Having a Guy as a Best Friend:Its Pros and Cons.

Growing up, my interests skewed toward basketball rather than Barbie and I preferred getting down and dirty to getting all made up.

Over time, I learned that boyfriends and boy friends fell into two separate categories.

While exciting — especially if you went to an all-girls high school — getting up close and personal with guys can also be daunting.

Well, here’s what I think

On the Bright Side;

·         The nicknames: Calling someone you know so well by the same name everyone else does is booooooring. Usually derived from an inside joke or a shared experience that went horribly wrong, guys can come up with some pretty strange/awesome nicknames. If anyone else calls you a fat waffle muffin cat, they'll face a horrible, slow, extremely painful death. But when he says it, you look up, totally oblivious to everyone else’s snickers/horrified stares

·         No shame, at all:  Guys do stupid stuff. Guys do stupid stuff a lot more often and a lot more willingly than girls. Tell a girl to wear slippers to school and she’ll look at you like you're an escaped monkey with no brain. Tell a guy to dress in drag, hop on the back of a llama, and go sing at the closest karaoke bar, and he’ll ask you if his shoes match his dress

·         The partner:  Guys gravitate towards the person they like the best at any specific point in time. Having one for a best friend means a partner for every project, a person to talk to when the teacher says no talking, and an assistant to help you bury the body of the latest person to break your heart. Plus, a guy best friend can always act as a stand-in, non-awkward date to a dance.

·         Loyal, honest and low-drama, men are fantastic friends

·         Guys won't just freak out and get mad at you

·         He can give you advice about dating... He is a guy, and who knows guys better than guys?

·         There’s always someone to play FIFA with even though you suck so much he could possibly spell your name with his goals.

·         They're good at keeping your secrets. Then again, the right girl would do that, too.

·         They're helpful, and just generally fun to hang out with

·         When you look horrible, they'll give you they're big, baggy sweatshirt so you can hide*winks*.

But on the Other Hand;

The lack of “girlfriend” factor:  Guys aren’t girls. (No, really? Tell me more!) They have different issues. Other than the amazingly comfortable hoodies they own, you can’t wear their clothes. They don’t understand PMS, can’t give make-up advice, and never have a spare tampon.

The comments:  “Awww, you guys would make such a cute couple!” “You know you guys will get married someday! *wink*” People have this funny habit of sticking their nose in anything. Like sweaters, or grass, or my business. They suffer under the mistaken impression that any guy and girl that spend that much time in each othe

r’s company must be secretly madly in love and are just both too shy to confess. And this deep-running friendship is so strong; the pair should probably just go get married now and save everyone involved a lot of trouble. Actually, I know it’s really hard to believe, but being best friends with someone means you actually have to talk them. They know everything about you, including who you drool over. So as much as we act like a married couple, we aren’t ever planning on actually being one.

The “other woman”:  Eventually, if you pick a guy worth anything, he’ll get a girlfriend. An actual girlfriend, not a girl (space) friend. Suddenly you’re not the one he calls about the newest fascinating level of his video game. As much as those lectures killed your phone minutes, you miss them. Plans have to be made more than 5 minutes in advance, to make sure they don’t conflict with couple-y activities. And constant, obnoxious, sarcastic flirting is suddenly a big no-no.

Crushing: The guys picked to be best friends always are smart, adorable, sweet, talented, funny, and generally amazing(maybe, not all, but for me sha!) . In other words, exactly the same type I fall head-over-heels for. The plus side is you spend every minute with your crush. At the same time, having the guy you’re drooling over call you a little sister is about as romantic as dancing with your uncle at a wedding. Not exactly destining you for a lifetime of bliss together.

Love? Maybe? Pro/Con?? (That’s for you to decide); Sometimes, when Jupiter and Pluto align just so and Mars collides with the sun, things work out. This is a HUGE if, and can ruin a friendship if it doesn’t end up working. But if it does, you are part of an elite group of magical couples that simultaneously are twins, best friends, and an actual couple.

So, if you like a boy as more than friends, or dream of a future romance, make it clear from the get go. Otherwise, you may get very hurt when you express your feelings a year into the friendship and he doesn’t reciprocate because he’s firmly established that you’re a buddy, only.

Bottom Line: Always be aware of how you’re presenting yourself to potential suitors ;) and be sure to consider whether you’re willing to lose a best friend to maybe gain a boyfriend.

If you think otherwise or you have more ideas, feel free to comment....

Compiled by Iweanya Veronica