About Heroes

Hello, fellow nerds. Are you guys aware that we are in a Nerd Renaissance? It's a beautiful thing. Depending on how old you are, either you or your parents used to be ridiculed for reading comics, but now we're in a society that has fully embraced the comic nerd. No longer do jocks feel a genetic prompting to kick sand in our face at the beach in front of our girlfriends. We don't have carte blanche to run around willy nilly to be as nerdy as we want, but we are in the zeitgeist. Comic books are being recognized as a legitimate art form. Every other film is based on a comic book, and film is the blue part of the red white and blue blood that flows through our culture's veins (the red is celebrity worship and the white is pornography, which is ironic, right?). It is a new dawn for the nerd, and we can rest assured when we lay our heads down at night, knowing that we don't have to hide anymore. We can all just let our freaky nerd flags fly, right?

Not exactly. While we are in the aforementioned Nerd Renaissance, it's hard to let your bowl-cut hair down, bust out the fanny pack and not get any odd glances or muffled giggles in a public setting. It's been a long nerdy road I've walked down, and I thought that, in all my inflated wisdom and sense of self-importance, I'd impart some of the knowledge and tactics I've amassed along the way to give you some tips on how to blend in a little bit while still maintaining that healthy nerd blood pressure and keeping your social awkwardness cholesterol down. Forgive the bad puns, but hunker down. There's more coming.

Today's Tip: I'm gonna start this pretty broad here. This is more a basic human principle of social interaction, but it strongly applies to us nerds because we're one of the most frequent offenders when it comes to breaking this rule. It is important, not just as a nerd, but as a human being, to realize that not everyone is into what you're into. You might think it's amazing that Tommy ended up being the White Ranger or the Sentry turned out to be a 'real' character after all, but I can assure you, in any average setting, at least 90% of the people around you have no idea what you're talking about, and if they did, they most likely won't care at all. Your inner nerd belongs in a box. Not the repressive, moving box or shoe box type of box (box box box...just had to work a few more of 'em into the sentence). I'm talking more about a hamster cage of sorts with fresh sawdust, a feeder, a wheel and plenty of air-holes where it can run and burrow to it's heart's content without running all over the place leaving unsightly poops for people to see and contemplate. Know your audience. The phrase doesn't exactly apply, unless you're frequently performing in one way or another for the people around you. I digress. What I really mean is know who you're talking to. Know who's around you. Are you with your friends? Are your friends nerds? Are you talking to the clerk at Blockbuster? A good rule of thumb here is to not talk about it unless it's initiated or hinted at. If they light up at the fact that you're renting Iron Man, then maybe throw out an exploratory question. "Do you read the comics?" or "I hope War Machine's in the sequel!" or "I'm totally gay for the Silver Centurion armor!" are all good examples of this. Use your judgment in proceeding from this point based on their response. Bottom line, discretion is key, if someone came up to you and started blabbing on and on about sports or wrestling (no, they are not the same thing) or their favorite soap opera, think about how much you wouldn't care and not want to have the conversation. Don't drop nerd bombs, friends. There are more efficient/tactful ways to let your nerd out for a stretch. If my all-knowingness hasn't put you off yet, then check back soon for tips on how to do that, and much more! Hooray!

-Joshiebear