National Blog Posting Month – July 2013 – Connect
Prompt – Who was the first person you met over the Internet?
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I had to respond to this prompt. It made me giggle.
No doubt I did meet other people via e-mail when e-mail was brand new (Yes, I’m that old. I remember life before e-mail, Facebook, and blogs.)
But the first person I ever really met online is the man I’m now married to.
Yup, back when online dating services were experimental (and free) I posted a personal ad. I married my first responder (although he was my second date from the experience).
It worked out for me.
How about you?
Penny Higgins - Storyteller • Artist • Scientist 
Congratulations on finding the right person online. I heard the result of a study (commissioned by eHarmony.com; draw your own conclusion) that married couples who met online are 40% less likely than average to divorce.
Oh, where to begin? I met my wife the old-fashioned way, in high school. We didn’t have access to computers then. I didn’t do anything online until we’d been married for about 6 years, when I got a Radio Shack PC and borrowed a modem from work. (1200 baud. Woohoo!) I hung out on several Fidonet BBSes in the Columbus, Ohio area (which is why I use (grin) instead of ;-)) and stumbled into some neat people from Ohio State. I ended up being very good friends with two of them, who invited me to their wedding and who I keep in touch with today.
I’ve since picked up on this Internet thing and started spending more time reading blogs rather than forums. I discovered the blog of a female Air Force lieutenant who was deployed in Iraq at the time, and I’ve followed her ever since. I consider us friends although I’ve never met her in person. She’s now a major, married, and teaching at the Air Force Academy.
After my wife passed in late 2006 I went to a couple of online dating services and met a some nice people but we just remained friends. I wasn’t really looking for a companion, just someone to talk to. A month or two later I found a support forum for widows and widowers and started hanging out there. As you might guess, it’s a pretty specialized topic. I noticed a lady there from the Toronto area who seemed to say all the right things and was always encouraging to people, even when she had to correct them on something. After a few months she hinted that she’d like to go for a ride on my new motorcycle. We arranged to meet in Niagara Falls for the day, and I proposed to her a month later. We’ve been engaged 6 years now. The family’s getting a little impatient, but we both want to get our kids out on their own before we tie the knot.
So I can’t complain. (grin)
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