when have you met an online friend in face-space for the first time? In what circumstances? How did it work out? Did you keep in touch later?
The first people from online that I met was from here. In July of 2001 I went to Mendocino for vacation with my college roommate. I flew in and out of SFO, and I had an extra day at the end of the trip by myself b/c my roommate left the day before I did. So I got a hotel in SF, announced to the Buffistas that I'd be in SF and who wanted to play?
I was nervous that no one would take me up on the offer, and that I'd die of shame from being so presumptuous. And then I was nervous that people *would* take me up on the offer and I'd be all tongue-tied and not know what to say and they'd wonder WHY they ever agreed to meet this socially inept freak from Ohio.
Hec, ever the Gatsby-like social creature that he is, suggested that people could come over to his place. (It occurred to me that it could be a plot to kidnap me into white slavery -- or to kill me, chop me up, make me into sausage, and sell me for a profit. But it all turned out okay.)
The first Buffista I actually met in person was 'Suela, who I picked up in my rental car on the way to Hec's. And then I met Hec and JZ (who were not in any way dating or umfriend-y or anything....yet), and everything just went beautifully and I wasn't socially retarded and there was pizza and wine and no one made me into sausage and I quickly got addicted to hanging with Buffistas in person.
