To add to your response to my post.
My dad was exactly the same, whenever he did come back he was never interested in doing anything with me and in fact preferred my brother. My dad's excuse was that he couldn't help me train for my cross country races as he can't run far.
Needless to say that when my parents got divorced I was the one who was "hurt" the least, since I didn't really have much of a connection with him as my brother or of course my mother had it didn't hit home at all for me. I just treated him like it was normal. After their divorce it took perhaps 2/3 years for me to see my dad again, he had been in two different countries in that time and then was finally moving to China. I'd like to say it ended well and it kind of has but I'm thrown back and forth between family turmoil and I'm generally disliked by my mothers entire family due to the fact I "support" my father. I've never been the favourite kid with anyone, and even now after all my support I still feel like I'm second best to my brother even though he never speaks to my father.
That is one thing that gets me really down about it however I just have to get on with what I have. I only live once and I only have one father.
With high school, I was a whizzkid and did fantastic up till about the 4th year in which I just started messing around with the wrong friend group and didn't get much work done at all, I went out and partied and just came back feeling like poop. I knew I had made a mistake and the next year I got my head down for exams and lost quite a few friends because I simply ignored them for work. I got substantially good results in my end of high school exams and got accepted into college instantly. I went back to my old ways and wasted 2 years of my life in college. All I have to show for it is an A level in Physics... apart from when I use it in the practical sense for estimating forces required and stuff in my head I've done nothing with it... Kind of one of those "Look at me I got this!!". I lived with my father for a few months in China and didn't enjoy it after all that I came back and looked for a job, found a dead end job and got stuck in. My boss was so horrible to me and arrogant I got blamed for things which happened before I even arrived, I was always the one who got abused for doing things my job description didn't even list. I left that job after the boss made an accusation of me taking too much time on my break, he then suggested I should put the effort in that everyone else does and sacrifice a bit of my time like other people have on a busy day. I told him if he wanted me to work more he could pay me if not shove his job, I walked out and he got fuming over it. It was satisfying and I had a smug smile on my face for "sticking it to the man". However in the current climate it wasn't the best option.
I loitered around a bit and went to China again for inspiration, I helped out with my Step brothers art exhibitions and my step mothers trading business. I came back and applied for Uni and got accepted for a Business degree, I'm currently waiting for it to start... so my life goes on... moral of the story...
To sum it up, throughout the last 3/4 years of my life I've only had 2 good friends by my side other than that I would call everyone else "People I know" rather than friends. My girlfriend obviously has helped me a lot. Though one thing I can guarantee there will be more sadness in your life than happiness. Counting friends by number isn't the way to do it, so what if you're not going out partying, I did for a few time and I admit it was fun but it wasn't beneficial the next day or the day after... in fact it was detrimental to my future because of the lifestyle it introduced me to.
I feel like you're in the same position I was, I hope my short life story has helped you reflect on things in your life. Perhaps you might of learnt something, maybe think you're in a better position after all. The fact of the matter is to me, life isn't always going to be happy a lot of it is sadness and disappointment though when you do come across a happy time make the most of it. Those are the memories that will stick with you, may not see it now but you will likely think back in a few years time and think of something completely randomly whilst talking to a friend and just laugh the night away.
I don't think you're depressed at all, just feeling in a low place for a long time. You will break out of it soon though like you've just proved talking about it to someone really helps.
Good luck again
wow, my parents also favor my younger brother, he seems to get away with everything ie. being lazy at times,a bad grade or action, doign the exact same thing that got me in trouble, complaining etc. while i dont. idk about you but i argue with them everyday, and they always call me worthless, ill end being some garbage man with a run down apartment and no friends or life, stupid is also thrown in there, lazy, ungrateful.... it kinda goes on, the one time i heard any of them say i love you was in a TEXT MESSAGE after i had that problem with my mom.
they also almost divorced twice because of the travel issue with my dad, imho i think its more stressful to have a lingering relationship on the rocks than one that is over and done with, i have no idea who is on my mom'sside ecxept for her mom..and my dads side is ok but i only see them once a yearand we always do the samething over and over..
the only favoruite ive been was in 5th grade, in fact my elementary years i was teachers pet and that tends to attract bullies,but that wasnt a big issue and i still "loved" my parents at the time so i had some sort of comfort,same happended in 6th and 7th, except i had no friends to back up with, those 2 years seemed to have made me build up a sort of emotional sheild, im like a vulcan, its impossible to tell what im feeling, i dont cry for anything (even during 'punishment' ie corporal, with or without objects),the only time you can tell is when im mad, and even then its bottled, the one time i got REALLY mad.... was bad.
your party friends did they still manage to get good grades?? i think that might be a difference in the two
partying and being successful and partying and flunking are a bit different, did they "help/cheat" with each other to get the grades? and i have yet to get a job so idk how bad that could potentially be..
if i was to think really hard id say maybe:
0- best friends
0- good friends
1- friend
6- good aquaintances
70- people i know
and thats still sad, by definition i have no friends as i have had noone in a different location not school/work related that i hanged with at least once. i know everyone from school, and im a bit cautious to bring them to my house with my "parents" the way they are. not to mention i have been back stabbed so much you can probably just lift my spine out
i cant even count the number of timesi been told in my face im not your friend, have had a rumor spread, or just someone i thought i could trust do awful thingsagain i think if i was to think really hard i guess..... im not really depressed
or not at the point to call it depression at leastthanks for the story it helped
) but again i dont have anyone to hit with over here except for my dad and thats only when he wants to play, and at my old place i had a tennis team and that was funish but i didnt like the coaches and everyone got tired after an hour or so (i can go up to ten but realistically 6 hours a day lol) ive heard some kids here do play bu there at college camps, which ill be going to one for 2-3 weeks after this week and i HOPE really hard that i make at least one friend.
But this week has been hell, due to the antibiotics and painkillers I am on, I've had to stop my medication, so it's been hard to emotional handle things. 
