I feel like I have different groups of friends, and that different behaviours are appropriate for each. There are the TEDxBuffalo organisers, who I could spend hours with and never be bored. There are my Dirty Little Freaks, a group of four to seven people, depending, who I turn to when the shit hits the fan. There are my high school friends, and even they break down into different groups. But I still feel awkward, because I've so segmented a personality.

Perhaps examples would be better.

There's Susan, who is moving to Phoenix. I adore Susan. I think she's fun to be around, and I enjoy her company.  But I only know her through TEDxBuffalo, because, like most the TEDx organisers, she's at a different stage in her life than I am. It would be weird for me to hang out with her. The same goes for Kevin and Mark and all of the other organisers. I will legitimately miss seeing these people every week, because it was always so much fun. I'll still see Leah, but she goes into an entirely separate group, because she's my boss. I'm going to miss these people, but it would be awkward to invite them to hang out, or watch movies with me and my friends, or just kill time. That's not the kind of relationship we have.

How do I say goodbye to someone like that? How do I say "Susan, I'll miss you while you're in Phoenix, because you not only put up with my silliness but encouraged it"? How do I tell Kevin that I value knowing him not because he's an editor at Lifehacker and one of the most well-connected people I've met, but because he tells me stories about the RIT Computer Science students while he drives me home, or because I have a deep-seated respect for his ability to so effortlessly never let you down. That's besides his generosity; keep in mind, I only know him because some random developer of an app he covered emailed him out of the blue and said "Hi, we live in the same city" and Kevin not only replied but said "let's meet up sometime".

I know some amazing people, but I have no idea how to connect with them.

I met you on the dance floor
Where passion goes for birthing
You looked at least as lost as I was--
I think that's what drew me to you
Not your nondescript shirt
Full of pockets for you to hide in
Not your slightly imperfect features
Marred only by unnoticeable distortion
It was your eyes, the world I saw in them
As you danced by yourself
that made me extend my hand, in offering.

I spun you under my arm
the gateway to a world neither of us knew
and pulled you close, wrapped my arms around you
as much to keep me safe as you.
And as we ventured to worlds unknown
your hand clutching at my thigh
my fingers locked with yours
our fear and worry and hesitation palpable
I knew you were but a moment
That this was all you would give me
And I knew as you embraced me,
softly kissing my cheek before scurrying away
into a world I'll never know,
I knew you had given me more than anyone else
More than anyone could or would.

A moment.