As I watched my (basically) little sister graduate from college this month, I had a rush of memories and anxiety from that time in my life.
I thought back to my fear of finding a new job, the logistics of finding a roommate/apartment and the uncertainty around which city I had chosen as my new home.
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As weeks and months went by and I settled into Chicago, one challenged remained: hanging out with friends was no longer easy.
Some of my friends had moved across the country; others were still traveling and figuring themselves out. And though many of them did end up moving to Chicago, too, they were no longer within spitting distance.
I couldn’t just knock on someone’s door and ask them to grab ice cream with me. And about forget walking down a hallway to survey everyone’s plans and outfits.
It was tough, but out of it came something magical: I only made time and commitments for the people that mattered to me.
I shed my drinking buddies and held on tight to the friends that cared for me. And as years went on, the ones that stuck around became like family.
I truly can’t express my gratitude for my friends, both new and old. They have come to my rescue in so many ways, and as a tribute, I thought I’d describe the 10 kinds of friends I have at 25.
The Adventurer
This friend is always down for whatever. Whether it’s a new workout class, trying out an art project or heading to a museum, you can always count on this friend to say “yes.” You admire their sense of adventure, and you love that it’s contageous.
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The Ole Steady
This friend is the definition of your “day 1.” While you may not always see eye to eye, you consider each other family and would do a n y t h i n g for each other. Sometimes, hanging out involves doing absolutely nothing and you’re totally ok with that.
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The Glamazon
Let’s be honest, sometimes you spend several minutes hours stalking this friend on Instagram because they just seem to be great at life. Between their fabulous outfits and insanely cool job, you can’t help but feel envious.
Luckily this friend is always willing to bring you in on the fun and let you in on all of their beauty/fashion/general-greatness-at-life secrets.
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The LDR
Oh, the art of the long-distance relationship. Between scheduling Facetime dates and paragraph-long texts and emails, it’s almost weird when you realize you haven’t seen this friend in months. Fortunately, you always have a visit scheduled, and when you’re together, you find yourself hugging and smiling excessively.
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The Endearing Psycho
Let’s face it, this friend is nuts. But let’s also face it, that’s kind of why you like them.
This friend might do things a bit differently than you do, but you appreciate their banter and are highly entertained by their craziness. When push comes to shove, though, this friend has a massive heart and would defend you ’til the grave.
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The Chat Queen
With this friend, you’ll get it all out on the table. You’ll cover all your bases like how work is going, how your boyfriends’ work is going, how your sisters are doing… always leaving room to take turns.
As you hug this friend goodbye, you still find more things you meant to chat about and may end up screaming down the street. This actually kind of happens to you every time. Guess you’ll have to talk about it on Gchat!
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The Newbie
How is it humanly possible that this friend just came into your life? You feel like you’ve known them forever, and yet you learn something new about them every time you hang out.
It’s unbelievable how instantaneously you clicked, but you won’t question it because you both feel pretty darn lucky.
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The Role Model
This friend is simultaneously amazing at life AND insanely humble. They’re kind, driven, organized, social, well-rested, and every other word you have on your new year’s resolution list.
While you can’t seem to figure out how they do it all, you feel so fortunate to have their number on speed dial. They’re just as good at advice giving as they are at everything else.
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The Comic Relief
This friend is a breath of fresh air. You’ve known them for years, but yet their wit, no matter how unintentional, never seems to get old.
You might not often get serious together, but you’re not sure what you would do without their positive energy, sense of humor and extroverted heart of gold.
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The Lunch and Coffee
You enjoy this person’s company so much, and yet you find yourself saying, “let’s do this again soon,” 10 times before it actually happens. Regardless of how much time has passed, though, you pick up right where you left off and know that you’ll always have each other’s backs.
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