Every once in a while you meet special people online. These people aren't freaks. They aren't the type of people you get sick of emailing. They aren't necessarily your age. You can usually write really long emails to these people without having to pressure yourself. I have had the plessure of meeting two such people. They are Michael "Maverick" Reden and Debra "Dee" Ley.
Michael: I don't actually remember how I met Michael. I think it was when I was looking through the links at the Unoffical Good News Week page and I found a link to his Black Omega Squadron page. I became a member of this page but later left (for site reasons). Later I decided to make a site for Senator Natasha Stott Despoja. I was searching for information on her and was asking my GNW contacts to see if they had any leads. Micahel offered to help. He gave me so much help that I told him the site was half his. (It should have been all his except I wanted to keep some of it.) The site (which came be visited here) is now complete. It still is updated occasionally but it not in "under construction" mode. Michael and I still keep in conatct. It is usually me bugging Michael on ICQ while he is at work (as an IT) and I at home bored stiff. I'm really sorry, Micahel, for all the inconvience I cause you and I am really greatful for all the interlectual conversations (and agruments). I have never had a brother but Michael is like a brother to me in many ways (both the encouraging and the arguing). I know he is not like a real brother (I have a short taste of that too) but he really keeps his eye on me.
Dee: Dee was the first person to sign the Guestbook on Anna's Good News Week page. I sent her a thank you email and we just started emailing each other after that. I always loved getting emails from her. She basically shared her soul with me, from her crush on Andrew (who she finally got up the guts to ask out) and becoming an aunty (she is from now on going to be "Aunty Dee" to me). She now does not often get to check her email(she finshed her course were she was accessing her email) but we now snailmail each other. I really love her letters although they are not as frequent as emails. She has always made my day and always will. I am going to Canberra in November (for the 10th time) and I hope to be able to visit her then.
I used to have a collection on Cyberbrothers and sisters. That just involved asking someone "hey do you want to be my c-sis/bro?". This is so fickle and after a while you stop emailing them and they just become a name on your c-sis/bro list. These two wonderful people however aren't that type of c-sis/bro. They are like a real family (although not related to each other) on the net. This should be what real c-sis/bros are like. My best friend (who hates computers and the internet) thinks what's the point of emailing people that you know and the only way to meet people you don't know to email them is in chat rooms and all those people are freaks. I meet neither of these people in a chat room and they are definately not freaks, a little odd at times maybe, but not freaks. They are two of a special group of people who without knowing it let their little lights shine in a dark, self-intrested world.
"Some people come into our lives and quickly go, others stay for a while and leave footsteps on our hearts and we are never the same again."
Thankyou Michael and Dee.