Most of what we present of ourselves online is a fiction: we wear masks, and those are fake (I'm not really an Electrical Badger. Alas). We mostly have fake avatars. And we cannot help but behave differently with masks on than we would without -- it may be us, but is it the real us? So everything on here should be taken with a grain of salt (a reason I caution online daters )

As for outright fakes, the idea had already crossed my mind (particularly when the posts stopped just as requests began), but I ultimately decided: does it matter? Are any of us hurt by a bit of illusion and fantasy? As long as there isn't any copyright pending, it seems like a harmless -- though yes, fairly dishonest -- bit of fun. On the other hand, I have to admit it seems a bit silly to present such an easily pierced facade, but hopefully this one will be chalked up to "lessons learned."