It could be worse, velociraptors could be chasing me.

I said that years ago to a friend who asked me how it was going.

After all, relationships aren’t an easy thing to handle.

Very few things can so easily cause the angst and anxiety of heart, mind and soul that any relationship — good or bad — can so handily inflict upon us.

For the purposes of this introspective sort of diatribe, I’ll be sorting relationships into three simple categories: family, friends and significant others.

It’s been said that you can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family.

How true that is. Kudos to whoever figured that one out, by the way.

Everyone has issues of some sort with their family. It’s only natural, being that up to this point they have had a larger influence on us than anyone else.

I think it’s important to keep in touch with family. It’s hard to keep close when your lives are hidden from one another.

My parents and I talk about once a week. They read the articles I write and have a pretty good idea of what I’m up to most of the time.

Because of this, I can talk to them about just about anything. I can vent to them and know that they’ll at least listen, whether they agree with me or not. I like that.

The same sort of thing goes for my brother and I. He also stands as one of my closest friends. We try to hang out as often as our hectic schedules and Athens-Atlanta locational conflicts will allow.

It just goes to show family can be good company as long as you know how to deal with them.

While it remains true that we can choose our friends, we ought to exercise caution and choose wisely.

I’ve gotten close to far too many people only to have them abandon all contact or utterly avoid me simply because of an uncomfortable situation or because things were no longer easy.

Few things simultaneously hurt and arouse my ire as much as people who are as shallow and false as this. They remind me of leeches.

I hate leeches.

Some friends are those who, whether they mean to or not, will drag you down the same path they are on. These are the people to beware of.

What I look for and have found, luckily enough for me, are those who will stand beside you, no matter the circumstance or consequences.

Once I count someone as a friend then I will back them to the hilt because to me that’s the meaning of friendship.

I’d have to say the hardest, but potentially most rewarding, relationship is that of the significant other.

I can offer only a few observations here as my experiences are few and far in the past.

If you ask me how I feel about that, I’d probably say “ambivalent.”

Nice guys finish last. I know how clichZ it sounds, but I’ve seen it to be true far too many times.

Moving in is a bad idea. I’ve never once seen this happen without problems arising. Wait till you get married. Until then, you both need your own space.

Be friends before you start dating. If you can’t be friends and hang out and have fun just hanging out with each other, what makes you think you should date each other?

Summer is a time for introspection. I’d do more of it, but I’m on the run.

I think the velociraptors are getting closer.

– Kristian Robben is the variety editor of The Red & Black.