How dare he question my geekiness?
I’ve been sitting on this comment for a while, not quite sure what to do with it.
Sorry, but to me you just sound like an normal wife and all out action girl. Which is not a bad thing, honest, its cool, but I would hardly call it geekdom! To me, geekdom (true geekdom) is hating beinge away from the computer (remeber your Laptop is your only true friend,) never going on holiday unless you absolutely HAVE to. Living on your own and NEVER socialising. And being self contained in your own little world. Which describes me, perfectly!! I do love you blog, and have read loads of it, but being married, leaving the house to have your hair done, and especially socialising (YUK!) is hardly geekdom in my eyes!! Sorry if I offend!!
I did take offense at first, because this guy questioned my geekiness based on his own idea of its meaning. And then I realized that he clearly has Asperger’s Syndrome or some form of social phobia, and I felt kind of sorry for him. His definition of “true geekdom” encompasses the definition of Asperger’s and with that comes a lack of social awareness. Sure, lots of geeks may have Asperger’s, and certainly that’s the sterotype among non-geeks. But there are many, many people who are very geeky and very social.
When it comes right down to it, few people agree on the exact definition of a geek. That’s part of the wonderful journey I’ve traveled for almost ten years… figuring out what makes a geek a geek and encouraging people to embrace their geekiness no matter how big or small.
I don’t think that being married or getting my hair cut affects how much of a geek I am. There’s lots of geek love out there, and everybody gets a haircut at some point in their lives. If you read the actual post on which he left this comment, you’ll see that the the mention of getting my hair cut was directly related to my new geeky business card that I was really proud of.
The label of “all-out action girl” is flattering, I suppose. I’m guessing this came from my previous posts about all the action I reported from Comic-Con. You know, the ones where I was gushing about Wil Wheaton, Futurama, and Battlestar Galactica? I can see how there’s nothing truly geeky about any of that. (Whoops, let a little sarcasm slip out.)
I considered writing a cranky response because I don’t think that the commenter had solid grounds for his judgment. But I’m sure that there are plenty of other people who will read this blog and agree with the commenter that I’m not a “true geek” because I don’t include technical specs in every post. Their idea of a geek is different than mine, which is okay.
But keep in mind that this is my personal blog. Right at the top of my blog (unless you’re viewing it in an RSS reader) you can see how I call it out: Geeky topics and my life as a Geek Girl. “My life” includes my cats, my routines, and lots of other stuff that is not geeky at all. But it all makes me part of who I am, so if you enjoy my blog, then read it for whatever reason(s) you enjoy it.
Just don’t call me a normal wife, m’kay? My husband doesn’t, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Indeed, Ms. Yvette! There are different flavors of geeks. Yes, I am tethered to my laptop and/or cell phone, but I do other “non-geeky” things like attend the occasional party, go dancing, and even *gasp!* get my hair cut so I look all purdy.
Bah. Geekyness has nothing to do with social skills, it’s a love of various things on the fringe.
I think this guy is looking for something more in a dweeb or a dork.
If I had a dime for everyone looked at me funny for being a “non-traditional” wife…I’d be rich.
And yes, our husbands DO like it that way. Thankfully.
I would call you a Geek.
I would call the guy you refer to a Nerd.
Geeks > Nerds
But of course I like, accept and respect both
Thank you all for your comments. I feel validated.
I agree with GeeksDreamGirl – there are absolutely different flavors of geeks – I’ve had a thing for geek girls (my early definition was a highly intellectual female, degreed or not) as far back as I can remember (more years than I’ll admit to here). The best example I can think of is the geek girl scientists (chemists) I worked with were somewhat unique in their geekiness compared to the geek girl engineers (chip design) – each were somewhat in their own camp as it were – their states of mind, attitudes and general geekiness were practically defined by their groups (particularly so with the biochemists/biologists). Among themselves and the men they worked with, they were highly competitive, extraordinarily driven, and of course, since they were indeed geek girls after all, somewhat better (better? they were, to a woman, much more focused than their male counterparts) at what they did than their male counterparts.
As a geek and a true fan of intellectual women (okay, okay, I’m a geek and a dork – women in general then, okay?), I agree that you should have taken offense to the post in question – although there may be biologic similarities unique to women, I’ve never met 2 who geek girls who were solely defined by their gender (some loved make-up, some hated it; some loved working with their hair, some hated it; some loved fashion as an expression, others hated it) as opposed to their intellectualism.
I thought you might enjoy this:
http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=401