{"id":3207,"date":"2019-04-06T01:47:26","date_gmt":"2019-04-06T01:47:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/?p=3207"},"modified":"2021-01-07T18:45:03","modified_gmt":"2021-01-07T18:45:03","slug":"be-not-afraid-of-geekness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/be-not-afraid-of-geekness\/","title":{"rendered":"Be Not Afraid of Geekness"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20190304ff\/20090301-2011-geeks-and-nerds-collage-658.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m one of those folks who read dictionaries for fun. If I had more finely-tuned social skills, I might be a geek. I&#8217;ve been told I&#8217;m a nerd. I won&#8217;t deny it.<\/p>\n<p>Which reminded me of Malvolio&#8217;s words of wisdom. Or, rather, my paraphrase:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Be not afraid of geekness: some men are born geeks, some achieve geekness and some have geekness thrust upon them.&#8221;<br \/>\n<span style=\"font-size: small;\">(From <a href=\"http:\/\/apatheticlemming.blogspot.com\/2011\/04\/lemming-tracks-geek-is-not-nerd.html\">Apathetic Lemming of the North<\/a>; April 15, 2011. Apologies to <a href=\"http:\/\/shakespeare.mit.edu\/twelfth_night\/full.html\">William Shakespeare<\/a>.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/be-not-afraid-of-geekness\/#1\">1<\/a><\/sup>)<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>(The 12-panel &#8216;geeks and nerds&#8217; cartoon was made in 2009 by someone using 909sickle as a screen name. Or maybe a company name. I don&#8217;t know who he, she, or they is\/are.)<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"fatuous\"><\/a>Fatuous Fashions<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.reuters.com\/oddly-enough\/2010\/04\/05\/my-name-is-cecil-i-play-the-ukulele\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20190304ff\/2010-Reuters-fashion-pleats-280-329.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>There are worse fates than being a geek, a nerd, or some combination thereof.<\/p>\n<p>Consider, if you will, the life of a fashion model: consigned to wear phantasmagoria made manifest.<\/p>\n<p>Like those accordion pants.<\/p>\n<p>On the &#8216;up&#8217; side, reconnaissance reports from fashion&#8217;s ragged fringe gave someone material for his blog:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/blogs.reuters.com\/oddly-enough\/2010\/04\/05\/my-name-is-cecil-i-play-the-ukulele\/\">My name is Cecil, I play the ukulele&#8230;<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\nRobert Basler&#8217;s Oddly Enough Blog, Reuters (April 5, 2010)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Not that being a fashion model is basically wrong. Or a fashion designer, or someone who&#8217;s interested in fashions.<\/p>\n<p>If I made keeping up with current fashion my reason for life, that would be a problem.<\/p>\n<p>Top priority is where God belongs. Putting anything or anyone else there, even good things or people, is a bad idea. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s2c1a1.htm#2112\">2112<\/a>&#8211;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s2c1a1.htm#2114\">2114<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>About the weird suit with the accordion pants, I don&#8217;t see it as a problem. Maybe someone could argue that resources spent on making it should have been spent on something else.<sup><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/be-not-afraid-of-geekness\/#2\">2<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I haven&#8217;t run across anyone going ballistic over fashion, particularly women&#8217;s fashion, recently. Maybe kvetching over fashion is unfashionable now, and that&#8217;s another topic.<\/p>\n<p>Or maybe not so much. News and op-eds featuring the Kardashians and other glamorous types suggests that modest and fashionable are still near-antonyms. For high-end women&#8217;s wear, at any rate. High-end isn&#8217;t the problem. Not by itself. (Catechism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c2a3.htm#1934\">1934<\/a>&#8211;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c2a3.htm#1938\">1938<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>Fatuous fashion choices don&#8217;t make talking about modesty any easier. The Catholic version, which involves human dignity and cultural standards. (Catechism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s2c2a9.htm#2521\">2521<\/a>&#8211;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s2c2a9.htm#2524\">2524<\/a>)<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"labels\"><\/a>Labels<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/xkcd.com\/747\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20190304ff\/20190329-geeks_and_nerds-329.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>Where was I?<\/p>\n<p>Geeks, nerds, Shakespeare, phantasms from fashion&#8217;s ragged fringe. Right.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe I&#8217;m a nerd. Or a geek. Or, more likely, both: a neek, maybe? Or a gerd??<\/p>\n<p>Maybe so. Like I said, I won&#8217;t deny it.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m als0 pretty sure I&#8217;m not in the intersection of geeks and nerds. I&#8217;ve got opinions about a whacking great number of things, including Venn diagrams: but not strong opinions on geek-nerd distinctions.<\/p>\n<p>As I see it, labels like &#8220;geek&#8221; and &#8220;nerd&#8221; matter. So do labels for other aspects of my existence: my height, cradle language, social status, zip code, musical preferences and thousands of other factors. More.<\/p>\n<p>None of those fully define what I am, much less who I am. But labels come in handy, particularly when I&#8217;m trying to figure out what I should do next, how I should do it and whether it&#8217;s even possible. Not necessarily in that order.<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"happiness\"><\/a>Happiness?<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/anxiety-optional\/#idont\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20130220ff\/20150702-a59d76a97ff02272674b53ed27f4-329.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>Maybe dictionaries, definitions, philology, metaphysics and how many nerds it takes to change a light bulb don&#8217;t seem particularly spiritual.<\/p>\n<p>Certainly not if being spiritual means getting fired up by the latest feel-good faith. Or becoming a pious party-pooper.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;Uplifting&#8217; stuff arguably feels better than old-school fire and brimstone. Until the buzz wears off, anyway.<\/p>\n<p>Not that there&#8217;s anything wrong with wanting to be happy. It&#8217;s part of being human, along with a desire for the infinite and openness to truth and beauty. All of which comes from God. (Catechism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p1s1c1.htm#33\">33<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c1a2.htm#1718\">1718<\/a>&#8211;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c1a2.htm#1719\">1719<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>Basically, wanting happiness is okay. When I remember where to look:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;<strong>BEATIFIC VISION:<\/strong> The contemplation of God in heavenly glory, a gift of God which is a constitutive element of the happiness (or beatitude) of heaven (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p123a12.htm#1028\">1028<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c1a2.htm#1720\">1720<\/a>).&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>HAPPINESS:<\/strong> Joy and beatitude over receiving the fulfillment of our vocation as creatures: a sharing in the divine nature and the vision of God. God put us into the world to know, love, and serve him, and so come to the happiness of paradise (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c1a2.htm#1720\">1720<\/a>).&#8221;<br \/>\n(Glossary, Catechism of the Catholic Church)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Expecting a giddy, party-every-day feeling isn&#8217;t reasonable. Not on a regular basis. Certainly not for someone like me. And that&#8217;s yet another topic. (<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/still-rejoicing\/#joy\">July 2, 2017<\/a>)<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"uplift\"><\/a>The Edwards Legacy<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/imagine-all-the-people\/#loathsome\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20130220ff\/356px-Sinners_in_the_Hands_of_an_Angry_God_by_Jonathan_Edwards_1741-329.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>Then there&#8217;s the Edwards legacy:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;&#8230;every unconverted Man properly belongs to Hell&#8230;.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8220;&#8230;The God that holds you over the Pit of Hell, much as one holds a Spider, or some loathsome Insect, over the Fire, abhors you&#8230;.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8220;&#8230;you will be wholly lost and thrown away of God&#8230;.&#8221;<br \/>\n(&#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/digitalcommons.unl.edu\/cgi\/viewcontent.cgi?article=1053&amp;context=etas\">Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God<\/a>,&#8221; pp. 6, 9, 15, 18; Jonathan Edwards (July 8, 1741) <span style=\"font-size: xx-small;\">(via Digital Commons@University of Nebraska-Lincoln)<\/span>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>I&#8217;m not sure why calling someone a &#8220;loathsome Insect&#8221; has been so popular.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe it&#8217;s connected to seeing God as a supercharged Zeus. With anger management issues. (<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/chasing-butterflies-and-truth\/#nearly\">January 19, 2018<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/disorders-decisions\/#natural\">November 19, 2017<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/more-disasters\/#sinners\">September 10, 2017<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>That, and morphing fear of God into being scared silly of the Almighty, are problems we&#8217;ve had ever since the first of us made a very poor choice. (Catechism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p1s1c1.htm#29\">29<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p1s2c1p7.htm#399\">399<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s2c1a2.htm#2144\">2144<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>Verbal abuse, religious and otherwise, happens. That doesn&#8217;t make it right. I&#8217;d be concerned about someone who enjoys it. Fashionable melancholy&#8217;s in the mix too, and that&#8217;s yet again another topic. Topics. (<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/imagine-all-the-people\/#loathsome\">January 8, 2018<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/anxiety-optional\/#idont\">October 8, 2017<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/good-intentions\/#doom\">May 12, 2017<\/a>)<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"quirks\"><\/a>Quirks and Dignity<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/internet-friends-real-people\/#anything\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20130220ff\/PTSD_stress_brain.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>Getting back to labels and being human: I&#8217;m pretty close to average height, and my features are about what you&#8217;d expect in someone with my ancestry.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m &#8216;normal&#8217; \u2014 that way.<\/p>\n<p>The way my brain works is another matter. (<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/internet-friends-real-people\/#anything\">March 19, 2017<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/humility-isnt-being-delusional\/#accepting\">July 31, 2016<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>My neural quirks have labels like Asperger&#8217;s and autism spectrum disorder. I figure they&#8217;ll have different labels as we learn more about non-standard brain functions.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever they&#8217;re called, how I deal with them is up to me.<\/p>\n<p>One option would be fretting about not being normal. Or pretending that there&#8217;s nothing non-standard about me. Neither seems reasonable.<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve got the dignity that comes with being human, just like everyone else. In that sense, I&#8217;m &#8220;normal.&#8221; In another sense, I suspect that nobody&#8217;s &#8220;normal.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Maybe some are closer to the 50th percentile in more ways than most, but we&#8217;re not all alike. We&#8217;re not supposed to be. (Catechism, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c2a3.htm#1934\">1934<\/a>&#8211;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.vatican.va\/archive\/ccc_css\/archive\/catechism\/p3s1c2a3.htm#1938\">1938<\/a>)<\/p>\n<h4><a name=\"sticky\"><\/a>A Sticky Mind and 1 Corinthians 12<\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/repeatable-results-that-arent\/#truth\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/brendans-island.com\/blogsource\/20130220ff\/hs-2007-04-a-print-detail-rotate90enhanced.jpg?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" align=\"right\" \/><\/a>I&#8217;ve got a sticky mind: a knack for remembering words and facts.<\/p>\n<p>Not important facts like birthdays, anniversaries and deadlines.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s part of the kit God gave me.<\/p>\n<p>My contribution has been developing my talents, paying attention to this wonder-filled universe, and sharing my appreciation for God&#8217;s handiwork.<\/p>\n<p>Last month&#8217;s Catholic Charismatic Renewal retreat started me thinking about talents and charisms: and how little I know about that sort of thing.<\/p>\n<p>Apart from what&#8217;s in the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usccb.org\/bible\/acts\/2\">second chapter of Acts<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usccb.org\/bible\/1corinthians\/12\">1 Corinthians 12<\/a>. And that&#8217;s still more topics, for another day.<\/p>\n<p>Vaguely-related posts:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/god-love-and-clouds\/\">God, Love and Clouds<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\n(February 25, 2018)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/knowledge-opening-the-gift\/\">Knowledge: Opening the Gift<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\n(March 26, 2017)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/internet-friends-real-people\/\">Internet Friends, Real People<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\n(March 19, 2017)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/the-virtue-trap\/\">The Virtue Trap<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\n(October 23, 2016)<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/humility-isnt-being-delusional\/\">Humility isn&#8217;t Being Delusional<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\n(July 31, 2016)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p><sup><a name=\"1\"><\/a>1<\/sup> Geeks, nerds and Shakespeare&#8217;s &#8220;Twelfth Night:&#8221;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Wikipedia\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Geek\">Geek<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nerd\">Nerd<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/shakespeare.mit.edu\/twelfth_night\/full.html\">Twelfth Night<\/a>,&#8221; full text<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/shakespeare.mit.edu\/index.html\">The Complete Works of William Shakespeare<\/a>, MIT<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><sup><a name=\"2\"><\/a>2<\/sup> Consumption, within reason:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.usccb.org\/issues-and-action\/human-life-and-dignity\/global-issues\/the-good-life-from-a-catholic-perspective-challenge-of-consumption.cfm\">The Good Life from a Catholic Perspective: The Challenge of Consumption<\/a>&#8221;<br \/>\nMonsignor Charles Murphy, Global Issues, Human Life and Dignity, USCCB<\/li>\n<li>My take\n<ul>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/power-and-climate\/\">Power and Climate<\/a>&#8221; (July 1, 2018)\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/power-and-climate\/#not\">Not Panicking<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/bogs-and-bison\/\">Bogs and Bison<\/a>&#8221; (February 10, 2017)\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/bogs-and-bison\/#stewardship\">Stewardship and Learning Wisdom<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I&#8217;m one of those folks who read dictionaries for fun. If I had more finely-tuned social skills, I might be a geek. I&#8217;ve been told I&#8217;m a nerd. I won&#8217;t deny it. Which reminded me of Malvolio&#8217;s words of wisdom. &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/be-not-afraid-of-geekness\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[215,154],"tags":[177,77,85],"class_list":["post-3207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-being-catholic","category-discursive-detours","tag-charisms","tag-emotions","tag-mental-health"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7Dwtw-PJ","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3207","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3207"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3207\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3281,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3207\/revisions\/3281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}