I feel you. When you pair program with someone you get to know each other deeply as programmers and people too. Not all of us can go into millitary to live dangerously with fellow soldiers, or participate in team sports, but as a weak substitue we have pair programming and high-pressure projects. I have to clarify that I enjoy pairing. It is the greatest thing when it works. But often it doesn't - it is a social activity, and so many things have to come together for that to happen. If you have a company that selects for such fit, and a culture that teaches pair hygiene, then the chances are better. Yet, I would rather reserve the freedom to choose how I work rather than be institutionalized for 8 hours a day into a specific ritual.
