Today (Tuesday) is "Embrace Your Geekness Day!" Eyeglasses and pocket protectors rule! Forget those jocks! Geeks are smart, genuine, authentic, harmless, humble, sensitive, technical and now exploited! One of the famous and richest Geeks in this country built the Microsoft empire! We geeks bow down to Mr. Gates!
Remember high school??? Yes, I was a Geek! A real skinny one!
Come to think of it, most Asian guys I know were all geeks in High School. We don't do sports, we don't get dates but we do excel academically (sometimes). We get to be in the honor society, we are college-bound and we do get scholarships to colleges when we graduate. Unfortunately, we get acne and we don't get laid until we pass our teenage years.
Now, do not confuse a geek from a nerd. Society have used both terms interchangeably or they tend to overlap - but there is a difference.
A nerd could be viewed as someone with an extremely intense interest or fascination in an academic field of study (often an obscure field), or similar "cerebral" pursuit. Being a nerd is typically associated with intellect, as a nerd often enjoys specializing in complicated fields of study. Nerds may also have difficulties socializing with others, as many tend towards being introverted, although it is also said that a nerd cannot be bothered developing social skills while busy with other interests. Nerds often have gained a strong and diverse skill set from their studies and experiences, which may at times, be unorthodox or impractical. Nerd interests may cover a broad range of interests, from movies to games (video and table-top), to more practical skills such as computer science or rocket science. Nerds are likely to become a renowned yet reclusive professor, an intellectual, an inventor, etc.
The term "geek" originated from circus performers in sideshows, referring to those who performed bizarre feats. Today, the term has taken on a positive slant and a geek could be viewed as someone with an interest or lifestyle having to do with niche activities, especially fandom and technology. It is not uncommon for a geek to be capable of reciting large amounts of knowledge that is unintuitive, intriguing and (at times) long-winded. The knowledge could be anything from the mundane to 'living encyclopedia' status. Geeks tend to have average grades. Geeks can vary in their interests, from fun (films) and sometimes even frivolous things (collecting plastic figurines), to heavily technological interests (computing, hacking, and programming). Urban Dictionary goes so far as to suggest that society still views computer programming as a "bizarre feat" and the term "geek" is a proud label reflecting this. Geeks are likely to become a gamer, a Star Trek fan, technologically enthused, a software programmer, a film series/book series buff, a free-spirited (not malevolent) technology hacker, a creator of unusual objects, etc.
So everyone - embrace your inner geekness and be proud of your achievements! We are irresistible!
Geeks have build America as it is today! Woo Hoo!
