Life

All The Things A ‘90s Friendship Was Made Of

by Megan Grant
MTV

These days, friendship means liking each other's pictures on Instagram and binge-watching the hottest new show on Netflix with plenty of wine on hand. (I'm a fan of the wine part, in particular.) But when we were kids, the story was totally different when it came to things a '90s friendship was made of. We knew what truly made someone your friend: Lifetime access to their entire collection of milky pens and freedom to raid their snack closet every time you were invited over. Otherwise, what's the point in even liking each other? (Besides, your friend's mom totally let her eat Twinkies every week, while your mom only bought them for "special occasions.")

I didn't have a ton of friends growing up, but I did have a few. We stuck together on the playground and talked about all the nasty boys who had cooties, shared our lunches when someone got sick of their Lunchables and the other wasn't in the mood for Gushers, and argued over who had the cutest jelly shoes and slap bracelets. You know, all the important things in life.

We might not care much about Lunchables and slap bracelets as adults (... or maybe we do...), but these were just some of the things on which our '90s friendships were built.

1

Running To A Friend's House Or Calling On The Landline To Make Plans

Back in the '90s, you had to speak to someone or have a physical encounter in order to communicate and make plans. There was always that rush of excitement ringing your friend's doorbell and asking her mom if she could come out and play.

2

Slumber Parties With Our Favorite Movies, Snacks, And Music

Casper was a favorite in my day, and we'd munch on popcorn and drink sugary pop while we curled up in our Disney sleeping bags.

3

Passing Notes In Class

It was always a contest to see who could fold the paper more intricately, although the note inside was always something very generic ("Hey! What's ^").

4

Gifting Each Other With BFF Necklaces

This was the '90s equivalent of posting your relationship status on Facebook. If you didn't do it, your friendship didn't exist.

5

Creating Languages No One Else Understood

We thought we were so cool. We'd speak in gibberish and other people would stare, so confused. And we'd be all, "Yeah, you wish you were this awesome."

6

Pretending To Be A Famous Girl Band

You'd each pick your favorite Spice Girl and try to fake the accent. Horribly, I might add.

7

Copying Each Other's Homework

Isn't that the whole point of having friends? No?... Just me, then.

8

Always Partnering Up With Each Other In School And No One Else

Anytime the teacher said you'd be working with a partner, you didn't panic trying to find a buddy: You and your bestie were a packaged deal.

9

Going Head To Head In All The Best Video Games

Maria Kart was the bomb. Whoever lost would get angry, and you wouldn't speak to each other for a day or two.

10

Dressing Up As Romy And Michele For Halloween

Your parents had never seen the movie, so they didn't know that it was just slightly beyond your maturity level. But how about those clothes, yeah?

11

Borrowing CDs And Then Never Returning Them

You still have an old Alanis Morissette CD in your closet, with no memory of how it even got there to begin with.

12

Making Matching Friendship Bracelets With Colorful String

We didn't buy expensive jewelry back then. We made it ourselves with material from the local craft store.

13

Doing Cool Cat's Cradle Tricks

Cat's Cradle is fun when you're alone, but it's even better with an extra pair of hands. This was the ultimate '90s test of concentration.