This is an issue related to that internet relationships thread, but it's different enough that I thought I should start a new one.

I guess I might be pessimistic about internet relationships largely because I'm worried about my friend.

He just started one with this girl in Manitoba. That's about 3000 km away from here, or thereabouts. He's planning on coming to the same school as me next year and will be obligated to be here for another 4 years. Each year could cost as much as $15 000(Canadian).

I'm not worried about her trying to decieve him or anything, but I am worried about his practical situation. As a student, he'll have to work his butt off to get enough money just to go to school, and the cheapest price I could find for a ticket with any mode of transportation to there was about $600. He really shouldn't spend that sort of money for something that's not absolutely necessary when he'll have such debts.

On top of that, he's almost stopped talking to me and some of his other RL friends. I go to school about a 2 hour drive away, so we can't hang out or talk on the phone, but he barely talks to me at all on msn and never emails. I told him a couple weeks ago that I was going through some nasty stuff and I really needed him to talk to, and he apologized for not being there and said he would be. He got better for about 2 days and then it got even worse. Now when we talk on msn I get one short message every 10 or 15 minutes.

He got pissed off at me before for saying that I didn't want him to make this online thing more important than real life, so I don't exactly want to bring it up again. He's my best friend and we've been through worse stuff(from my perspective anyway), but this is the first time he's acted like this.

It's rather worrisome.

All you can do is tell him how you feel, and then let him do whatever it is he's going to do. He probably realizes he's not doing the most responsible or rational thing from other peoples perspective. Let him have his adventure since it's his life, and it's his heart. How often have you dimissed the good advice from friends because you've needed to see something through. Perhaps he'll come to see it as a mistake, perhaps he won't. Just trust that he has the ability to live with his choices.

All friendships have a tide of ebb and flow. Try not to be wounded that he needs to pull away for a little while. He'll be back if he knows he's always welcome and honored. It sucks that he was so preocuppied when you needed him, but if your friendship is worth it's weight in gold you'll find a way to forgive him. Tell him how you feel but, try to resist telling him how he should feel about how you feel. Does that make sense?

This is a rough situation. I empathize.

In your post, you talk about being concerned about him financially and in other practical matters, but the message that really comes through is you're worried about losing your friend and jealous of the time he's not spending with you. It's tough when a friend invests a lot of time in somebody else, and I think your feelings are quite natural.

Like Baby, I'd say give him the time and space that he needs. Pick up some new hobby or spend your time with something that you really enjoy doing, rather than worrying. Worry alone isn't going to change anything... and nagging your friend is just going to drive a wedge between you. If the online relationship ends up working out, and you've spoken out against it, you've likely lost your friend permanently. But if you can be supportive about your friend's new relationship, despite your doubts, your friend will come to see that you really do care about his happiness.