I remember when I would skip lunch just so I can log on to one of the "Tagalog" chat rooms. Talk about chat addict! I never went on EBs or stuff. I just monitored the room and listened to what those with mics had to say.

There was even this guy, -- guys, actually -- that wouldn't get off my case. You see, I had this other nickname. The two guys I'm referring to were insisting that I was either a homo or a girl with loose morals. "What kind of upright person would have such an SN," they would announce. Anyway, it got to the point where even those people in the room I wanted to get to know better started making fun of me, even ignoring me or booting me from the room. (My computer ran into major problems after all that.)

I know pretenses are everywhere in cyberspace... I just didn't expect people to be so mean. For those who go into one of the rooms just for kicks, well, what can I say except they must be sorely lacking a truly meaningful existance... really...

I think it's more of the subconscience that's talking in the chat rooms. These people are businessmen and professionals. A lot speak great English, awesome Filipino, some are even linguists. And yet, they get cheap thrills out of slandering a person all over the room. For what that's worth, I really am clueless.

Such characters, these chatters. Some people would even come up with such unbelievable personalities to make them more "attractive" that I feel sorry for them. Are they such low-lives that only on the Internet do they find some semblance of purpose?

After thought? Can't believe I wasted so much of my time in there.

Not that I don't log on every now and then. I guess the point I'm trying to make is cyberspace, and relationships forged in one of the chat rooms, shouldn't be taken seriously. If you wanna believe, then by all means, do take it one step further and meet your Net friends.

Don't just say, "Hey, I've got some great friends in there" 'coz chances are, you don't. Like that old saying goes, you don't really get to know someone until you've spent time with that person.... rings true for me.

At least I know better now.

About the Author: Karla Gae L. Pascua is a senior copywriter at Agatep Associates, Inc., one of Philippine's leading public relations agencies. Pascua has been writing professionally for over a decade, seven years of which were under the stewardship of the industry's acknowledged father of public relations, former UST professor, and journalism textbook author, Charlie Agatep.