It’s Undergeek!

Many months ago, when I was doing a lot of web and job work, a horrible realization struck me – I was not doing many geeky things I enjoyed.  No video games.  No new anime.  No manga or scanilations.  I was busy, stressed, and disconnected from my fun.

I was Undergeeking.

There's something about us geek types, progeeks and yet-to-be, that needs a certain level of geekery.  We crave information, stimulation, fun, cool stuff, and connection with our fellow fans.  Yet, the traits we rely on – our skills, our focus, or love of what we do – can distract us, and suddenly we're Undergeeking.

This should not be allowed to stand.  Our geekery is our edge and the manifestation of our edge – our passion and interest.  You can be in a geek nirvana job, illustrating your successful online manga and running the merch business, but if you loose your edge of geekery, will you really be at your best – or even care.

Undergeeking should be treated.

In my case, I sat down and did the following:
*I selected two anime, one recommended by a friend, one I found, and made time to watch one episode of each a week at least.  I gave myself some geek time.
*I played some free online games when there was nothing on the consoles or DS interesting me.  I saw something fun and just played it – no worries over if it fit my interest, if it was too casual, etc.
* I blew some cash on geek stuff.  I also indulged myself and ordered a TON of books I'd wanted with some extra cash (in fact, I'm still going through the pile).

This helped.  I got back in touch with my geekery, relaxed more, and even got my creative juices going.  Geekery is part of my life.

So, if you find yourself Undergeeking, do yourself a favor, and fix it.  You'll be happier.

– Steven Savage