Neeerds, part III

   I guess it's a matter of when and where the awkwardness takes place. The nerd is fine alone, not necessarily because of any given introversion on his part but because it's where he can't be seen as being awkward. He does have his own specialties. The nerd still needs to learn to interact outside of his designated field, like when going shopping and... stuff? I guess? I don't know, what do people do? Go to the discotheque? No, see. Such a lifestyle is exactly as cut off as the lifestyle of a nerd. Except for maybe generally the clubber goes clubbing a more often than the DND campaigner goes campaigning. But is that enough to make the party-goer not a nerd? The frequency of engagement in the hobbies?

   There clearly is a difference between the gamer and the other guy, even though the social interaction of both groups comes almost exclusively within their hobbies. But what could it be? Muscularity? Pastiness? It can't be the number of people in the crowd, could it? That's kind of misleading, since they're interacting with one another in a less significant way than the hobbyists would be. But there's at least the illusion there. That could possibly be it... Or could it boil down to whether the IQ is above or below the median, (and generally very much so?) You know that's also the stereotype. Both are seen as, in terms of grey mattery stuff, horribly out of sync with the general populous. So are these not both different forms of being social outcasts? Will those with non-average intelligence be accepted?

   But the clubber isn't seen as a nerd, or an outcast. They're the ones seen as the opposite of that, though it should conceivably be the same. But it's not the same, somehow. The party-goer is seen as more social than the con-goer, perhaps because the nerds only connect on an intellectual rather than emotional level? And that makes them less social. Great. Society is always far more willing to, if not promote, than at least tolerate idiocy over genius. And, I guess you can quote me on that if you want.

   Is that the perception? Quite possibly. Nerds, seen as ivory tower intellectuals unable to comprehend the plight of the common man. But the common man is unable to comprehend the inherent awkwardness why they can't deign to step out of their ivory towers. We all go through life unable to comprehend anyone else in anything but glimpses, but this is taking it to an absurd degree.

   There has to be some medium, right? No? Or, yes. I guess I've been discussing it. Conventions. The medium between the two is conventions. But, if you didn't attend the conventions or show any other outward sign of nerdiness, you wouldn't be viewed as a nerd. So it does hold up, what I've been saying.

   I just don't know if there's a way to change it.