robin Dunbar's research suggests our brains can only handle about 150 social connections, and of those, only five make up our innermost circle. That's right, five.
Throughout my childhood and adolescence, my closest friend was "Kate." We kept in touch throughout college but drifted apart a bit afterwards. Kate stayed in our hometown after I moved away. Long story short, I abruptly cut Kate out of my life several years ago after she made a racist comment to the person I was dating at the time (Kate and I are both white, my ex was not).
The friends who stick around are the ones who text back when you're having a mundane Tuesday crisis about whether to switch internet providers. They're interested in your boring work drama. They remember to ask how your dentist appointment went. I have this group chat called "The Debrief" with four friends from different parts of my life. We don't just share the highlight reel stuff.
Should I try to seek closure with a person I used to love but drifted apart from, or is it best to leave them be? There's a person I used to be really close to who doesn't talk to me any more. We didn't have a fight. We just drifted, but I still think about them all the time. We were really close from year 7 to year 12. The truth is I had a devastating crush on her. I told her about it one day; she let me down very sweetly and our friendship continued. She was the first (and so far only) person I've ever felt I loved. She's the reason I identify as bi. And I believed for a few years she loved me too, if in a different way to how I hoped.
Nadira Goffe: Jenny! I'm so excited to gab about this episode for a bit, because woof-or should I say hoof?-what an episode it was. I would call it egg-cellent, because most of it is about Egg, the adorable, mysteriously bald stable boy who becomes Dunk's squire. It's 30 minutes of the unlikely friends just hangin' out, really living up to the title of the George R.R. Martin novellas that the show is based on, Tales of Dunk and Egg. Dunk teaches Egg how to mend a patch in clothing, they cheer over the day's jousts, and there's a scene in which the two role-play a conversation about eating salt beef that is so stinkin' cute I had a lopsided smile on my face the whole time. At one point, the gentle giant cooks his tiny squire a meal with goose eggs that have yolks so large I instantly sensed that there was some sort of subtext going on as they sizzled in the pan.
'You know, my friend Nathan's coming over and he's bringing our friend Pam,'', Ferguson recalled telling his sons. 'You know Nathan, of course. You've listened to him, you know his voice from [Timon in] The Lion King.' So I played 'Hakuna Matata' and on my way to school they were singing 'Hakuna Matata' and I was like, 'This is Nathan who is coming to dinner!'
All the swiping, chatting, and meeting up on Thursday nights - even when you're super tired or not in the mood to go out. Now imagine putting that same effort into seeing your friends. On TikTok, people are talking about the importance of friendship and how easy it is to deprioritize your besties. While you might love your friends, it's not uncommon to go weeks, and sometimes even months, without seeing them.
I wish this was a one-off blip in my regimented friendship schedule, but all through 2025 I played the world's slowest game of message tennis. I'd invite a pal for dinner, only for the world to turn, the seasons pass, grey hairs gather at my temples, before a date was finally locked in. This sentiment seems to be common among my circle.
A few weeks ago, our son's friend "Derek" came over for a sleepover and during the night somehow my son bruised his nose. We didn't know until he went home the next day and his parents texted us. Of course, we apologized and our son said it was an accident, but his friend's father refused to let him play anymore. Apparently the boy wanted to go home at 3am, but he didn't say so to us. (They were up late playing games).
From the 1950s until his death in 1987, Hujar documented the creative lodestars of downtown New York, many of whom were his friends, lovers, or sometimes both. He photographed the likes of Susan Sontag and John Waters stretched in repose, or the Warholian legend Candy Darling, encircled by flowers and solemn chiaroscuro on her deathbed. He often photographed himself, too, but the rarest shots of Hujar are those taken by others, candid glimpses that divulge some secret relation.
Matt and I started from the same place. Same middle-class neighborhood, same public schools, same dreams of making it big someday. We'd spend hours in his garage talking about the companies we'd build, the problems we'd solve, the money we'd make. The difference? He actually did it. Last month, I scrolled through Instagram and saw him closing on his third investment property. Three months before that, it was the Tesla. Six months before that, the startup exit that set him up for life.
In any given relationship or group, there is always one person who makes things happen. Everyone says "hey, we should get together!" but this person finds a date and makes the restaurant reservation. After a family meet-up in a park, everyone says "we should do this again!" but this person suggests meeting next Saturday at the children's museum at 10 a.m. since the forecast calls for rain.
Alan was my best friend, my brother and my everything. I don't stop thinking about him. For me, there's no replacement; I just have a void. If I could speak to him I'd say: Come back, because I can't really bear being without you. We saw each other or spoke every day since 1980. I was a third party in the marriage, but Rima was never jealous.
Translator who broke the rules to become decades-long friend of Guido Nasi tells of their relationship and the lives destroyed by one brutal act
Dear Eric: I recently pet-sat for somewhat new friends. I had been invited on a weekend trip with them but had a work commitment that meant I couldn't go. I offered to pet-sit for them, which is something I've done for other friends from time to time. During the weekend there was an incident which wasn't really anyone's fault that resulted in some minor property damage. I let them know via text what happened and explained the situation and offered to cover any damages.
Kim (not her real name) and I bonded when our sons played on the same travel basketball team. For years, we spent weekend after weekend together in loud, testosterone-filled gyms, rife with the smell of boy sweat and breakfast sandwiches. We always sat in the same place on the unforgiving bleachers, midway up in the center, and picked up our conversation from where we left off at the previous practice or game.
Ein Freund, ein guter Freund, ist das Beste was es gibt auf der Welt [A friend, a good friend, is the best thing you can have in this world].―The Comedian Harmonists I dedicate this essay to my friend Gerhard Almstedt, who was taken from us in 2023. Friendship is an underappreciated topic in psychological research, although having good friends is one of the cornerstones of a successful and rewarding social life. It is a source of happiness (Pezirkianidis et al., 2023).
It sounds like your friendship has a communication problem. You've expressed a want and your friend didn't acknowledge that want. It's understandable, then, that you'd feel disappointed. I imagine that if he's not hearing you when you ask for thanks, there may be other areas in which the two of you are disconnected. It's worth taking a step back and asking yourself what is most important in this relationship and how you can meet each other in the middle.
