Nerd: A Defiant Manifesto

Let’s get this out of the way. I have a confession: I am what other folks would call a nerd…and I see absolutely nothing wrong with that.
When I was in the eighth grade, I participated in academic pentathlon (a pre-cursor to academic decathlon, which I also participated in, briefly), and I can remember this boy who, in golf rags, no less, called the whole group nerds, like it was a bad thing. I certainly didn’t take it that way. I almost felt a sort of pride.
Reference.com defines a nerd “as a term often bearing a derogatory connotation or stereotype, that refers to a person who passionately pursues intellectual activities, esoteric knowledge, or other obscure interests that are age inappropriate rather than engaging in more social or popular activities. Therefore, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by peers, or will tend to associate with like-minded people.”
Ok, I get that I’m “supposed” to be social, popular and sparkly…but that is not who or what I am. I do ok in the realm of sociability, but I am much more at home in a riveting book of about 1000 pages than any crowd of people. Introverts are not typically crowd people. What I don’t get is, what is wrong with being a person who is almost obsessed with learning things in a world that prefers that the average person remains as ignorant and as misinformed as possible? What is wrong with a person who would rather be alone than surrounded by people that are bent on misunderstanding and/or destroying who that person is? Maybe I’m not a loner…it could be that I’m hyper-selective. I dunno.
I like Star Wars, reading, writing, speaking like I have brain cells, sci-fi in general, foreign languages, poetry, art, music (except country and polka), and sundry other things. I’m not really a Dungeon’s and Dragon’s kind of gal, but that could change (highly unlikely, but it could….maybe?).
These interests have given me solace in a world that has been bent on beating my best characteristics out of me. When I first moved from California to Colorado in the middle of junior year in high school, I had trouble making friends because it was a bit of a culture shock (among other reasons). So, I spent that summer with music, pens, paper and a dictionary. I read the whole dictionary, it’s true. I found that by doing so, I found words that could articulate the pain and loneliness of that time, and it still serves me well.
So, no, I don’t feel bad that I may be a nerd. I would rather be a nerd than a whole host of other things that I won’t bother to mention. It’s just another thing that I have learned to love about me.
Peace.