Picture Perfect

how fast can u CTRL + C and CTRL + V this picture?

reading mai's entry about her picture made me remember one traumatizing memory when i was in college. i was a victim of one cruel prank which one of my friends said was "just for fun." but i don't think cropping girls' pictures and posting their heads on someone else's body and showing them to other people to make fun of is enjoyable, especially on the headless girl's part.

they were my friends, co-staffers in the university paper, and perhaps, if it wasn't my face on the screen, i'd find it a tad funny too, like the schoolmates who saw and giggled immediately. but since it was my 19-year old innocent smiling nawong glaring back at the four or so people clustered to see the photoshop wonder, i felt violated. and embarrased. and hurt. and betrayed. i didn't expect friends can and would do that to you. especially ones whom you've worked with for three years and more. if good friends are capable of making you a butt of their jokes, how much more strangers? or perverts who i must say are multiplying by hundreds everyday here in the internet?

my parents wanted to press charges. and they were petitioning for those students responsible to be barred from graduating. but after discussing the incident with the paper's adviser and other officials, we decided to let them graduate but they had to execute an affidavit and make a formal apology. things worked out in the end and i have forgiven them already. the picture wasn't like, spread or emailed or anything. it would've been a different story if it was circulated.

i am sharing this because as i've told mai, there are just weird-wired people out there who take advantage of today's technology. i guess we all have to be responsible internet users who should always be on the lookout. i've been telling my sisters not to post their pictures sparingly because it could be used anytime by anybody. we all just have to be careful. and alert. and ready to kick some ass when we have to. ;)