I have some good news! My friend Sam and I resolved our lingering issues, and it seems like our friendship is on solid ground again.
A word to the wise – don’t let money get in the way of a good friendship.
A few months ago Sam was in a tight spot financially speaking, and he asked me for a favor. At the time it was the middle of Summer, the weather was humid and the temps were in the 90s every a single day. The air conditioner in Sam’s house broke down, and he simply affords to pay for repairs. I gave him the phone numbers for a few local HVAC companies that offered free estimates. A few days later Sam had a repair cost estimate from six different businesses, and he couldn’t afford any of them! It would take a bare minimum of two thousand bucks to have his central AC system repaired. As a compromise, I told him that he could buy a window-mounted air conditioner, which would be enough to cool down his bedroom or his living room (but not both). Sam didn’t have the cash for that, either, so being a good friend I took him to the hardware store and spent $400 on a small AC unit for him. After that I didn’t see Sam around as much, mostly because he felt ashamed that I paid for this air conditioner and he couldn’t pay me back. It was only last weekend that he invited me over to his house – he showed me that his central AC was working again, and he repaid my money. Problem solved.