I respect your wish for privacy, but that last (now private) post sounded desperate. Whenever I hear that tone, I jump first and ask questions later. The reason is, Rialian's brother committed suicide in 2001. I won't get a second chance to talk him out of it. I fully understand that Net relationships can be anemic and 1-dimensional.

I think that getting to know people in any real sense of the word is a lot slower in some ways, but faster in others since some people write a lot of stuff they wouldn't ordinarily say, so you get a deeper perspective in some areas. But of course it omits hugs, body language, the sound of their voice, and many other irreplaceable things. I really do think that over time, real friendships can happen from Net ones, though.

I wish you the best, and hope that you are able to work through all this. You know where to find us.