> user-groups, gym, local-whatever-chapter, Meetup. Does anyone really make friendships there that expand beyond that environment? I go to the gym, I know peop

> user-groups, gym, local-whatever-chapter, Meetup. Does anyone really make friendships there that expand beyond that environment? I go to the gym, I know people there by name, make friendly chit-chat, I know what they do and big events in their lives, but that has never expanded beyond the time that we are there. I have never been asked to meet up somewhere else, grab dinner, come over and watch a game, etc. nor I have I asked that of anyone. It would seem like an imposition to me; people have their lives and just because you know someone in one context does not mean you are welcome or would be interested in the rest of it. The only friends I have ever made are people I spend many hours of time with every day. Roommates, classmates, and in a few cases, colleagues at work. That long duration, close-proximity shared time seems to be an essential ingredient to forming friendships. I think that is also a reason that once people are out of school they find it much harder to develop new friendships -- life gets too compartmentalized and time-fractured.