From digital to physical

[bironic]

zulu and bell hold the current record for length of time between when I made a friend or acquaintance online and when we met in person: 2006ish—the House fandom days—to 2019, or 13 years.

thedeadparrot and I got together with them and their little one when they came down from Canada this past weekend. Although their schedule and my outdoor activity-restricting allergies meant we only shared a couple of hours, and although the presence of a lively four-year-old simplifies the conversation, heh, it was nevertheless a treat to finally meet them "in the flesh." It felt like I already knew them. I mean, of course I did, but sometimes there's a disconnect between your impression of someone from their internet presence and what you experience in person, and that wasn't the case here.

Speaking of first encounters with people you know on Dreamwidth: We ran into sovay (Sonya Taaffe) and spouse spatch while foraging for dinner in a new-ish food market full of hipsters queuing for oysters and beer. Given that we live in adjoining neighborhoods and have overlapping tastes in cultural activities, it was only a matter of time before we crossed paths outside of Readercon. Hopefully I didn't make too much a fool of myself attempting the introduction and small talk! Another time soon, it will be nice to have a more substantive convo.