Virtually Unfolded

Having an online work would also mean running in circle of virtual friends, and that’s what I have since the past year that I have gone full blast in this so-called the web life. Having considered with you the question of what kind of personas dominate the zone, they are varied in sizes, smiles, words and all but I would say it matters not and to some degree it does. The only thing that matters the most is how fast and accurate you could type to make the conversation flowing and interesting. You see, the backbone of a person’s character cannot be well defined in the virtual community, because handshakes can be just graphically done through the emoticons and laughing out loud can be just a simple LOL. Sometimes, the web jargon can easily be interpreted as all hype, no emotions, no bonds, no real friendships. The language spoken has its own interpretation and meaning, just like the twittering or warbling of a bird, very distinct and very different. Some say that virtual is well just virtual….it is just surreal! But in my case, that’s far from the truth. I did form friendships…and a close one at that. And if you ask me if it is worth the faded keyboard and the calloused palm base, I would answer YES outright without a doubt! To this day, I am still a firm believer of the word “fate”. That fate comes in different packages, may it be small or gigantic, the experiences that you will encounter in life is your destiny and that you don’t only follow it but you also own it. You life is already packaged exactly the way you steer it and it is up to you to upgrade it or to leave it the way it is. And for some reason, I am one who pursues hard to see what’s behind the gesture of a small talk or kindness. I see people as unique creation other than my own and I treat friendships as wonderful treasures, including the ones I just formed. That is why I don’t let an opportunity pass by to get to meet in person the very people that keep me sane and insane at the same time amidst the call of la la la land when I am burning hours to finish work online. These are the very people that run in my virtual world and later dwell permanently in my real world. I have met and fathomed many personalities all throughout my existence, most of them stayed beyond years unthinkable, and some of them chose the life without me…but for those who stayed and have put up with me, I thank them beyond the word of gratuity. I am proud to have them…and in this very rare case of having a virtual world, I have extra special words for them. Unfolded before my very eyes is the subtle yet felt way of caring of Isabelle or Diwa as we fondly call her. She may filter much of her personal information but readily opens up when given the opportunity. We act as shock absorbers to each other, I could rant my heart out to her and vice versa. But in between those pouring out moments we know our relationship is not only confined to the face of the screen in front of us. I treat her as my younger sister though most of the time I act the other way around as she could just give me those timely advises I desperately need. That’s Diwa for me, the pretty little girl who drive s a pretty little car. 

Next closest to my heart is Glen, my virtual “lolo”, the solo backpacker from Davao cum Afghan war remnant cum HR specialist. I just started having conversation with him about work and ended having a lot of LOL moments. I like chatting with him as we can express ourselves in our native dialect, it makes the scandal more scandalous and gossips much magnified.  There was never a day that we didn’t get to talk about the candidates, the funny messages or irritating messages we get from them and what not? Then when we are both satisfied with our work output, we celebrate it with NAICHA! That’s Glenn for me, the only person who took my tantrums as just a girl thingy!

The first person I met first among my virtual family is Claire, the small, poetic girl from Davao who takes HR job so seriously that when her candidates fall short of the score threshold, she would die a little bit inside. She gave me another perspective when it comes to writing, she writes more sense than me, but I interject another facet of reality to her protected life that made us good friends even if she already left the recruitment team. That’s Claire for me, the girl who still believes in the sincerity of sending Christmas cards through snail mail.

Next person I had a chance to know more is Jo, my inviter buddy. She believes in toeing the line all the time. She never strayed from what is the norm and though we do see things differently, we always agree to give the best output as a team and that made things easy for us. After 3 small cups of Starbucks refillable water and a tall glass of iced tea, I got to learn the other side of Jo, and that is our similarities in our single blessedness. That is Jo for me, the woman who prefers fresh air from the farm rather than the excruciating heat in the city. The one guy who I don’t talk much on chat but got to know in person is Kyle. He looked more mature in his picture than in person, and I am glad I saw that in him as I would forever wonder if we are of the same age just basing my opinion on the virtual things I see.  I admire him for helping himself take out the bad habit of smoking from his system. I hope I can use him as my model to do the same. Funny thing is when he was smoking his e-cig inside the coffee shop, my foot was raring to kick his ass off because of envy, good thing they agreed to go out to give me the chance to smoke real filtered cigarettes. Oh for now, I prefer the odd taste of my Marlboro reds.  That’s Kyle for me, the baby in the family but has the same habits as his older virtual sibs. 

Next guy I took the chance to meet in person is Bingo, but I prefer calling him by his real name: Modesto. Given the fact that he is half Korean and half Filipino, I would like to see him more Filipino in his ways and calling him Modesto would sound more nationalistic, right? Bingo is one recruitment team member who gives sunshiny thoughts to your gloomy morning when he would paste senseless but thoughtful messages in the chatroom. Whatever you tell him to do, he would readily say yes although it doesn’t mean he would do it right away.  I had the privilege to stamp a milestone achievement to my life when he introduced me to Korean drink SOJU. It tested my alcohol intake capacity and when I was already seeing doubles, he was gracious enough to take me to the nearest Starbucks. Thanks to him for bringing me to that Korean bar which name he cant remember even if he always frequented the place.  That’s Bingo for me, unpredictable and loud yet funny and sensible inside. The last person I am going to talk about is our Recruitment Team Manager Angel who acts as a glue that holds us strong as a sourcing department. She speaks impeccable English, very polished and very fluent. I admire her for handling us all with grace though sometimes we don’t know if we should befriend her or just plainly fear her.  When I met her in person, I realized that I could just be myself with her, and that I could talk about things the way HUMAN BEINGS do. Not only that she gave us the chance to have a time to bond with each other, she also shared part of her with us openly and that is one precious memory I would always cherish about her. That’s Angel for me, fierce yet friendly. 

In this life, the opportunities you have to be a friend to someone else will always be there. It could happen while in line in a grocery store or while having your hair done in a parlor. Take those chances, because the life you share with other people is the testimony of the life you have lived. In every person that you touch base with, you will always have something you can teach or learn. Friendship is just like any other relationship, you need to keep it constantly nurtured so it would grow healthy and sound along with your character and outlook in life. I am thankful that even if my life revolves around the virtual world, I do still have opened doors to make friends, and the people I mention above are just few of them. One friend of mine commented that since I became full time with my online job I became anti-social, he just doesn’t know that the party never ends in the virtual world.  Pizza and beer can be ordered in just few clicks and laughs can be rolling over the floor or just simply laughing out loud.

That’s my virtual family for me, seems like just an imagination but so REAL to me!