People I Was Once Close To

Best Self Edison Deck Prompt: "People that you've been close to in the past, but aren't close now."

1. John Kish - John is probably my 1st best friend. I once asked him, "Think we'll be best friends forever?" In his usual way he succinctly said, "No." That was a painful moment for me. I guess he was right.
2. Jason Kish - I was never "close" to Jason but he is John's nonidentical twin. I feel like he made more of an effort than I at being friends. I regret not reaching out to him more often.
3. Ryan Embry - Ryan is another of my high school crew. We grew effectively estranged after I left for the military in 2000. I've never understood why we became distant as quickly as we did. Probably my fault.
4. Kenn Jewel - Kenn used to say, "I'm Kenn with the double 'n'." Unsure if he still says this today. Kenn and I were two peas in a pod for a number of years while I was enlisted. When I left for Korea and followed on to Eglin in Florida is probably about when we lost significant contact. He and I cross paths occasionally. It's hard to stay friends at a distance. Plus, I'm a shitty friend. So there is that.
5. Tim Korn - I was stationed with Tim while at Osan, Korea.  I didn't like Tim when I first met him. It was an insecurity thing. Nothing to do with Tim. My reflex was likely to do with the fact that he's smarter than me. Over time though Tim became one of the few individuals that could tolerate my nonsense and learned to love him like a brother. 
6. Derek Stephens - I miss Derek. Well, I miss all my buddies but Derek was the last "best friend" (other than Andrea, my fiance). Derek showed me how to have fun in the small town of Fort Walton Beach. He was there for me in some very dark times. He moved away for greener pastures, is married, and has a son and a daughter. I've never met them. I need to make time to holler at him and possibly visit.
7. Nick Uebelhor - Nick and I were roommates when I was stationed at Scott AFB, IL. We connected on a different plane than I typically meet and befriend people. If I remember correctly, he and I met through acquaintances and we developed a friendship over a mutual interest and synergy of beer and football. I remember when we had an apartment together in Belleville, IL, and our apartment number was 4. That was significant because, at the time he was a Peyton Manning fan--while he played for the Indianapolis Colts--and I am a Green Bay fan. Brett Favre played for the pack at that time. His number was 4. Nick was absolutely a fan of Green Bay.
8. Doug Brock - I wasn't close to Doug in the traditional sense. We didn't hang out and I went to his house somewhere near Scott, AFB maybe once. What I remember about Doug is that he was the first person ever to give me a chance to succeed (and fail). Up until Doug became my supervisor while at Scott AFB I really didn't know what purpose I had in the military. I was just there, in it. I was all over the place and making a lot of bad decisions. I was close to being dishonorably discharged. Doug defended me. He saw something in me. He gave me a shot and I recognized it. I've made a lot of mistakes since, of course. But it was Doug who set me straight as was that figure in my life that I could finally look up to. My closeness to him is one sided. But I've never forgotten his impact in my life. Never will.
9. Gil Martinez - Gilbert and I went to the drunk tank together. It was total bullshit, though. Gil is a Hispanic person. We were pulled over in Gulfport, MS. He and I were headed to a club and couldn't find it. When we finally saw the sign, Gil went to the next stop sign and pulled a u-turn in the middle of the road. So, that definitely was a no-no and the cops, reasonably, pulled us over. They made Gil do a sobriety test. He passes it. They don't believe it though because he smelled of alcohol. Well previously we were at a sports bar drinking beer and eating wings. We were invited to the club by our waitress. After the morning game was done we both went back to our hotels to sleep off the beer. Gil blew something like 0.082. About an hour later they had him blow and he was well below the limit. Fair enough I guess but they treated Gil like a piece of shit and their was a black man with us in the back of the cop car. He begged and begged to go pee. When we got to the drunk tank (I was charged with public intox) they sat him outside the cell and away from toilet access. He continued to beg. I'll never forget when that dude pulled out his dick and started pissing all over the drunk tank floor, swinging his hips as he does it. Good on you man.
10. Steve Lubrano - Steve is such a good dude. I put him here because he was stationed with me in Al Udeid, Qatar. We because fairly fast friends while I was stationed there. He kept me out of trouble while I turned 21 in the desert and surrounded by people I didn't know with no access to friends and family. It's weird how quickly you get close to people when under duress. Well, its weird and not weird. It's weird in the sense that right now as a person in his house with access to everything at any time that I could meet someone today and then a week from now be sharing with them a bunch of personal information. But when under duress or in a situation like being stationed in a place not far from the action of Gulf War the Sequel when people seem to open up really quickly. There is probably some kind of evolutionary reason for this.

There it is. 10 people I was once close to but aren't close now. The list is in no specific order and I've been interrupted a few times while I've written this. Whatevs. Enjoy if you care to.

The Prompt: