WTF Friday: The Proliferation of the Geek
Let’s talk Geek Stuff.
Define “stuff” you say? Certainly. Products. Goods. Packrat crap.
We’re way beyond quirky t-shirts and socks, kids, which used to be geek staples, along with action figures and one’s video and comic collections. Maybe some books. And it was good. One curated one’s collection carefully, made sure it said something. Announced your fandom and allegiance.
Well. It’s a whole new world these days. ComicCon is a destination, people spend thousands on cosplaying. It isn’t just about comics or action figures anymore.
Geekdom is a way of life now and the options are endless.
Here, for example, is an abbreviated list of the geek stuff in our house (do links):
- Weeping Angel toilet decal
- Exploding TARDIS rug
- TARDIS shower caddy
- TARDIS fleece blanket
- Doctor WHO baby blanket and burp clothes
- Remote control Dalek
- Star Trek hoodie (medical blue, if you’re wondering)
- Star Trek socks (all three colors)
- Sheriff’s Secret Police hoodie
- Tesladyne industries t-shirt
- A whole set of geek chapstick
- Various Hello, Kitty things
- A purse made from the cover of The Collected Works of Sherlock Holmes, the interior fabric modeled on the famous Wallpaper from the BBC version
- A Sherlock wallpaper infinity scarf
- Several DIFFERENT brands of superhero figuriness
- Steelers stuff
- Penguins stuff
- Pirates stuff
- various super hero books and a comics at various reading levels from Tiny Titans to Hellblazer
And yes, sports teams are fantoms. Let us all hold hands under the Geek rainbow and sing kumbayah.
Everything comes in Geek now, from boxers to solid gold, Enterprise pizza cutters.
Pervasive, no?
We’ll leave the pizza cutter out of it for a moment. That may be going a little too bar, even for fandom.
You like having geeky options, don’t you? Of course you do. Admit it though; you liked that little tickle of superiority you used to get when you were the only one wearing a Doctor Who scarf too. Huh? Huh? You miss it a little.
But you also feel like less of an outcast. Not that all geeks were (are?) outcasts. Plenty of popular kids played D&D and Magic: the Gathering. But I, like many geeks, used to hid behind my geekdom.. If only a few people liked what I liked, I could stay secure in the bosom of my little group (or just myself) and not have to worry about branching out. Comforting thought for someone with social anxiety disorder. I knew those people weren’t interested in what I was interested in, so I wasn’t obligated to “waste my time” (read: risk rejection or hide in a corner and sweat and try to pre-plan conversations and worry about my braces and my glasses and the fact I had boobs before anyone else).
Because Geekdom is more diverse these days, many of us have become more diverse in our randoms. Which eases those of us who struggle to meet new people into a larger pool of potential like minded souls.
I’ve definitely talked to strangers who recognized the pattern on my Sherlock scarf or who were also wearing a Nightvale t-shirt. TOTAL STRANGERS. I hate talking to strangers. Not because I dislike people but because I don’t know what to say and I suck at small talk. I am easily sensory overloaded and on a given day, I would much rather stay home and watch a movie then go to the bar. Somedays, I don’t even know how to say “hello.” I know, shocking, right? But true. On a blog, no one can see you fret unless they’re keeping track of your edits.
Geek stuff makes me brave because I know where to start and how to proceed, at least to some extent. For many of us shy folks, geek paraphernalia is an ice breaker. Something to connect us to one another that isn’t dangling ten feet above your head. That easy interaction allows us entree into a like-minded social circle if even just for the few minutes it takes to buy a cup of coffee.
And this is a good, good thing.
Bring on the Geek and long may we reign.
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