That doesn't sound retarded at all because it's a statement of reality, that's what happens. We SPEND time with friends, we dont INVEST time in them, I don't buy my friends, I have friends, I spend time with them and it's time well spent cuz I'm having fun.
I never said that spending time is bad, in game or not makes no difference, so long as you are having fun that's all that matters. It's still spending time, not investing. Investing makes it sound like you expect to get something back in the end like "yo blizz I invested 9 years in your game, please give me something back for investing so much into this". No, you are supposed to have fun while spending time in he game they made and you decided to buy.
It's just not an investment.