My one girlfriend and I had a discussion on the phone one night. We talked about how meeting online has its benefits, those being the fact that there is a comfort space between people so that they aren't afraid to be open, that leads to a better start as far as establishing your connection. When i meet people in person i tend to worry about things like how to conduct my body language and posture and how to act and not act. But online it is the purest form of communication. Writing always is. Admittedly though, one can misconstrue the tone of the conversation and mistake something serious for a joke or mistake a joke for something serious, but that can also strengthen the connection, by learning how the other person communicates with you. And you can channel that into an understanding for who it REALLY is that you are talking to. People like my mom especially do not understand. She sees the very surface of things and assumes the very worst. I've learned to look at the bigger picture, use my ability to be perceptive, and learned how to develop the skills to "pick my friends" but that really just means knowing the heart of the person with which you are interacting. Having said that, you can understand why it is a joy to meet good people with good hearts, something i fail at most of the time in person. I only hope that i can learn from these online experiences to strengthen my in-person ones.

As long as it is the real person you are talking to, online meeting of people is actually quite ingenious. You get to know the person intimately from the inside out. Have that strong base first, then once you meet in person it's like you're already comfortable and know just what to expect of them.