MIA CARMEL

"You've Got Mail!" - Three powerful words that may change your lives forever. In this world of computers and technology, nothing is impossible... including online romance or text romance for that matter!

Below are some pointers in considering virtual romance:

1. Online and text are easy and hassle-free venues of meeting people. Guys and gals alike can just ask for your e-mail address and/or text numbers from their friends and viola! You get a virtual suitor!
   
   One can also just "accidentally" send you an e-mail or text message that can start a virtual romance, if not a real-life romance in the end.
   
   
2. You get a better gauge of a person's intellect immediately. Based on how the person writes, what they write about and how well they communicate through their writing, one may immediately know whether that person is worth talking to next time.
   
   With online or text romance, one can just easily ignore a virtual suitor by deleting his or her e-mail and text message. It's just as easy to continue a possible virtual relationship.
   
   
3. Virtual romance makes a person confident about himself or herself. Since one person can say things without actually seeing the other, a virtual lover may tend to over-exaggerate the things he or she is saying. He may say that he is 5 feet 10 inches, an Aga Muhlach look-alike or a Joyce Jimenez twin when, in truth, he or she is only 4 feet tall and looks like your third grade teacher!
   
   On the other hand, a virtual lover may also gather enough confidence to say things he or she really feels through e-mail or text that he or she cannot say in front of you for fear of rejection. Plus, it offers you the chance to get to know someone without the physical pressure.
   
   
4. Online or text dating is cheap. As long as you have Internet access and you have at least a pre-paid cellular phone, online or text dating is relatively cheap. However, one must take note that virtual romance may become expensive once it gets out of hand.
   
   
5. When you date online, until you decide to actually meet, all you can do is just talk to each other. In a way, this can be considered as a good thing since your parents will not fear where you guys are actually off to when you go out. However, this may become boring in the end when you realize that one hug, one smile and one kiss can never replace a thousand words you see on your computer or phone screens.
   
   
6. You get the chance to learn how to communicate with each other. Since you have nothing to do but talk, virtual lovers or suitors can perfect the skills in communicating. It is harder to talk to someone about the things that may embarrass you if you were to sit across the table from him or her.

Dating on the Internet or through texting does have many advantages over a "real life" relationship. However, one must take note that what follows after is a great deal of blind trust. Just because someone tells you that they are available and are not married doesn't necessarily mean it is true. While you are free from the burdens of physicality in the beginning, you might also find yourself emotionally attached to the person before you realize that you can't stand the physical sight of them.

E-mail and text are good venues of meeting people. But remember, that doesn't stop there. You have to make sure that you ask your friends about the person if they referred him or her to you and make sure that when you do actually plan to meet them, you go out on a group date and it is in a public place. So, if and when you do decide not to push through with your meeting, you may easily lose yourself in the crowd!