This blog took me a couple of days to write. For some reason I couldn't form what I was thinking into words, and I still feel like this is unworthy of what I was trying to figure out.

I've always been confused as to why others label people who love Star Wars, Star Trek, comic books, Lord of the Rings, or any sci-fi or fantasy as "geeks" or "nerds." And, of course, it's said with a strong negative connotation.

I am a self-proclaimed geek and don't mind it at all. But when people first meet me, they would never guess that I have a huge passion for Star Wars. (And Battlestar Galactica, but Star Wars will and always will be my first and true love) Yet as soon as some people get to know me, and find out that I love Star Wars with a fanaticism, I immediately get labeled. "Weirdo," "freak," "nerd," and "geek" are just a couple of the terms. My good friends now use the words as a term of endearment but everyone else...I doubt it.

Why the negative connotation? When I try to sort it out logically or with a rational mind it doesn't make any sense to me. Are the people who lean towards sci-fi and fantasy more socially awkward?

Among other fans I've talked to and people who have had similar tastes as me, I've noticed that a lot of us have imaginations that get sparked by other worlds. For me, I read fantasy novels and watch sci-fi because I am often dissatisfied with the world that I live in. I don't mean this in an unhealthy way. I watch Star Wars and look at the ships jumping to hyperspace, the whole galaxy within their limits, the different planets, the aliens...and then I take a look around where I am now and get a tinge of dismay. "This is it?" I think to myself. Do we get so wrapped up in these worlds that aren't real that we forget how to live in the real world? I don't consider myself socially awkward, but I have met fellow geeks who are. I'm trying not to be rude but don't all stereotypes stem from somewhere? Isn't there some truth underlying it? Perhaps most "geeks" are socially awkward and that is why there's a negative undertone.

Another thought my friend had: a lot of the sci-fi genre has to do with technology. Technology usually is associated with the "brainiacs" of life and those that love computers and spend a lot of time only on the computer. Second Life, MMORPG, etc. leads people to spend more of their life in a world that is not real as opposed to the one that is. Again, which leads to a lack of a social life.

This is all speculation. I am not trying to insult anyone, or point fingers and say that we are all just socially awkward nerds (I've given up long ago being insulted by the terms)...I am just trying to figure out why people are rude with the label "geek" or "nerd" and bring some sense to it. I wish to somehow turn the negative suggestion into a positive one. Alas, I don't think that will be happening any time soon.


On a completely separate note: I am SO excited for the movie "Fanboys" which is coming out soon. If you haven't heard of it, check out the trailer:
Fanboys