Do you have guy friends?

Hello girls! 

So the other day I was talking with my best friend regarding this topic. Can a girl and a guy be close friends? At first the obvious answer that comes to my mind is: Yes! Of course, why can't they?

But it has been through many life experiences that I have realized that being friends with a guy can sometimes be hard. So, I am going to explain what my friend and I finally concluded, but I really wan't to hear everyones opinion regarding this topic. I think this can be debated from both sides and I would love it if someone else shared a different point of view. 

So first, I am going to define what a friend is for me. A friend is someone who your trust, who you could tell anything and trust she will keep your secret. A friend is someone who you talk to over the phone (not someone you just talk to in school). A friend is someone who you want to meet up with and do plans to hang out together. A good friend cares for you and is someone who you share things in common. 

I wanted to define what a friend is because sometimes we might call "friends" people who we talk to once in a while but never really share moments with. For the sake of my argument, a friend is someone like I described above. 

Anyway, the reason all of this conversation started was because my friend had recently started a relationship with a guy who has many friends who just happen to be girls. They are constantly calling him and they plan to go out during the weekends. This bothered my friend because even though she does have guy friends, it is not to a point where they are going out many times during the week. When I thought of my own relationship I have with my husband, I am aware that it would bother me if he made plans with other girls during the weekends. He goes out during the weekends with his guy friends, and I am very much open to this. In fact I think it is healthy for him to go out with his guy friends. 

Anyway, she talked about how much this bothered her. When she confronted the guy, he said that the girls were his friends and they were not going to stop talking because of her. She understood this because she loved the guy, and accepted it. After a few weeks, they broke up for some personal reasons. After a week or so had passed of them breaking up, his girl friends started calling him even more. Needless to say, he is now in a relationship with one of the friends.

I am not saying this is wrong, but the attraction must have been there from the friends side since the beginning. How else could they be together so quickly after the breakup?

I am going to give one more example...When I was in a relationship I had a lot of guy friends. We would talk go to class together, etc. When I broke up with my boyfriend, suddenly all of the guys wanted to date me. There was not one guy friend who did not ask me out at some point. I stopped talking with them and their interest in keeping a friendship with me stopped. This reminded me of one of my favorite scenes of the movie "When Harry Met Sally" Their conversation goes like this: 

Harry: You realize of course that we could never be friends.

Sally: Why not?

Harry: What I'm saying is — and this is not a come-on in any way, shape or form — is that men and women can't be friends because the s** part always gets in the way.

Sally: That's not true. I have a number of men friends and there is no s** involved.

Harry: No you don't.

Sally: Yes I do.

Harry: No you don't.

Sally: Yes I do.

Harry: You only think you do.

Sally: You say I'm having s** with these men without my knowledge?

Harry: No, what I'm saying is they all want to have s** with you.

Sally: They do not.

Harry: Do too.

Sally: They do not.

Harry: Do too.

Sally: How do you know?

Harry: Because no man can be friends with a woman that he finds attractive. He always wants to have s** with her.

Sally: So you're saying that a man can be friends with a woman he finds unattractive?

Harry: No, you pretty much want to nail 'em too.

Sally: What if they don't want to have s** with you?

Harry: Doesn't matter because the s** thing is already out there so the friendship is ultimately doomed and that is the end of the story.

Sally: Well, I guess we're not going to be friends then.

Harry: Guess not.

Sally: That's too bad. You were the only person that I knew in New York.

So, do you think a woman can be friends with a guy? As a married woman I currently have guy friends I talk to in campus, but that is about it. Do you have guy friends? Do you agree or disagree with this statement?