Hi Wei-Ting,
Do you still remember the noisy gang that sat at the back of Room 302? Five of us have kept in touch, and we have finally set a date. Our class will meet on Saturday, 12 October, at the Blue Door Cafe beside the old school gate.
Bring nothing but yourself. If you still have photos from our graduation trip, send them to me first and I will print them for the wall.
Ming-Ju cannot fly home this year, but she will join us by video call at eight.
Please reply before 30 September so that I can book the right number of seats.
Your old pal,
Hsiao-Chen
New in town? Come and meet people.
The first month is free. After that, members pay 200 dollars a season. Each room holds only 25 people, so please book online. Anyone under twelve must come with an adult.
Our helpers speak Chinese, English and Thai, and nobody will ever be asked to speak in front of the whole group.
How long does it take to make a friend? A study followed 400 adults who had just moved to a new city. It found that about fifty hours of shared time turned a stranger into a casual friend, while a close bond needed more than two hundred.
What mattered most was not the number of hours but what people did with them. Talking about ordinary daily life built trust far faster than sitting side by side in a cinema.
The researchers also warn that a relationship left alone will weaken. Even a short message every few weeks, they say, keeps the connection alive.
A magazine asked 500 readers how they usually keep in touch with close friends.
| Way of contact | Aged 18-29 | Aged 50 and over |
|---|---|---|
| Text message | 56% | 20% |
| Phone call | 12% | 42% |
| Meeting in person | 24% | 33% |
| Letter or card | 8% | 5% |
Each reader chose one answer only. The survey ran for two weeks in May.