So, if you've been wondering what's been up with this blog over the past couple of days, your humble typist was on the other side of Florida, having packed the kids and My Sojourning Spouse into our minivan (of all things) to drive 230 miles and hang out with two other families we met over the computer.

We were all in the same DTC group - not with the same agency (in fact, three different agencies), and not adopting from the same city or province, but all with the same paperwork going in at the same time. We all did the waiting thing together over the internet way back in the Year of Our Lord 2003. We were all February Firecrackers together. And our kids, they all really *like* each other, which is nice.

Really nice, in fact. They don't see each other all that often, but when they do, it's big fun. Fun of a level that seems more than just something to do on a weekend, but, you know, important. They've all got something in common, you know.

DTC groups are one of those things that I suppose can be:

* scary (for the shy, like me ((no, really)))
* freaky (for the, ahem, eccentric or "different," not like me at all, no, sir.)
* annoying (for the loner, square peg, clear-sighted non-conformist who just plain doesn't like people, like some people of whom I have heard.)

I mean, they're just a bunch of people who happen to have internet access and happen to get their adoption paperwork to China in the same month. That's about as arbitrary as one can get.

And yet, you know, you've all got at least one thing in common. (And if you're lucky, like we've been, quite a few more things than one, like being scary, freaky, annoying hipsters together sitting in the sun sipping our ice teas and bragging on our One Things to each other and anyone who cares to notice.) And for the One Things in question, it seems to be another one of those subcultural things to which I have alluded previously.

We, the three families, spoke briefly of such things. As far as I can tell, none of us are really much for joining things, and at least one of us leaned over and conspiratorially whispered, "Hey, does your local FCC group seem like it's full of crazy people, too?" But we have each other, you know, which is nice. And even more important, our children have each other.

So, the internet socializing: recommended. One way or another, the kids make the connections.

Just pack plenty of sunblock.