Geek Party-time

Before delving into the social life of our subjects, we must make several distinctions. That is, the difference between the "geek," the "nerd," and the "dork." This is an age-old dilemma that has sparked debate among the subjects of Nerdonia for ages. What makes a dork? How is he different from a nerd? What do they do differently? Is there even a difference? Indeed there is. Put simply, the classification goes something like this.

A nerd is someone with a high intellect who studies hard and is rather antisocial. He does, however, generally have a society all of his own, with a "Nerd King," the One Nerd who Rules Them All, and a band of others. Nerds spend their time working, generally on schoolwork, but are busybodies by nature and will occupy themselves with whatever research seems relevant at the time. They like to make themselves experts in at least one subject, whether it be comic books, history, or science. You will often see the Nerd Clique sitting together at a table in the cafeteria or in the Audio Visual Room. Nerds are often good chess players, and this is a common activity for them to partake in as a group. Magic the Gathering, a popular nerd trading card game, is becoming less and less popular, but Dungeons & Dragons and other similar role-playing games have not yet lost their status as highly played nerd games. Nerds are also heavy-duty readers, immersing themselves in a world they can pretend is reality for a few precious moments each day.

Geeks are a different class altogether. Generally loners, the geek is generally less put together, often less concerned with weight and appearance, has less need for hygiene, and as a result is generally seen on computers by himself. This does not mean, of course, that a geek has no friends. Far from it. In fact, a geek may have made more friends on the internet this week than you, the reader, have in the past six months. This is the world of the Geek. Geeks are very often excellent with machines; not just computers. They feel at home in their own room, and spend most of their time in seeming isolation. Generally not as book-smart as nerds, geeks make up for it in dedication to their electronics. School is not as big a concern for them as is having the latest issue of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman. Thus, comic book shops are a common destination for your average geek, as they can temporarily "geek out" with fellow geeks and converse about what they have learned about the origin of Steel Sterling's superpowers.

Geeks also partake in a phenomenon known as Conventions. There are conventions for all shapes and sizes of Geek: Comic Book, Anime, Star Trek, Fantasy, you name it. These are highlights of a geek's life, as it allows them to dress in a ridiculous fashion (i.e., Spock from Star Trek) and be among fellow geeks doing the same. They talk as if in their own language, often picking up a room at a nearby hotel or motel to stay the weekend at the convention. They attend seminars, meet famous celebrities (if we can call them that) in person, and attend awkward social functions. Conventions are held throughout the year, and can be found easily by talking to your neighborhood geek or simply doing what all geeks do: check online.

That leaves us with the most elusive of the bunch: dorks. Dorks may seem like ordinary people, but do not be fooled. The prime characteristic of a Dork is an unhealthy passion and dedication to a useless, obsolete, random activity or group. A dork can put on the guise of a "normie," as they are not necessarily less attractive or smarter than the average person, but they will obsess about something without anyone else knowing. Be careful; dorks are among us.

So what do dorks do in their spare time? Collections are a popular pastime. Card collecting, stamp collecting, or strange hats are just a few examples. This, of course, is a solitary activity. Dorks certainly hang out with other dorks, but unlike geeks and nerds, they can associate with dorks with different tastes, because it is not the specific quirk of a dork that matters, but rather the personality of caring way too much about something that nobody else has ever heard of that makes one a true dork. Dorks will follow their obsession wherever it leads them. They are big fans of movies, especially quirky ones.

It is clear that there is much overlap between these three groups, and rightfully so. Geeks, nerds, and dorks, in some form or another, are all social outcasts with very strange tastes. But that is what brings them together as well. And although they may not always get along (dorks will attack the geeks for being self-righteous and nerds for being annoying, while the other two look at dorks as sellouts), they may often be seen in packs, doing whatever it is geeks, nerds, and dorks do.