Just musing and....

[Thomulas]

why is minature collecting, painting and sculpting considered so nerdy?

For example you wouldn\'t consider an architech a nerd for producing and achitectual model but someone in there room producing an amazing vampire castle (see some other thread in wip) would genraly be considered a geek and probally quite sad by the general public. why is this? your thoughts. ???

 

[Dragon Forge Design]

Who says its nerdy..its only nerdy if you think it is.

 

[Roger Bunting]

Oh, I\'m sure architects are considered nerdy by lots of people. I originally started out at uni studying architecture. We were told by our tutors that very quickly all we would be talking about would be buildings.

 

[Jike Ichi]

I think its just a not very common hobby. So when people see something they don\'t know they tend to think its nerdy...

I\'ve never seen painting minis as nerdy, but I know from the reaction and amazed eyes from friends visiting my home for the first time that it\'s something not very common.

Mostly I tell them how they are painted and show them some \"naked\" minis. Afterwards they are really impressed and most of my friends like it and ask me if I have any new ones painted when visiting again.

 

[Ogrebane]

Because it is nerdy. Hey Im a nerd and I can live with that. My IQ is about 10% higher than most people at work and I like doing other nerdy stuff as well.

I dont have a problem with my firends calling me a nerd. Its better than being the goroups drunk or the creepy dood. I\'ll take nerd anyday

 

[mud duck]

Originally posted by Ogrebane
Because it is nerdy. Hey Im a nerd and I can live with that. My IQ is about 10% higher than most people at work and I like doing other nerdy stuff as well.

I dont have a problem with my firends calling me a nerd. Its better than being the goroups drunk or the creepy dood. I\'ll take nerd anyday

Hehe, The simple fact that you know what your IQ is, should be enough to show your Nerdy-ness

 

[No Such Agency]

I think part of the problem is that anything science fiction and fantasy themed is considered nerdy, and most miniature hobby stuff falls into those categories. SF and fantasy started out as a small niche in pulp magazines and comic books, read only by bookish boys and men, which is to say the ones who read at all. Scorned by both non-readers and \"literature\" types alike, they developed into a very outcast niche in society. It\'s only recently that SF/fantasy books, movies and TV have become \"cool\", not counting breakthrough hits like Star Trek.

Everything since is just fallout from that.

 

[Thomulas]

yeah thats the conclusion i pretty much came to. It would seem that imagination doesn\'t fit with the ideal norm of society but then that is pretty obvious anyway. Its enough to bring along a gust of melancholy but at least there is a place for us nerdy/amazingly cool types here where we can show off and display the fruits of nerdy activity

 

[Jike Ichi]

Let me tell ya, We have a big harvest here. So many fresh fruits that your body will shake with vitamins...lol

 

[fieldarchy]

Because it is associated with games like Dungeons and Dragons which is then associated with the ultra geeky, bad smelling, horrid teeth having LARPers who go out in public dressed as knights or vampires and try and cast magic missile on the local populace.

That my friend . . . is why it is considered nerdy.

 

[Infidel Castro]

Aye, and the fact that a lot of people in the industry are ultra-awkward and unable to communicate with anything or anyone other than people within their own little world.

 

[rocketandroll]

Architecture\'s probably a bad comparison.... Architects, like fashion, product or other designers are piad to be creative, for a practical end purpose.

I\'d say a more reasonable comparison would be fine art, people who do watercolour painting or other more mainstream art/crafts as a hobby.

As others have said... anything linked to sci-fi or fantasy subjects is generally seen as bit \'nerdy\'. It is also partly the kind of people who the tabletop gaming and related hobby aspects attract... which is the sort of people who are generally of higher inteligence (no really) and need something like this as an outlet for their creativity and imagination because frankly, real life, day to day, is otherwise pretty dull.

I think by it\'s very nature, anything that\'s not mainstream is always going to be seen as a bit \'odd\'... especially any hobby that mainly attracts young men.


I find in general, as people reach a certain age... they find out they\'re not actually so different from everyone else and that having a tallent for something creative (even if it isn\'t considered mainstream) is really quite a cool thing and a great aspect to have to your life... and of all the \'nerdy\' hobbies I\'ve been involved with, this is the one with a really great social side to it... this forum for a start

There are far more nerdy things to do


Ben

 

[fieldarchy]

Originally posted by reverend
Aye, and the fact that a lot of people in the industry are ultra-awkward and unable to communicate with anything or anyone other than people within their own little world.

and by \"world\" Rev means \"head\"

 

[Infidel Castro]

Originally posted by fieldarchy

Originally posted by reverend
Aye, and the fact that a lot of people in the industry are ultra-awkward and unable to communicate with anything or anyone other than people within their own little world.

and by \"world\" Rev means \"head\"

Hehe! Too true Meg, too true lol

 

[fieldarchy]

<takes bow>

Thank you thank you! I\'ll be here all week. Please try the steak!

 

[Thomulas]

Originally posted by fieldarchy
Because it is associated with games like Dungeons and Dragons which is then associated with the ultra geeky, bad smelling, horrid teeth having LARPers who go out in public dressed as knights or vampires and try and cast magic missile on the local populace.

That my friend . . . is why it is considered nerdy.

.......Bahahahaha Oh my days i enjoyed that bravo. what more could be said on the matter?

 

[fieldarchy]

wow I actually expected to be hoisted on the perverbial pitard after making that statement . . . but in my experience that\'s why it IS looked down upon.

People find out I play D&D that\'s what they immediately say, \"Oh so you are one of THOSE people who dresses up as an elf and tries to cast magic missile in the patch of trees in your backyard? huh . . .\"

Seems the crazy larpers and the socially awkward members who have no idea of what the statement \"proper hygiene\" means give the rest of us a bad name.

I always make it very clear to non-gamers that I try my damnedest to not associate with people like that. In fact I find LARPing to be very um strange and kinda sick to be honest. I mean acting is fine but LARPing is really cracked to me. And I have yet to meet a LARPer that really isn\'t crazy. Last experience with one was my first time to SoCal and well . . . he tried to \"express interest\" and when I shot him down he ignored me for the rest of the weekend and then he ended up leaving without me back to Phoenix because he didn\'t want to wait for me to come back from dinner.

Oh did I mention this is a guy from my gaming group at the time and we had driven together? Yeah . . . nice time. Anyway, I had to hitch a ride back with a vendor that had their shop just down the street from my apartment in Phoenix. Great way to spend your FIRST visit to California.

On the subject of smelly socially awkward peeps . . . well . . . does that really need an explanation? lol

Another LARPer I knew really honest to god thought he was a vampire. Yeah . . . just a bit cracked to say the least!

 

[DaN]

I think its just a not very common hobby. So when people see something they don\'t know they tend to think its nerdy...

More common than you expect in my experience!

 

[Thomulas]

i\'v known some larpers and they all fit the sterio type. I got invited along once but just couldnt bring my self to do it.
\"magic missile! that means you die.\"
\" nah ah i had morden kienmans fathful watchdog cast\"
\"did not!\"
\"did too, im telling my mum!\"......
ooohh deary! not that im saying all larpers are like this and if any larpers are reading this then im sure you smell fine and understand what a shower might be.

If i went to callifornia i think i would be far more interested in surfing and try and avoid the socially dyslexic who think its ok to leave someone stranded in a strage place.

 

[fieldarchy]

yeah well live and learn I suppose. I was there working at the convention in 05 . . . didn\'t have a car either so not like I could go anywhere when I wanted to.