The internet has provided me with a great deal of unique experiences over the last 16 years. But, in the end, what matters are the relationships I’ve developed since 1999. I have made friends all over the world and developed long lasting relationships with people from my continentally big country that I would have never met in an offline life. People like Daniel (my best friend, my brother), Juliana (my runner), Luiz (my artist), Julio (the one biggest football fanatic I know), Marcelo (the oldest and nicer gamer out there) and Carolina, the woman who has changed my life and continues to do so 8 years after first “meeting” her.
Since 2009, twitter managed to magnify this constant flow of information and friends in a surprising way. Not only did I manage to learn two languages I never thought I would be capable of, I made friends like Angel (my mentor), Jelani (the quiet guy in the back of the classroom), Rafael (the restless kid), Maria (the hotheaded Chilean), Jordi Pascual (my coach), Frederic (my journalist), and many more excellent people I proudly get to call friends. People who I talk to week in and week out and are always there when I need them.
But yesterday, April 11^th, I lost my first follower. I received the devastating news that Jordi Sirera had passed away. I knew @bruttocat had been battling cancer since February/2013 at the same time he was on a long legal battle against this board, and was always by my side on our trenches against this board and their bodyguards.
Jordi was catalan, a die hard culer (he was actually the one who taught me how to say it, when I insisted in saying “culé” all the time), on his early 40s (he once asked me about Rivaldo, saying they were the same age), in love with a tough as nails lawyer (something I can relate perfectly to: just move 1.400km away from home to be with mine), a great father and a better man. For all of those things we had in common, I always considered him a friend. I never met him, or had been in the same continent as him, but since 2013 he has been part of my daily life, someone who I talked to frequently, and who had been fighting this board in a way I never could.
He was actually being sued by them, in the Responsibility Action that they lost in October/2014. This is how Jordi reacted to it:

I have lost many dear, important people. After my mother passed away, the first thing I couldn’t remember was her voice. I can’t recall how she sounded like anymore. Yesterday, when all of us who knew Jordi were dealing with his departure, I noticed we all did the same: we kept posting his avatar on our tweets dedicated to him. Over and over. Which made me realize: his voice will never be forgotten. His 34 thousand tweets will always be there for us to check, and his blog will also be there when we miss the strength he showed while battling cancer (https://bruttalitats.wordpress.com/2013/11/04/viscal-cancer/), and the passion he had to defend our club against this board.
It’s the one thing social media provides us when someone close to us leaves: we can still read their thoughts, passions and rants when we miss them. In a way, it’s like they never left.

Jordi, you’re gone, but I’ll promise to tweet HEM GUANYAT FILLS DE LA GRAN PUTA!!!!!! When we take these people from our club this July.
And to do the same after September 27^th.

As you once said: “Isn’t it beautiful that destiny has given us the gift of saying goodbye to this country with a huge boo towards their hymn, like it should happen?”

It is, my friend. And so was your life.

Thanks for being here and helping us see the value of always fighting for what you believe in. Your place on the trenches won’t ever be filled.

Una abraçada, amic. Fins sempre.