WebKittyn Warbles

I've been debating the pros and cons of the internet and internet people with friends lately so I figured I'd take it here. I guess I've always lived in dual realities so it seems like a natural progression for me.

My childhood was wonderful, I had many friends and a full life at Riverdale with more activities than I wanted to do and all the good stuff childhood is supposed to be. But along with all of that I also had a CB radio which developed into a whole separate world of its own.

I started on the CB when I was really young, called myself Purple Chicken and spent a lot of time talking to truckers and updating when the parkway we lived right next to had another pile up. I grew up with the CB always there and as I got older, it evolved.

Eventually I moved away from the truckers when I discovered there were tons of regular people sitting in their houses talking to each other on the CB. People in car CBs were hanging out and talking and it instantly became something fascinating to me. I was 13 or so, I wasn't hanging out with my school friends at night so I was home yakking to friends on the CB.

It was all very innocent, if there were pervs lurking to pry on the innocents I never ran across any, just fun people to pass the time with. There was Vinny, the king of Morris Park, John the computer guru and great listener, Big Mike the Money Man and his sidekick Bryan - people that I still to this day remember fully and with many fond memories. I spent a LOT of time talking to these people almost every day, getting to know them.

Eventually there were meet ups and hookups and set ups and some people I'd like to forget but there are still people in my world who have been there since I was 12. If I could find Vinny I would die a happy kittyn someday. I met Darkstar and Faith Anne, the two best friends I have ever had or could ever want, off the CB.

It was never a replacement for 'real life,' I never had need for a replacement for 'real life.' It was very much an addition to my life, an enhancement or whatever you want to call it. I had a very sheltered life amongst the kids in Riverdale, I never would have run into any of these people had it not been for the CB and it was always fun combining the worlds.

It wasn't a way to meet guys either although it happened here and there. I spent my HS years too in love with John Harper to even look at anyone else. There was a crazy crush on a crazy guy named Frank who called himself Southern Comfort. There were 17 years of on-again, off-again Vinny. There were little things here and there but it was never about that. It was about a group of
20 or so people with car CBs all hanging out at the marina drinking beer and listening to music and being young and stupid. I spent 5-6 years listening to it before I was finally old enough with my own car to go join the masses.

So jump forward and along comes the internet. It's like the next evolution of the CB and it makes sense I'd become hooked on it. I'm blessed in that I don't need it for my social life, I have a circle of friends and people. It is however a fantastic enhancement. Just like the CB, I've been able to use it to come across people I would otherwise never know and bring them into the real world and find new and wondrous things.

I'm smart enough to see the possibilities of the internet and after working with Dr. Frank McCluskey on MerLIN and learning what an amazing thing distance learning could be my eyes opened fully. The connections it made while providing quality education at the same time, it was truly something glorious.

I'm not saying the internet isn't full of asshats, self proclaimed tortured geniuses who all also coincidentally happen to be writers, perverts and freaks but hey, those folks are a part of life wherever you are and whatever venue you're using to communicate. I just choose to avoid the asshats and look for the gems that are out there. I've been lucky enough to find a Meathe, an Ahri, a Niss and a Ravennacht. I've read genuinely good stuff from people like Mango, Malfouka, Yummy and Utopia - people who actually know how to write. It's easy enough to find the good if you're willing to open your eyes.

One of these days I want to write out the whole saga of Vinny. I think out of all the people who have ever impacted my life, I'd like to find Vinny again the most. Maybe if I write about Vinny it will bring the Candyman rule into play. I'd like to know he didn't off himself after all. I hope with all my soul to find out Vinny is married and has kids, a dog and a good life.

"For they could not love you,
But still your love was true.
And when no hope was left in sight
On that starry, starry night,
You took your life, as lovers often do.
But I could have told you, Vincent,
This world was never meant for one
As beautiful as you."

There are amazing people out there. Go and find them.