Last Saturday, ScienceFiction.com sponsored an event created to help geeks meet other geeks. I’m part of the group that hosted the event – The League of Extraordinary Ladies. The group started because I invited some geek girls that I knew from Twitter and conventions to my house for a holiday gathering. The thirteen of us pretty much fell in love with each other, and that was helped along by the fact that we had common interests. I mean, everyone at the party was equally excited to play with toy lightsabers. We want to help others have a similar experience. Every geek should have local, geeky friends (guys are welcome too, despite the name). That way, it’s like you’re at a convention all the time.
I’m not saying non-geek friendships aren’t valid. I don’t choose friends based on a person’s affinity for Star Wars, Firefly, or space. However. I don’t feel like I connect with non-geek friends on the same level. It’s about common ground. I’m passionate about a range of topics from travel to eating. Those activities don’t come close to making a difference in my life the same way being a geek does. I spend half of my day writing about a host of nerdy subjects. I attend a mix of conventions, screenings, comic book shops, and toy stores frequently. My non-geek friends don’t tend to be interested in those events so it results in spending less time with them. Most of them don’t judge, but they just don’t get it.
It’s made a huge difference for me to have real-life friends who are not only supportive and wonderful, but also understand that you might not go out on Friday night because there’s a new episode of The Clone Wars airing. Here’s to having geek friendships.
