Such a Nerd!

One of the most difficult things about telling stories is that it can be impossible to find the right words; one of the best things about telling stories is that there always seems to be someone else out there who can articulate what I can't. 

From kindergarten through, well, about 2:40 this afternoon, people made fun of me for being a nerd (for liking pro wrestling, for loving books, for doing theatre, and on and on). For the longest time, the taunting bothered me. Then, suddenly...it didn't. Not only was I comfortable with myself, but I was happy to advertise my passions to others. Except once that happened, I wasn't sure how to express that contentment. So with the utmost gratitude, I defer to Wil Wheaton (Stand By Me, Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Big Bang Theory) to explain the joy of being exactly who you are. The following is his response to an expectant mother asking, at a comic convention, what it means to be a nerd:

“My name is Wil Wheaton. It’s 2013. And you’ve just recently joined us on planet Earth. So welcome. I’m an actor. I’m a writer. And I’m a Dad. Your mother asked me to tell you why it’s awesome to be a nerd. That’s an easy thing for me to do because I am a nerd.

I don’t know what the world is going to be like by the time you understand this. I don’t what it’s going to mean to be a nerd when you are a young woman. For me, when I was growing up, being a nerd meant that I liked things that were a little weird. That took a lot of effort to appreciate and understand. It meant that I loved science, and that I loved playing board games, and reading books...

and really understanding what went on in the world instead of just riding the planet through space.

When I was a little boy, people really teased us about that, and made us feel like there was something wrong with us for loving those things. Now that I’m an adult, I’m kind of a professional nerd, and the world has changed a lot. I think a lot of us have realized that being a nerd … it’s not about what you love. It’s about how you love it.

So there’s going to be a thing in your life that you love, and I don’t know what it’s going to be. It might be sports, it might be science, it might be reading, it might be fashion design, it might be building things, it might be telling stories [YES!!!] or taking pictures. It doesn’t matter what it is. 

The way you love that, and the way that you find other people who love it the way you do, is what makes being a nerd awesome. The way you love that, and the way that you find other people who love it the way you do is what makes you a nerd. The defining characteristic of [being a nerd] is that we love things. Some of us love Firefly and some of us love Game of Thrones, or Star Trek, or Star Wars, or anime, or games, or fantasy, or science fiction. Some of us love completely different things. But we all love those things SO much that we travel for thousands of miles … we come from all over the world, so that we can be around people who love the things the way that we love them.

That’s why being a nerd is awesome. And don’t let anyone tell you that that thing that you love is a thing that you can’t love. Don’t anyone ever tell you that you can’t love that, that’s for boys … you find the things that you love, and you love them the most that you can.

And listen: This is really important. I want you to be honest, honorable, kind. I want you to work hard. Because everything worth doing is hard. 

And I want you to be awesome, and I will do my very best to leave you a planet that you can still live on."

Thanks, Wil. Couldn't have said it better myself.

It's a Small World

There's a lot of criticism about how technology and social media actually take away from our ability to communicate with one another. I even have this posted in my classroom:

Yeah, phones and texting can distract us from genuine interaction, and many apps and media outlets are there to simultaneously fuel our insecurities while stroking our egos. 

But it doesn't have to be that way. My favorite side-effect of the constant stream of communication is that it makes the world smaller...yes, smaller. Hear me out (and it IS true, y'know: bigger isn't always better!):

I have family across the country, and it's just not practical for us to visit one another.  Because of Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, though, my long-distance family has known my daughter from her birth up until my most recent pictures of her over the weekend...and they've never even met. 

Similarly, I've been privileged (tormented?) to see some throwback photos of myself that I'd long thought (hoped?) gone. 

(Psst...the cutie beside me? My cousin's oldest son when he was two; he's now a sophomore in high school...see how the cycle of nostalgic photos keeps giving, kiddo?!)

Then there's this gem, intentionally altered to protect elementary-school friends AND the integrity of my all-denim ensemble and slouch socks...brace yourself...

And it's not just my existing world that draws closer; the entire world and its awesome inhabitants have become my largest playground with my newest friends. 

My technology-driven world has involved a retweet from Neil Gaiman about social issues...

...discovering and Twitter-befriending an AWESOME band based in Ireland (and do give The Enemies a listen if you haven't already -- you'll be so glad you did http://theenemiesmusic.com/)...

...chatting with some famous folks who, it  turns out, are amazing at their seemingly-glamorous jobs while remaining humble, down-to-earth, and outright kind...

...and then there's Blogger: if you're reading this, you know what I mean. As long as I can remember, I've wanted to be a writer, but fear held me back with the excuse was that it was just too hard to get my writing out into the world. Suddenly, the chance to tell stories to the world became deliciously possible, and while it's still terrifying to share (my palms are sweaty each time I hit "Publish"), it's equally exhilarating. Turns out, I have readers in the U.S., Canada, Ireland, Poland, Ukraine, Germany, Egypt...and I've only ever been to one of those countries (hint: it's where I am right now). 

Traipsing across the globe and telling stories are two of my greatest aspirations. Pretty great that I get to do both all at once, all through the magic of modern communication. Thanks for helping me travel the world, dear readers!