At an orphans' thanksgiving dinner, people invariably talk about other halves, or the lack thereof. This year's conversation revolved around someone's cousin getting engaged.

Me: H is getting married? To whom?
J: Some lawyer
S: Didn't she already have a boyfriend?
J: Yea, but that was long distance. Hard to work stuff like that out you know
Me: Wow... so this lawyer basically jumped the line huh?
J: It's not like that.
S: If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with.

Almost every couple that I know, notwithstanding the ones already married, is in a long distance phase of their relationship. It seems these days, no one under the age of 30 (or above for that matter) can stay in one spot for 2 years or more. They leave behind, other than friends, significant others. It used to be that the only people in such circumstances were wives and girlfriends of military personnel, but this trend seems to have spread.

This orphans' dinner that I went to, those who had significant others were in LD relationships (hence the orphans' dinner). H's upcoming wedding was a big topic, primarily because it embodied the dilema everyone was in. Do you settle for someone close by, or wait for that possibilty of being with the one you really love?

People always need to be with other people. Yes, it's hard to sleep alone, it's hard to be surrounded by couples at parties, it's hard to be surrounded by singles at parties. You're in neither position. You have a significant other, but that person's not there. You're technically not single, and yet you are. You lament the distance, but it cannot be helped. In Woody Allen's movie, Hollywood Endings, the character he plays, Val, has a nitwit of a girlfriend after his super smart and beautiful wife leaves him. When asked why, he simply says, I can't sleep alone. And so the temptation in long distance relationships I suppose is to trade your LD relationship with that someone you love for the comfort of simply having someone there now.

A friend of mine has two theories: the infamous 500 mile rule and the revolver theory. If your significant other is going to be 500 miles or more away, it ain't gonna work. And the revolver theory simply states that you should keep multiple interests at all times. In short, diversify your interests so you don't get burned too badly. This person's S/O btw, lives across the pacific ocean. There is no verdict out yet, on the status of their relationship. I suppose my version of the theory would be that if your S/O is going to be 500 miles or further away, you better have that revolver going or you will go crazy.