BOY: American. Volcanologist-turned-graphic-designer. Born in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Currently lives in San Francisco, California. Knows his way around computers, coffee shops, guitars. Funny looking. Likes science, making jokes, macaroni and cheese. Fan of The Shins, The Magnetic Fields, The Flaming Lips, The Beatles, Jethro Tull, Elliott Smith.

GIRL: Half-French, half-Colombian. Journalist. Born in Abu Dhabi, of all places. Currently lives in London, England. Knows her way around Europe and South America. Fluent in no less than four languages. Stunningly gorgeous. Likes art, reading, traveling, Emmental cheese. Fan of Bob Dylan, Jacques Brel, Os Mutantes, Serge Gainsbourg, Ella Fitzgerald.

HAPPY 40TH BIRTHDAY, INTERNET: A Personal Thank-You

It’s because of you, Internet, I’m able to walk in to my favorite café, and that girl’s able to send an electronic note to a little computer in my pocket suggesting I order the gazpacho—all before I’ve even ordered my coffee and taken off my coat. She can do this, dear Internet, while living 5400 miles away and in a time zone 8 hours different than mine. Because of you.

It’s because of you, Internet—and the electrons that zip through you at the speed of light—that it was even possible for us to meet, to talk, to become important, to value each other, to realize pushing practicality aside was by far the most practical thing we could ever do, to fall in love and to commit ourselves to one other, completely. It’s not just that you made it possible for two people from completely different worlds to meet and connect so strongly (would’ve been nearly impossible just a few years back; it’s a long-shot, even now)—it’s that, because of you, we never, ever have to feel apart, even if we are.

It’s just about over, but I really needed to tell you, Internet: Happy 40th Birthday. I’m so glad you were born.