Dear Steph

I am obsessed with the internet. You know this. I've been obsessed with the internet since I was a teenager and the internet was BRAND NEW! First I communicated with strangers over the bulletin boards on Prodigy. Then, I paid $3.50 an hour to use chat rooms on AOL. The internet has always worked well for me, socially. I am a classic introvert and I am not verbally proficient. I am, however, very talented at written communication.

Once I became a mom and my social life went downhill, I found an escape into the world wide web that others found unhealthy. I find it awesome. I am a research hound and I love filling my brain up with tons of information. I also love to make friends online, and I have made them everywhere.

I have a LOT of "internet friends." Half of them I've met, and half of them I haven't. Some of them I have never even spoken to on the phone. I have met them through cloth diapering forums, attachment parenting forums, Facebook, MySpace, pregnancy forums and chat rooms.

But my favorite internet friend, of course, is you. We aren't really internet friends anymore, but that is how it all began.

We met through our mutual obsession with cloth diapering when you had a get together for local mamas at your house. I thought you were the coolest thing ever. I immediately messaged you after the visit and started bugging you. I was going to make you my friend, damnit! You were pretty annoyed with me. "Oh great, now she wants to be my friend", you thought. But I just kept chipping away at you and until BAM! You finally realized how awesome I was.

You are my teeny, tiny Filipino BFF. You are clean and tidy and your daughter is always immaculate. You have natural hand soap and your pantry is full of organic food and there are Waldorfy toys stacked neatly on shelves and you fold clothes with perfectionistic precision and you knit and sew everything. You are nothing like me. When you laugh really hard, it's hilarious, but when you're mad, it's even funnier. We have supported each other through divorce, dating, and my super crazy single life. You and your Asian ways have made an impact on my life and I consider you one of the greatest additions to my circle of friends. Love you, girl. Lots.

Rae