"Many people believe geekdom is defined by a love of a thing, but I think — and my experience of geekdom bears on this thinking — that the true sign of a geek is a delight in sharing a thing. It’s the major difference between a geek and a hipster, you know: When a hipster sees someone else grooving on the thing they love, their reaction is to say 'Oh, crap, now the wrong people like the thing I love.' When a geek sees someone else grooving on the thing they love, their reaction is to say 'ZOMG YOU LOVE WHAT I LOVE COME WITH ME AND LET US LOVE IT TOGETHER.''
Any jerk can love a thing. It’s the sharing that makes geekdom awesome."
THAT is exactly why I embrace the 'geek' label, and will wear that term proudly til the day I die. The exuberant love of sharing our passions with each other without fear of being judged for 'caring too much' or 'taking it too seriously' is such a great and fun part of geek culture, and why I believe that all our geek communities can only get better by accepting more different types of people in them. I echo what Joe says at the end of his essay:
"Anyone can be a geek. Any way they want to. That means you too. Whoever you are."
Related Reading:
How Geek Gatekeeping is Bad for Business
Confessions of a 'Fake Geek Girl'
Geek Masculinity & The Myth of the Fake Geek Girl
The 7 Most Ridiculous Things About Calling Out 'Fake Geek Girls'
3 comments:
That's a very nice distinction between Geek and Hipster. I like to think of myself as a hybrid. A Geekster, maybe. I like to share my obsessions and interests but I also get a thrill from being there first or being there alone and some of the luster dulls when too many people join in.
OMG yes!
put two geeks in a room and see what happens - there's nothing as enjoyable and exhilarating as geeking hard together! ^^
me and my best friend keep calling it the 'dosage' we need, when we haven't seen each other in a while. funny how sharing a thing you love creates more value instead of less - for me, anyway (not a hipster at all). :)
That quote is awesome.
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