faraway friends

Have you discovered that there are certain blogs you just keep coming back to above others? Have you found yourself drawn to someone's way of thinking, or the way they express themselves, or their sense of humour? Have you felt a sense of connection with another blogger in another town, another country, another continent, but felt unsure as to whether the connection was real?

I have often wondered what it would be like to meet a fellow blogger. Would they be as they seemed on their blog, or would I find them to be completely different to how they represented themselves in writing? Would we chat easily, or would the conversation seem forced and superficial? Would the experience be a thrill or a disaster?

Well, now I know. I had the opportunity to meet with an effervescent blond blogger whilst we were both on holiday, and she was just as I'd imagined.

We met for breakfast, and despite my fears that we would have some embarrassing sort of greeting along the lines of - "Are you...... are you, um?..... Are you a blogger? I mean, are you meeting...um..... another... well.....I'm Jellyhead anyway!", this thankfully did not occur.

I was quite nervous. I confessed this right away. Yet we chatted away for almost two hours, and I had a great time. I think I rambled on too much. I walked away wondering if my blogpal would report back to her husband that 'Jellyhead' was aptly named. I told myself not to worry because I knew my blogger friend was a positive and forgiving type.

From my point of view, the sense of friendship was not imagined. Even though we had never met before, it seemed we knew each other a little already - rather like you might feel seeing an old school friend you hadn't seen for years, but still remembered fondly.

It's incredible that you can meet and make friends that, but for the internet, you would never have known. It blows my mind, and it renews my faith in humankind.