At some point, we have all felt the urge of letting someone know that we like them or, as we rather say on Her Campus, tirarnos de pecho. This isn’t always easy, especially because the reaction of your significant other may be rather unpredictable. To give us a hand on situations like this, RUMingle 2.0 exists. RUMingle 2.0 is a Facebook page where Colegiales can express their love and admiration for each other in a completely anonymous way, using the host SurveyMonkey. Someone sends in in their confession, the admin posts it, and hopefully their crush will get to read it.
But, who is it this cupid who is behind the scenes? Meet this week’s celebrity, RUMingle 2.0 admin, the anonymous UPRM Cupid.
HC: What inspired you to open RUMingle?
Admin: The page I manage is not the original RUMingle page, which is why it is called RUMingle 2.0. After the shocking closing of Confesiones UPRM and RUMingle, colegiales were left with nowhere to confess. So that is when I decided to open RUMingle 2.0, using the exact same concept of the previous pages.
HC: Did you ever expect it would be such a hit?
Admin: Based on the popularity of the original RUMingle page, I was expecting that it would be, eventually. Yet, it had a slow start and I almost closed it at one point, as I thought it wouldn’t be a hit after all. Even after the page has reached more that 4,000 followers, I have thought about closing it, but ultimately I haven’t because of the Colegiales.
HC: What has been the greatest challenge you have faced in protecting your identity?
Admin: The greatest challenge I have faced in protecting my identity is trying to work with the page while on campus. Usually, I try work on everything related to the page management from home but sometimes I find myself having to schedule confesiones or to answer an inbox at Colegio. When this happens I look for a quiet corner, turn off the brightness of my iPad (where I do everything related to RUMingle) and work on it, but always vigilant for intruders.
HC: How many people actually know who you are?
Admin: I haven’t told anyone who I am, but there is one friend who might have seen me working on the page. But I am not really sure if the person actually knows who I am and what I was doing, or if I am just persia’o about it.
HC: What has been the most outrageous RUMingle confession you have received?
Admin: I can’t remember all of the over 1800 confessions that I have received since the page opened, but there was one recently that left me in kind of a shock. The confession was directed to a female soccer player; it was very sexual and I would dare to say, offensive. What shocked me the most was that despite the outrageous request on the confession, the person who sent it in let their phone number, in case the girl wanted to contact them.
HC: Have you ever found yourself on the awkward position of receiving a confession from a friend or someone close to you?
Admin: Since the process of sending in the confessions is completely anonymous through SurveyMonkey, most of the time I have no idea who is behind the confessions. I can only try to guess, as the rest of Colegiales who read them do. There have been a few occasions where people send them in through inbox, and people I know have been in the mix. But being able to keep the secret is part of the job.
HC: Do you think that the Internet’s anonymity is a tool or a weapon?
Admin: It could be either. RUMingle 2.0 may be a tool or a weapon, depending on how people use it. As for me, my anonymity is a tool when it comes to being a mediator, but it is also a weapon, because I have access to so much information! This is why I have to be very discreet protecting my identity, in order to protect the secrets of everybody who trusts me enough to share them through me. My personality might be my best ally when it comes to keeping my name safe, because I am sure that nobody would bet on me to be the admin of RUMingle 2.0. My personality doesn’t mix at all with this page’s concept.
HC: Have you heard of any successful love stories that have turned out from a RUMingle confession?
Admin: Not to my knowledge, but I do know of a few that turned out from the original page. I would love to know if it happened, because that is the purpose of the page, so if it ever happens to anyone, please update me on the story!
HC: Once you graduate, do you plan to maintain the page running yourself, pass it to someone else, or to close it? How long until that happens? Will you reveal your identity then?
Admin: It is rude to ask a Colegial when one will graduate, girl! (laughs). I am estimating about three years, so we will have RUMingle pa’ rato, but I haven’t decided what to do with it then. I might find a new admin for it, but if I don’t like they way they manage it, then it will be gone for good. One thing is for sure, nobody will ever know who I am.