Farmville in Balete

When Panay Telecommunication Company (Pantelco) finally set foot in Balete on October of last year (2009), it brought along with it a virtual reality called "Farmville". Those Baleten-ons with access to the internet and who happened to have a Facebook account know what it is--or at least those who were innocently enticed by the gifts received from some "friends" or by those who invited them to be "neighbors".

The game, I supposed, was developed for the city-dwellers who dreamed of the idyllic life in the farm, who are exhausted with the hustle and bustle of the urban setting, oppressed by the monstrous traffic and the indifference of crowd to the affairs of each person. A form of escapism actually; something to entertain or distract boredom and angst out of one's psyche.

But the Farmville mania has invaded Balete, a rural/agricultural community which is regarded by those who visited it, both local and foreign as "paradise", "a beautiful place to retire", "simply beautiful". Why is this so could perhaps be attributed to its familiarity to these "farmers". While for those passersby, Balete's beauty maybe is a treat, to them, it is just ordinary--something they got to endure everyday, just like traffic.

Yet if that is so, why Farmville when they could choose some other virtual realities far different from the rural setting of Balete? Could it be that by their playing it they unconsciously satisfy their innate desire to have lands to till and call their own? (Some sort of transference, so to speak.) Could it be taken then as a social indicators for policymakers to consider?

I was amused to receive a note in my homepage from the Municipal Treasurer commenting concerning Farmville. His comment will surely elicit a lot of reactions.