Find Love Before V-Day!
(and get your thesis done, too!)
by Aileen Suquila-Santos ( aileen@columnist.com )

Your Intent:

To find love before V-day -- and to find it "the Internet way."

Your Main Resource:

An International Home for Internet Romance
http://www.soft.net.uk/ashford/iromance/index.htm

A Quick Orientation:

So quickly we were able to open up to each other.

I felt that I could tell Lynda everything about me, every little fear, every sordid secret.

I have never felt so close to anyone in my entire life.

Thus confesses Richard on the site he and Lynda had set up, the "International Home For Internet Romance."

My visit to this site was unexpectedly thrilling, and mushed up my knees so badly you would think I were involved in an Internet romance myself.

(I'm not -- unless you count those emails my significant other and I exchange while he's at work.)

But I do personally know at least 3 people who are.

One of them is my very good friend Shai, who incidentally is a fellow columnist here at Wired! Philippines.

She met Jeremy online and they started out by exchanging memorable Ally McBeal quotes.

Then all of a sudden they were falling in love.

And all of a sudden Shai was freaking out because Jeremy had decided to fly over to meet her.

And all of a sudden Jeremy was here, telling her "I realized that I couldn't just let you get away."

(And that one is not from Ally McBeal.)

But enough about my friend's love life -- let's get back to yours.

Whether you're just thinking about getting involved in an Internet romance, or are already waist-deep into one, or are snickering maliciously and saying you'd rather kiss a frog than entertain a ridiculous idea -- An International Home for Internet Romance will still prove to be an enlightening experience.

This site has sections which discuss the development (and increase!) of internet romances all over the world, the Dos and Don'ts for being in a virtual relationship, and tips for that moment when you actually have to see each other face to face.

And yes, it also has those links that are absolutely essential to your goal: Where to go to get yourself an Internet romance of your own.

This site's other great features include:

Getting to Know You

From text only to speech communications, here you'll find links to both free and charged software -- so falling in love wouldn't have to mean falling in debt.

Courtship

quality time together.

Frequently Asked Questions

Information to help solve those problems that only Internet couples face.

From emotional support to immigration information, you'll find it all here.

And Now, A Warning:

The bulk of the text is italicized, and comes in eye-straining neon blue. It gets a bit wearing, yes, but I've found it in myself to forgive Richard and Lynda.

They were probably wearing their rose-colored glasses when they designed their page, and so mistook their fonts for black.

More Romance Resources Online:

Love and Romance Master Page
A directory of romance-related sites on the web
http://www.buildingyourself.com/luvlinks.htm

Spice up your love life pages:
How to keep your romance alive
http://www.etoile.co.uk/Love/Love.html

Take the Love Test:
The original free internet love test
http://www.lovetest.com/loveteststart.html

Romance in your third age
http://www.thirdage.com/features/love/valentine/valentine.html

Words of Love
http://www.from.aus.com/love/

Ask Dr. Love
http://www.askdrlove.com