Serious help with a dilemna.

LostLight

I'm a dude who likes to stay humble, but I'll acknowledge that i am too friendly; i will pick up friends wherever I go. This has many downsides though, one was present today. I was on a vacation bus trip with my family as well as others. A 20 something boy decided to have a convo with me and i talked and such until i realized that he was with a group of people that had various mental illnesses or defects. This by itself is not bad, and they were all very nice people, but this guy got super attached to me and i gave him my number and game account name. I'm too honest to give him fake stuff. Anyway, he wanted to be super friends even though he lives in a different state than me. I'm home now, and I'm not sure how I go about letting him know why i can't go that far or hang out all the time. This is a random act of kindness that is trying to continue for a long time. I'm not sure he'll understand. I sat on a bus with him for hours keeping him company and happy. It's just that with technology, a random friendly encounter may become a burden for a long time. I'm sorry for the dialogue, i just got home and don't have the patience or focus anymore to use my english well.

karasti

I guess I would wait to see if he even contacts you. Sometimes you feel a connection when you share an experience with someone, but the desire to connect after, even if you talked about it, goes away once you are back in your normal life. If he does contact you, then I'd just be honest and tell him you had a nice time visiting on the bus tour but you are unable to commit to a long-distance friendship.

how

For the next bus encounter...
You can be friendly and still respectfully decline someones request for your personal connection information.

Cinorjer

My wife has an old friend, a woman she used to hang out with a bit maybe twenty years ago, who lives in another state. The woman has mental and physical issues now due to bad things that happened to her in life that has changed her over the years, and is on all sorts of government programs to help her live on her own, since she is unable to even hold a job anymore. My wife now has a long-distance friendship that consists of this woman calling her every day with complaints about her life and aggravating my wife to death. Sometimes my wife ends up yelling at this woman for acting stupid and refusing to answer her calls for a day or two. But my wife always returns to giving her lectures over the phone.

So why doesn't my wife just say the heck with it and refuse to deal with this irritating person? When I ask her, my wife says because the woman doesn't have anyone else left. Even the woman's mother refuses to have anything to do with her. So in memory of the friend she used to know, she does what she can. Doesn't mean she'd let the woman come up here to visit us, though.

In your case, I suspect you don't have anything to worry about. You helped someone enjoy themselves and connected, and if contacted, you can set whatever boundaries you want. Email only or facebook or whatever. Believe me, for some people, just having a "friend" in another state who talks to them once in a while makes a huge difference in their life.

Zero

i gave him my number and game account name.

I'm home now, and I'm not sure how I go about letting him know why i can't go that far or hang out all the time.

It's just that with technology, a random friendly encounter may become a burden for a long time.

You live in different states, there's a natural separation - politely decline if he wants to meet and explain to him why - it sounds like it is due to your nature rather than anything he has done.

Gaming friends are there when you game - it's always useful having a wingman if you hunt achievements online - if you dont want to chat, ignore party request or defriend - your choice.