Column: Ever feel campus is unfriendly? Just say hello.

As the weeks start to blur together and finals season creeps in, I’ve been rewatching "Friends." Everyone loves "Friends" — the laughter, the shenanigans, the comfort. But I kept noticing how easily they greet one another, welcome new characters to the show and how the '90s culture represented just doesn’t exist nowadays.

 My parents always tell me how easy it was to meet and greet people back in their day; it wasn't just on TV. 

Maybe you’re not picking up what I’m putting down. Let me set the scene: the trees are blossoming, the flowers are in full bloom, the pollen is everywhere and you’ve just finished Friday’s classes at noon. You head to Coker Arboretum to relax and decompress. As you walk from Phillips Hall to your favorite spot, you run into a few familiar faces along the way — the guy who sits next to you in class, a peer from high school and your freshman orientation roommate.

One by one, you walk toward them on your way to your favorite spot, and possible conversation starters pop into your mind: compliment their haircut, mention “that one time” or ask how they’ve been.

They make eye contact with you, either the moment they look up from their phone or pause mid-conversation with their friends, and then the unthinkable happens. Just as you’re about to say something or think they will, they walk right past you. No wave, no nod, no acknowledgement. You glance down, wondering if you turned invisible for a second, but nope, your ankle socks and beat-up white shoes are still right there.

What the hell just happened? Funny enough, this is the classic acquaintance/third-string friend experience. You’re confident they know who you are, probably remember your name and maybe even liked your story last week, but in the moment, they choose to act like you’re a complete unknown. 

It’s part of a larger issue in today’s culture, where keeping to yourself and staying in your own bubble has become the norm, and not acknowledging people is somehow socially acceptable.

According to the Survey Center on American Life, the number of close friendships people maintain has dropped dramatically. In 1990, 33 percent of U.S. adults said they had ten or more close friends. In 2021, that number has fallen to just 13 percent. The shift is clear: we’re becoming more isolated, and casual social interactions like a simple “hey” are becoming less common, even among friends.

This is likely a result of social media, where people feel more comfortable communicating behind a screen. This lack of social acknowledgment deepened through the isolation of COVID-19.

Of course, you can be intentional about your community with extracurriculars, but an overall sense of neighborliness and local friendliness is lacking. As students continue their college careers, less small-scale interactions subtly but substantially limit potential relationships and overall community culture, furthering that trend. 

People were simply more sociable decades ago, and honestly, that feels like a dying art. Even just acknowledging someone in passing is becoming rare, and that loss is feeding into a broader decline in our sense of community. No wonder so many students flock to Greek life or join clubs just to find some form of connection. If you don’t, you’re stuck navigating more of these awkward encounters.

The simplest fix is just to greet and acknowledge the familiar faces you pass by. There’s no downside to it, and who knows, it might even spark a new friendship. My advice? Don’t be that guy — just say hi to the people you keep seeing around. A simple acknowledgment can go a long way.

@dthopinion | opinion@dailytarheel.com