Just how geeky/nerdy are you?

Ah, the age-old question. We all want to quantify that part of us that everyone has (I'm looking at you, snotty girls in my eighth grade class) in different degrees. Insert binary joke because... well, because NUMBERS. Being "geeky" or "nerdy" has recently has become more acceptable, what with the internet so rampantly consuming our lives. Not that I'm complaining; I love the internet. The only problem is, how do we define "nerd" or "geek"? We all have different things that qualify us as one of those two things. For instance, things on my own personal nerd list include: obsessing about tv shows/books and the characters in or on them, Doctor Who, Supernatural, Star Trek, certain board games (Settlers of Cattan cough cough) and playing certain video games (World of Warcraft, Dungeons and Dragons, League of Legends, Warhammer). Now, doing or liking these things doesn't make you a nerd, but I would qualify those things as nerdy or geeky. I spend a lot of time looking at art online(especially comic book art- it's so cool!) and know a lot of superheros and superheroines. I know random facts, am a big fan of Certain Gameboy/Ninento games (Pokemon, Legend of Zelda, Mario, Kirby), obsess over TV shows, and own a wand from Harry Potter world. Do those things make me a nerd? Maybe. It's up to you to choose I think. There is a lot of stuff I haven't done that I qualify as nerdy. But you know what? I'm proud I wore a Batman shirt today. I am happy that I can freak out over plotlines with my friends. I am less proud that I speak in memes sometimes, but hey, we take the good with the bad.

Here are just a few geek or nerd quizzes you can take if you want to find out, even though the numbers and scores are kinda irrelevant, if you really think about it.

http://hellogiggles.com/quiz-are-you-a-nerd
http://www.matthewbarr.co.uk/geek/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baEnrIQko9k
http://www.nerdtests.com/ft_nq.php

Some of the questions in various quizzes have to do with math and science things, some are about unpopular things that you might do/have, nerdy activities you might have partaken in, or things that you like that are considered geeky. It really is up to the person, seeing as how I've gotten different scores depending on the quiz. And I would say I am a Nerdfighter. So to sum it all up, John Green and Simon Pegg, take it away!

A Hair to Remember

Recently, I got a haircut for the first time in 6 months because everyone was telling me my hair was really long. All I noticed were all my darn split ends and how difficult it was to brush it everyday.  When I finally decided to get a hair cut, I of course did that girl thing where I ask all my girl friends what girl hair cut I should get and what girl thing I should try. Girl.

One of my friends suggested I tell my stylist (that sounds way too fancy. Hair cutter? Salonist? Woman wielding the scissors?) to surprise me. That was received with a lot of "No!"s. Firstly, I am definitely not that adventurous to try out something like that! Sure, I'll walk on a frozen lake. Sure, I'll loosen my seat belt on roller coasters to catch more air. Definitely, I'll go talk to that guy just because my friends told me they didn't think I could. Yes, I'll stay up all night on a school night because... well, the same reason as the previous example, come to think of it. So the moral of the story is to get me to do something, just tell me you don't think I can do it. But ask me to ask someone to "surprise me"? Do you realize how semi-permanent a hair cut is? That takes real commitment! I don't get my hair cut but once every 6 months, so that's 6 months of dealing with my decision! No, I don't think I'm being too dramatic! This whole thing makes me want to- SET MYSELF ON FIRE. 

Yes, I stole a joke from the amazing show Arrested Development. 

The point is, I can't just say "surprise me!" So after a fun day of my friend and me taking measurements of our faces to determine our face shapes (here's the website I used) and then using various apps to put different styles on my head, it came down to bangs or layers. Bangs, as it turns out, require a lot of upkeep, so I chose layers to frame my face.

"I'd like to look like her. No, not just her hair, I meant everything. Can you do that?"

The point is, I miss my long hair. I tried to side braid it, and the layers kept sticking out and making it look ridiculous.

Now I can't have my hair blow black in the wind like Pocahontas, can't put it up into a messy bun the same way, can't side braid it. But with the hair cut, I get to have more stylized hair, i get to flip it without looking like a moron, there are no more split ends, it doesn't get messy or tangled as easily and I don't have to use as much shampoo or time brushing it. 

It's the constant pendulum swing, much like our political system in America. I have donated my hair to Locks of Love more times than 3 times. It's the constant push and pull between long and short(er) hair. I want the benefits of both long and shorter hair and styled hair, but I don't want the downsides of either of those. The fact that I've cut off twelve inches of my hair several times before and still have had long hair a few times after that is a constant reminder that HAIR GROWS BACK. Sure, styles go in and out. 

Some styles should never have come in. (COUGH COUGH EIGHTIES I'M TALKING ABOUT YOU COUGH)

But despite that, hair grows back, and if you look back at some photos in which you have a bad haircut, who cares? Everyone has embarrassing photos! I have plenty because for some reason I think it's better to look unattractive on purpose than on accident. Hence all the silly faces. Who doesn't look back at pictures and go "Oh my God, I can't believe I let you guys talk me into wearing that dress!" or think they really should have tried harder that day. It doesn't matter, because in 10, 20, even 30 years it's going to be outdated anyway. There are so many women who are posting on the internet about what they should do with their hair.  This girl's blog is even asking strangers on the internet what haircut she should get!

I  need to make a decision... I know! I'll ask the internet!

This other girl couln't spot a troll a mile away. 

I just think girls get a lot of crap about caring too much about hair and fashion and all that for a reason: if you are a girl and you've can't relate to this blog post AT ALL, my hat is off to you. How many guys post on the internet or rave to their friends about what haircut they need to get? The answer is not many. They describe haircuts with numbers and don't often switch it up. True, they get haircuts more often so aren't stuck with their decision for a long time, but still. Look at the evidence.