An excuse for actually socializing...

I recently reconnected with an old friend from high school on one of the now ubiquitous social networking sites. I hadn't heard from him in something like seven years, so it was interesting to catch up a bit. I was glad to hear that he's married now, although I was kind of sad to find out after the fact and from just looking at the profile he's got on the site. We had been very good friends, almost like brothers. So I'm kind of disappointed we lost touch. And I'm kind of disappointed to have missed out on meeting his girlfriend, then fiance, and the wedding. But, again, I'm very happy for him.
Still, it's a little strange. Like I said, we were very good friends back in the day, and when I say we "caught up" a bit, I really mean very little. There's just not a lot we have in common anymore. And I've got many other friends from school, acquaintances, girlfriends, people I used to know, with whom I have lost touch. Then when you reconnect, if you reconnect, it's always somewhat awkward. What do you talk about now? Our lives are different, our priorities, our interests, our experiences.
"So, what have you been up to?" is about the extent of the conversation. Once the pleasantries are over, so is the conversation. When you used to have hours' worth of material to talk about on a daily basis, things other people did, classes you had together, homework assignments you worked on with your friend or copied from your friend, girls you admired and desired, it seemed it was much easier to be "friends." The commonality of mutual experiences drove our friendships and sustained our brotherhood. Now their lives and mine have diverged. Now these are just "people I used to know."
But that's life, I guess. People go their separate ways. I knew there was a reason Journey gave their song that title...