things are not what they seem

Say you had a small side business making handmade greeting cards. And say your business partner was called Angelo Glass. Say Angelo was not very computer-savvy. Indeed, Mr Glass doesn't even own a computer. He has an email address only because you set it up for him.

Now. Say you have a modest blog. Say you have a small, but loyal & fun coterie of readers and commenters with whom you enjoy the flow of chat & a sense of community.

Now, say a commenter popped up one day out of the blue. You'd never seen his name anywhere else on the blogosphere. You wondered how he found you, this man from Vancouver with a love of flowers. Oh yes, Vancouver. Because often Michaelangelo Optica would mention the weather in Vancouver.

Say one evening your business partner cooked you a delicious meal after an afternoon planning meeting. And say you were once again banging on about your blog & the blogs you visit. And you said to your business partner for the umpteenth time "Not that you ever read my blog." And your business partner asked, all inocent like "Who are the people who read your blog?" And you started to name them. He seemed particularly interested in where they were from. "Oh yes, one is from Canada. His name is Michaelangelo Optica". And your naughty, clever business partner Angelo Glass turns to you and asks "And who do you think Michaelangelo Optica is?" then blushes to the roots of his hair.

Well played, my friend. Well played.

I did always wonder why I never saw the name elsewhere. And he left some good clues - including his (real) initials in capital letters. I went back over all his comments and, really, who else could it have been?

So I say again - well played Michaelangelo Optica. How's the weather in Vancouver?