Fellowship of Geeks!

[andave_ya]

This is a column of mine that's going to be published this Monday in a local newspaper. I had tons of fun writing this and wanted to share, since we all have this particular character trait. :D Cheers.

Fellowship of Geeks
9/07
You’ve seen him before, haven’t you? The glazed-over eyes showing from under horn-rimmed glasses….the muttering in some strange language that has never been used in history…the dark, rumpled clothes…the crippled social skills…in other words, The Geek. Also known as dork, nerd, weirdo, and a plethora of other names that we wear with pride. A geek is a person passionately devoted to a subject in a way that separates him from mainstream fans. Geekiness can run in families or be in isolated cases…all of which can be different. My Dad and my cousin are computer geeks. My Mom is a gardening geek. Most geeks are out in the open, as well, especially since being called a geek is slowly becoming a compliment; a nod to specialized knowledge. Geeks have gained cult status, as shown by the new show Beauty and the Geek. People have taken to naming their children after their favorite characters, like Strider, Mara Jade, Arwen, Lestat, and Eowyn. No joke.
Where do I come in? I’m a Lord of the Rings geek. On the outside, I look boring and unimaginative. I wear glasses (though not horn rims), my clothing style is classic, and my hair is usually put up. A bit of prying, however, will bring out my love. My iPod is filled with over a hundred pictures from the movies and with the complete recordings of the score. I have the lyrics to the songs. I quote both book and movies. I try to steer the conversation to it. The decoupage I made for my bedroom is liberally peppered with my favorite characters and quotes. If I laugh at random things or if I say something strange in conversation it’s usually LOTR(Lord of the Rings) related. I watch the extended edition movies probably once a month. I know a bit of elvish, and I get supremely annoyed when someone makes a mistake when talking about LOTR. That is a typical geek.
What do you do if one comes up to you and starts declaiming whole sections from the book? Let me tell you what an acquaintance of mine said. It shut me up entirely. At a summer camp, I was sitting outside making lanyards with a sweet and popular teenager. Being polite, she started talking with me. Our conversation went something like this:
“So…what do you like to do?” she asked me.
“I’m a Lord of the Rings geek.” (I didn’t want to scare her off by gushing.)
“I LOVE Lord of the Rings!”
“Who’s your favorite character?” (Big smile on my face.)
“The king.” She said.
“Aragorn?”
“No, no. The REAL king!” I could feel my grin start to shrink. There are some five or six kings in Lord of the Rings.
“Theoden?” I asked.
“The blond one. You know, the one who has the hot blonde son and the niece.”
By now my hopes are thoroughly dashed. Blonde!? Hot!? And he’s NOT his son!
“Yeah, that’d be Theoden and Eomer and Eowyn. But Eomer isn’t Theoden’s son, he’s his nephew. And him and Eowyn are siblings.”
“What, really?” she said.
I went into a ten-minute long explanation, trying to tell her who everybody is. After I finished, she paused a bit. “Yeah,” she said finally. “You might not want to say that out in public.”
I laughed. The advice was kindly meant. “I told you I’m a geek!” I protested. She looked like she wanted to run and hide.
That is how to squash a geek. And now that I’ve proclaimed my geekhood to the entire Bay Area, I want to close with this nod to all fellow geeks: you’re not alone.

[Virgil]

Hahahaha, very good Andy. From one geek to another, I enjoyed that well writen piece.

[motherhubbard]

I would have to say I'm more of a dork, but I still feel kin to this column

[Virgil]

I would have to say I'm more of a dork, but I still feel kin to this column

Haha, what's the diferrence between a geek and a dork? I'm not up on things terms. :D

[motherhubbard]

I don't wear glasses, but I still snort when I laugh

[Niamh]

I'm a nerd but hell! we arent that much different from geeks eh! Great piece of writing honey!

[Bakiryu]

Lestat

Curses! And I thought only I had come up with that brilliant idea :( ! Oh well, need to find another name for future kids now.



you’re not alone.

This reminds me of DR.WHO FOR some reason.

I think I traumatized someone by gushing about it! :lol:

I'm a geek! Yay! (and a dork :D )

[NikolaiI]

Lol I am a bit of a computer game or chess nerd. I love to play computer games like Starcraft or something, and to study chess. Oh, geek? I dunno, not really although some probably. Gaming conventions are still the sweetest.

Hey just wondering, does anyone know what the words gosu and hasu mean? I think they're basically expert, but I'm not sure what the difference is. Korean words I think, people used them a lot on starcraft: I'm gosu, or someone is gouu, etc., and hasu was another. There was one guy, called hasupeon, I remember...

[SleepyWitch]

cool article, andave!
I'm a geek/nerd in this sense "someone who seems very boring and unfashionable" but not in this "and is not good in social situations" (well it depends on what they mean by "social situations", of course)


“So…what do you like to do?” she asked me.
“I’m a Lord of the Rings geek.” (I didn’t want to scare her off by gushing.)
“I LOVE Lord of the Rings!”
“Who’s your favorite character?” (Big smile on my face.)
“The king.” She said.
“Aragorn?”
“No, no. The REAL king!” I could feel my grin start to shrink. There are some five or six kings in Lord of the Rings.
“Theoden?” I asked.
ah, now I finally understand how people (mainly Americans) can write "I love this", "I love that" about a hundred different things in penpal ads. "love" means they have heard of it and have a vague idea what it is about :D oh yeah, did you know one of my hobbies is horseback riding? I did it once in Mongolia :lol:

[Pensive]

Ah now I know what a class-mate meant when she called me a literature geek. Good article, andava ya!


ah, now I finally understand how people (mainly Americans) can write "I love this", "I love that" about a hundred different things in penpal ads. "love" means they have heard of it and have a vague idea what it is about :D oh yeah, did you know one of my hobbies is horseback riding? I did it once in Mongolia :lol:

Hehe, this often sounds funny but can be very annoying as well!

[Bakiryu]

Hey just wondering, does anyone know what the words gosu and hasu mean? I think they're basically expert, but I'm not sure what the difference is. Korean words I think, people used them a lot on starcraft: I'm gosu, or someone is gouu, etc., and hasu was another. There was one guy, called hasupeon, I remember...

Here ya go niK!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gosu

[Riesa]

I’m a Lord of the Rings geek.” (I didn’t want to scare her off by gushing.)
“I LOVE Lord of the Rings!”
“Who’s your favorite character?” (Big smile on my face.)
“The king.” She said.
“Aragorn?”
“No, no. The REAL king!” I could feel my grin start to shrink. There are some five or six kings in Lord of the Rings.
“Theoden?” I asked.
“The blond one. You know, the one who has the hot blonde son and the niece.”
By now my hopes are thoroughly dashed. Blonde!? Hot!? And he’s NOT his son!
“Yeah, that’d be Theoden and Eomer and Eowyn. But Eomer isn’t Theoden’s son, he’s his nephew. And him and Eowyn are siblings.”
“What, really?” she said.

:lol: :lol:

brilliant! (and hauntingly familiar) Do you argue over the pronunciation of Feonor? :p

[andave_ya]

Thanks for all the compliments, everyone! I'm very happy in knowing that there are some people who think my column fun! Hopefully I won't have divulged my geekhood to California for nothing. :p


ah, now I finally understand how people (mainly Americans) can write "I love this", "I love that" about a hundred different things in penpal ads. "love" means they have heard of it and have a vague idea what it is about :D oh yeah, did you know one of my hobbies is horseback riding? I did it once in Mongolia :lol:

Yes! It's supremely annoying here in the states and especially prevalent among apathetic teenagers. It isn't "cool" to actually love something, just, as you said, to have a vague idea about it. I think people really miss out on a lot of fun when they don't allow themselves to get geeked over something. You really get a lot more out of your "love"!


:lol: :lol:

brilliant! (and hauntingly familiar) Do you argue over the pronunciation of Feonor? :p

No, because there is nobody to argue with over it! If something as simple as LOTR love gets people's heads spinning, what will the Silmarillion do to them? :lol: There is something decidedly rotten in the state of California! ;)

[NikolaiI]

Here ya go niK!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gosu

Ha, awesome Baki, I should have checked wikipedia. I wad dead on, eh? Korean words...I knew hasu and chobo as well. I learned gosu as meaning "Expert among expert" or something like that. Basically "expert."

[Idril]

:lol: :lol:

brilliant! (and hauntingly familiar) Do you argue over the pronunciation of Feonor? :p

Again, I don't care how it's supposed to be pronounced...I know it's supposed to be pronounced Fe-a-nor, but Fee-nor just sounds better. :p

I have this problem with over explaining Lord of the Rings things, someone will ask something perfectly innocent like, "I heard somewhere that Aragorn and Arwen were actually related, is that true?" and before I know it, I've basically gone through the entire plot of The Silmarillion and a good portion of Unfinished Tales as well. I simply do not know how to keep things focused and before I'm about a fourth of the way through it, their eyes have glazed over. :blush:

[Riesa]

Again, I don't care how it's supposed to be pronounced...I know it's supposed to be pronounced Fe-a-nor, but Fee-nor just sounds better. :p

I have this problem with over explaining Lord of the Rings things, someone will ask something perfectly innocent like, "I heard somewhere that Aragorn and Arwen were actually related, is that true?" and before I know it, I've basically gone through the entire plot of The Silmarillion and a good portion of Unfinished Tales as well. I simply do not know how to keep things focused and before I'm about a fourth of the way through it, their eyes have glazed over. :blush:


Well, It is Fe-O-Nor, and I loved Tolkien enough to care about the way HE would like it to be pronounced, even IF I am the girl whose eyes glaze over after the first chapter of the Simillarion, or about a sentence into a fourth of the way through it. ;) It's just amazing to me, though, because, for the most part I WAS alone in even having read them, so meeting crazy die-hard Tolkien fans surprises me, still.

[Idril]

even IF I am the girl whose eyes glaze over after the first chapter of the Simillarion, or about a sentence into a fourth of the way through it. ;)

Yeah, exactly so my opinion counts more than your's because I'm more hard core. :p ;) :lol:

But remember, I warned you the first part was tedious, you just have to suck it up and push through it...a real Tolkien fan could do it. :p ;) :lol:

[Riesa]

Yeah, exactly so my opinion counts more than your's because I'm more hard core. :p ;) :lol:

But remember, I warned you the first part was tedious, you just have to suck it up and push through it...a real Tolkien fan could do it. :p ;) :lol:

Idril, you have my absolute agreement. If I really were a Tolkein fan I'd push my ****ing way through that thick-limbered, muddy door of the Simillarion. :lol: I WILL!

[Idril]

Idril, you have my absolute agreement. If I really were a Tolkein fan I'd push my ****ing way through that thick-limbered, muddy door of the Simillarion. :lol: I WILL!

It's gets better, honestly it does! It never flows quite like LOTR but it does get infinitely more interesting and readable. You can do it, I know you can! :thumbs_up :D

[Virgil]

Oh Idril, I hardly recognize you with that new avatar. Isn't it amazing how we get used to someone's avy. I wonder if I suddenly changed mine whether it would throw off people?

[Idril]

Oh Idril, I hardly recognize you with that new avatar. Isn't it amazing how we get used to someone's avy. I wonder if I suddenly changed mine whether it would throw off people?

I don't plan on keeping it long, in fact, I'll probably change it before I log off...or I might wait until tomorrow, it all depends on my mood. :p I'm quite attached to my little emblem, I can't go without it for long. ;)

I think it would throw people off if you changed your's, it might be fun to give it a try for a day.

[Riesa]

I wonder if I suddenly changed mine whether it would throw off people?

You couldn't. ;) It would be refreshing though.

[Virgil]

You couldn't. ;) It would be refreshing though.

OK, how's that? Think people will notice?

[Riesa]

Wow!!!!!! Very sexy! yes! ;) I think people will notice! I stopped and took a breath! :lol:

[andave_ya]

Who are all these people!!!!!!! In your avvies, I mean???

I'm jealous. I still haven't found an avatar that properly suits me and that'll stick.

Anyways, yeah, Silmarillion is hard but it DOES get better. Especially once all the Middle-earth geography is finished. I paid absolutely no attention to that part. :D

[Riesa]

Idril has Kirk, of course, Virgil chose Keith Richards (the Rolling Stones) and mine is Tom Waits ~ fabulous poet/musician.

I was eyeing the Silmarillion again this morning, I guess I'll succumb to peer pressure or these pep talks, whichever way you want to see it and pick it up again soon. I have to finish The Schopenhauer Cure and I've just bought the scroll version of On The Road, priorities, you know. ;)

I actually enjoyed the writing in the beginning of the Silmarillion, it was beautifully done, but almost 'biblical' and not extremely engaging.

oh, and I like your Avy, is that you?

[lilbrattyteen]

And now that I’ve proclaimed my geekhood to the entire Bay Area, I want to close with this nod to all fellow geeks: you’re not alone.

That's one thing I definitely LOVE about the Bay Area - so many eccentric, intelligent people! I'm down in the South Bay, close to Stanford. ;-)

[andave_ya]

oh, and I like your Avy, is that you?

Don't I wish! I'm not so small, pretty, or talented. My avatar is a fiddler named Mairead Nesbitt, one of the Celtic Woman singers. :D


That's one thing I definitely LOVE about the Bay Area - so many eccentric, intelligent people! I'm down in the South Bay, close to Stanford. ;-)

Oh, come on! :p Stanford is where all the intelligent eccentrics are. Oakland is closer to my place, and it's full of gangs! :)

Edit: Fellowship of Geeks got published today!

[RobinHood3000]

Nerds: Smart in curricular material.

Geeks: Smart in non-curricular material.

Dorks: Socially inept.


There is some overlap, obviously, but in a nutshell, those are the distinctions. Nice article, Andave. ^_^ Although, I have to say...



STAR WARS FOR THE WIN!!!

[Virgil]

Nerds: Smart in curricular material.

Geeks: Smart in non-curricular material.

Dorks: Socially inept.


There is some overlap, obviously, but in a nutshell, those are the distinction. Nice article, Andave. ^_^ Although, I have to say...



STAR WARS FOR THE WIN!!!

:thumbs_up Great definitions Robin. I think you nailed it.

[ShoutGrace]

I actually enjoyed the writing in the beginning of the Silmarillion, it was beautifully done, but almost 'biblical' and not extremely engaging.

I've heard the exact same criticism before. It made me question whether I wanted to initiate my LOTR readings with the Silmarillion, or something else . . . have you already read any of the other LOTR books?


Edit: Fellowship of Geeks got published today!


Congratulations! :)

[Riesa]

I've heard the exact same criticism before. It made me question whether I wanted to initiate my LOTR readings with the Silmarillion, or something else . . . have you already read any of the other LOTR books?




Hi ShoutGrace! :wave:

I have read The Hobbit and The Trilogy, and I've read them all three or four times. They are wonderful. I'd start with the Hobbit if I were you.

[Niamh]

Nerds: Smart in curricular material.

Geeks: Smart in non-curricular material.

Dorks: Socially inept.


There is some overlap, obviously, but in a nutshell, those are the distinctions. Nice article, Andave. ^_^ Although, I have to say...



STAR WARS FOR THE WIN!!!

Okay well that settles it! i'm a nerd with a touch of geek!:p

[AimusSage]

Being a multi-specific interest geek with many lateral interests I can safely say that I am always short on time. That is the downside of being a geek, there simply are not enough hours in a day. *sigh.

Oh well, I guess I have been slacking recently in all but one interest. And that is one interest that is usually considered non-geek, so I'm not sure of my current level of geekness. At least I can still talk about simple things in needlessly complex ways. It is a great relief to know there still is a moderately high level of geekness. I can't imagine not being at least a little bit of a geek. How boring would life be? :D

[ShoutGrace]

Hi ShoutGrace! :wave:

I have read The Hobbit and The Trilogy, and I've read them all three or four times. They are wonderful. I'd start with the Hobbit if I were you.

Hi Riesa :). I read The Hobbit as a young child and thought it was both fun and scary ;). I certainly need to read it again, but I was thinking about cheating and going for (perhaps) greater action and larger characters in The Fellowship. :D

I think I'll take your advice and start with The Hobbit again, because if I skip it now and start with the trilogy I might not come back to it for many years.

[Idril]

For some reason, The Hobbit does absolutely nothing for me and consequently, the first half of Fellowship was a bit of a hard read for me because it's very similar in tone to The Hobbit. Once they get to Bree and meet Strider, it takes off on it's own path and becomes the dark, brooding masterpiece we all know and love ;) but I almost quit a few times before I got there. The Silmarillion is just written in a very different manner, it never becomes the narrative that LOTR is. It is, essentially, a history and that's the way it's written, very formal and full of mind-numbing facts but hopefully there will come a time when you can overcome the style and just enjoy the myths. :)

[1n50mn14]

Ahahaha I do the same thing.

My old roomies used to get upset because I'd commendear the T.V if the movies were one. And we'd spend three hours going,

'Okay, so who's that... thing...?'

'Gollum. Or Smeagol. Gollum's just a nickname.'


*here, a promising ten seconds of understanding.*

'Why's he like that?'

*explains about the ring and it's properties*

'Oh... okay... so why isn't Bilbo like that?'

*more explaining*

'And, how did Bilbo get the ring?'

READ THE BOOKS! Graaaah! They explain everything >=[

[mattlord13]

good good!, would have liked some more explanation on the popular girl, you could have really let yourself go on that one! but you have a fun paced style
congrats on getting in the paper
Matt

[xtianfriborg13]

That's cute! I think I'm a geek too and I love it!