nilcypher said:
I had a thought of this topic earlier.
You're not a nerd for liking Star Trek, you're a nerd for having an opinion on whether Kirk was better than Picard.
It's like a litmus test for nerds.
I like that. We once hit a huge beetle with our mirror and later it crawled up over the seat back. I commented that it was scary to hit a bug at 70 mph and see it retain its structural integrity. My wife related that story to a friend, who got a strange look and said she couldn't imagine dating a man who would ever use the term "structural integrity." I realized then that I was a nerd.
But there have to be levels of nerd-dom, and I think I fall fairly low. For instance:
I love science fiction and fantasy books but no interest in zombies, manga, or "graphic novels."
I played D&D in the 70's and 80's but don't play RPGs.
I read voraciously but played sports (albeit usually badly) rather than a musical instrument.
I watch cartoons (Squidbillies, South Park, Oblongs) but hate anime with a burning passion.
I need glasses but wear hard contacts.
I carry several pens (most erasable) but have never worm a pocket protector.
I used to use a slide rule but immediately gave it up when I could afford a calculator.
I know the scientific names of many fish but I also fish for sport.
I liked
The X Files and
The Twilight Zone but thought both
Star Treks and
Lost were no better than fair.
I have built PCs since 1985 but don't upgrade until dragged kicking and screaming by a particular game or program.
I have studied, and programmed in, Fortran and AutoLISP but have never played with Garry's Mod.
I know that Swahili is a Bantu group language but don't know a single word of Klingon.
I game with a joystick and trackball but use an honest-to-goodness digitizer for AutoCAD at work.
I'm an avid PC gamer at almost 50 years of age but don't play online.
So am I a nerdling, an old obsolete nerd, a broken nerd, a wannabe nerd, a half nerd, or what? For every nerd behavior it seems like I have one that would get me exiled from Nerdia, to make my way alone in the cold, stony, windswept wasteland of Geezerland. I think I'm a failure at nerding!