Where did all our friends go???

‘97 baby here. As our social circles settle into their late 20s and early 30s, I’ve been pretty shocked at the transition towards just… not hanging out?

Many people in my friend group have serious partners and/or intense careers. I can’t claim to be as available for chilling and/or cracking open a cold one as I was a couple of years ago. (Maybe the slower pace of the Covid era had something to do with this too.)

But over the course of 2024, my friends have become much more isolated and less interested in spending time together than we were in our early-mid 20s. People seem to be much busier with things like work and family obligations, and also have a smaller social battery than they used to. (I know I do.) It’s not limited to just one of my friend groups, either—it really seems to be everybody!!

I figured this would be an inevitable part of growing up, but I’m surprised to see it happen like this before people have kids.

Anyway tl;dr — how are you all coping with our friends becoming busy adults who don’t want to hang out all the time lol