30 years ago, a person would get heckled for enjoying geeky things. Some people made fun of me for liking Star Wars too much, reading comic books, and enjoying role playing games. My geeky pleasures of old movies and sports stats were still seen as strange with the In Crowd but was much more accepted.
Now days, geek is chic. Being a geek is much more accepted and at some levels even cool. Even Hollywood Stars are jumping on the geek bandwagon and announcing their nerdy indulgences.
In this day and age of geek acceptance and love, there are still some who keep their inner geek in their closet. They are not comfortable sharing their hidden enjoyments with the world. They may dvr and watch Dr Who, Warehouse 13, and Being Human but they do not share their thoughts openly about these during a geekfest in the breakroom. Sometimes they even ridicule others for their own geeky pleasures.
I have a couple of friends that maintain their geek closet. I have unsuccessfully attempted to find out why they have to keep this part of themselves hidden. I don’t know if they are afraid that others might reject them for their selections of shows and entertainment. It is not like either one of them are shy people. Maybe they were ridiculed excessively when they were young. As a person who is very secure with my geekiness, I really don’t get it.
In the past, I would attempt to drag these guys out of their closet. These attempts were futile and only seemed to harden their position. Their doors are shut and locked from the inside.
I came to the realization that it should be acceptable for them to remain in their closet if they like. Is it not harming anything or anyone for them to pretend to be less geeky than they are? If they don’t want to join in on the discussions or display the Enterprise in their office, that is their privilege. For me, I will keep living my life as a open geek and will talk to anyone about comic books, last season’s Dr. Who, or what summer blockbuster I am most looking forward to seeing. I am a geek and I don’t care who knows.
