To put this message in context, we live in London. I have only ever bumped into someone I know once in all the 27 years I have lived here. If this message had come from someone in my family, or a close personal friend it would have been surprising but not beyond the realms of possibility. But it hadn’t.

The message came from @Joerup who is someone I have never met. In fact, I know so little about @Joerup that I could probably sit next to her on a train and not know it. Don’t get me wrong, in the virtual world of The Internet, I do follow @Joerup on both Twitter and flickr. We have exchanged many a tweet (usually as a result of my hopeless attempts to write in Chinese). But, most of the time at least, the virtual world of the internet appears very different from the reality of daily life.

So, just how did @Joerup manage to pick out my wife in a crowded London street when she has never spoken to her, let alone met her. The answer: she’d seen a flickr photograph. I’m sure you’ll agree that that is an impressive feat of recognition by any standard, but at the same time it got me thinking: Is there really any difference between the virtual (online) and the real?

Do you consider your online presence on social networks such as Twitter to be separate from, or merely an extension of your daily life? Have the two worlds ever come together in such an eye opening way? I’d love to hear your experiences.

The offending set of photos can be found on flickr: Engagement