So my friend Jenn raised an interesting point on my post about people claiming they were dorks growing up:
"I tend to make this claim every now and then. I was a dork in H.S. But the fact that I was a dork then, doesn't mean I have transformed into something else now. I'm content (and maybe sometimes proud) that I was, am, and forever will be a dork. I guess the shock factor in my case is that I was even MORE of a dork in H.S. It's hard to believe. Could I beeee any more dorkier?! (I dropped that 'Friends' reference for you. ;) ) "
Thank you for the comment, Friends reference and new blog topic all at once, Jenn.
Now, in my previous post, I was moreso referring to people who say things such as "OMG, I was the biggest dork in high school. Can you EVER believe it?!" in the sense of 'I'm so good-looking, likeable and have so many friends, how could any group of people have ever misjudged me in such a way?!?!'
However, the more I think about it, there are a LOT of people who claim dorkhood (if you will), but not in a "BUT LOOK AT ME NOW!" kind of sense. In fact, I can think of a lot of good friends who make such claims in a completely matter-of-fact sense. The more I think about it, the 'I am/was a dork' claim is really rather pervasive all of a sudden.
Why is that? Are there more dorks out there than we anticipated? What percentage of the population is/was once a dork? It would seem as though it's like 75% of the population. Is 'dork' developing a positive connotation? I personally kind of think people started publicly proclaiming their 'dorkhood' because a) it was different and b) relays some level of being comfortable with oneself ('I might not go with the flow and people might judge me for it, but that's OK'), but I think now it's reached a point of being the trendy thing to do. Is being a dork the new hot thing right now?
That, and what does it really mean to be a dork? Is it having an interest in academics? Is it having an interest in some odd niche subjects? Is it abstaining from bad behavior? Is it being shy/quiet? Is it not being popular?
Please people. Elaborate on this.
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9 comments:
Wow. I'm honored.
And to answer a few of the questions in the post:
I choose b) relays some level of being comfortable with oneself. I never would have proclaimed my dorkhood in H.S. But once I got to college and discovered that it's ok to just be unashamedly whomever you are, then I started accepting my title.
Now, what does it really mean to be a dork? Is it having an interest in academics? Is it having an interest in some odd niche subjects? Is it abstaining from bad behavior? Is it being shy/quiet? Is it not being popular?
Well, in my case, all of the above. Plus I like video games. I have no fashion sense. I spend a large amount of free time on my computer (w00t, internet!). I really enjoy spending my Saturday nights playing board games with friends. I deleted my first comment to fix a grammatical error. I deleted my second comment to replace the HTML tags that were lost. And, most of all, I married Matt. ;)
But, perhaps you are on to something. Maybe being a dork is the new black. Thick-rimmed glasses have become rather trendy. And who doesn't love playing Wii?
is it working at 'Too Much Paper'?!?
I think the reason such a high percentage of self-proclaimed 'dorks' are in your circle of friends is that 'dorks' tend to be people who like academics and try to achieve a higher standard of intelligence (and hold other people to it).
Therefore, because intelligent folk tend to stick together, you probably have a higher percentage of friends who claim to be/have been dorks.
I also think there is comfort in proclaiming you are nerdy or dorky to your friends, because the people you are surrounding yourself with are probably the exact same way.
I had more - but then you started G-chatting me... and I lost my train of thought. Perhaps more later.
Why are so many of my friends dorks? Because birds of a feather flock together? Haha. I'll own up to it too. :)
P.S. Is deleting and reposting a blog comment because of a grammar error a sign of being a dork?
The reason everyone says they used to be a dork is because they look back on thier lives and all they see is kid running around with no front teeth wearing AC Slater parachute cargo pants carrying a Fraggle Rock Trapper Keeper!!! All kids are dorks!!
I was on the Environmental Club. My best friends and I got matching shirts made. I was a member of the 1997 Academic Bowl Team. I didn't go to my first school dance until I was 17 (junior year) and it was a blind date. I wore huge glasses and was called "Mr. Magoo". And still I thought I was cool and still do.
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