Day 14: Getting Down 'n Nerdy

Today, boys and girls, I have a valuable observation for you: all the best things in the world were accomplished by somebody who cared.

And not in a part-time, weekend, after-hours sort of way. I mean cared in a way that made others around them uncomfortable, in a way that bored their subway neighbors and made their family members go, "I love you but SHUT UP!"

Sometimes, they even cared so much that they go thrown in prison, or eaten by lions.

I don't know about you, but when I was growing up, caring was like, totally not cool, bro. Being cool was all about "chillaxing" and "hanging out." Being downright, red-faced, froth-mouthed passionate about something was a sure way to get those around you to give you gentle, insightful advice, like "Take a chill pill, dude."

I was not "cool."

I highly doubt this comes as a surprise to anyone.

Which brings us back to my point: that everything mankind has accomplished, from the pyramids to the internet, happened because somebody cared about something. A lot. Like, a huge, embarrassing, Nerdy McNerdNerd amount. 

And that makes me feel better about how nerdily invested I get in things. Now, granted, sometimes those are stupid things. Like fanatically shipping things that are never ever going to happen but SO need to. 

Much like Nathan and Duke, success and me might not seem like a likely couple... but I don't care. I ship it.

Sometimes, the things I care about aren't so stupid. Like trying to save baby monkeys from being tortured and killed in the name of "science," because "scientists" want to re-prove a theory we ALREADY proved by previous unethical animal torture. 

Or like getting really, really into the book I'm working on.

I spent today worldbuilding for my book. If you don't know, "worldbuilding" is the practice of plotting out fictional worlds, cities, and/or spaceships, if you are writing a science fiction or fantasy story. It's a pretty cool pre-writing exercise, and something I'm planning on writing a more in-depth post about in the coming days. Anyway, I'm feeling all revved up and excited to outline my plot and get to writing now, because I spent my day in nerdy ecstasy. Of course, I also feel really, really... for lack of a better word, nerdy. 

But then I remind myself that without nerdy enthusiasm, we'd still be grunting around in caves, languageless, too apathetic to learn how fire works.

Oh, like you're going to argue with the Seuss? Come on.

So for now I'll carry on, nerding boldly forward through a sea of people cooler than me.

Won't you nerd along by my side?