What is a Blerd?

A “blerd” is defined as a black nerd. They are those who have an interest in what others would say are strange and specific things. A blerd, however, is not obsessed with his interest to the level of being socially inept. Blerds will converse in public and will express their interest without fear of being uncool. They will generally be found somewhere in the middle of conformity and complete social awkwardness.

Growing up in a school where you are the minority makes it tough to really identify yourself. You have your school friends who are into certain things, and then you have family who are into other things. I was such a youth from elementary to my sophomore year in high school. I enjoyed hanging out with my family doing what they perceived was cool at the time, which usually consisted of hip hop and dance. I also had other interests that were thought of as strange. Not all my interests were “strange”; however, my interests were specific to technology and cartoons and video games. These things made me a blerd in friends’ eyes.

It wasn’t until the television series Scrubs appeared that people like me were given the title of Blerd. It was not that their were not already blerds. Television had already produced many most notably the character of Steve Urkel from Family Matters. Urkel was a goofy stereotypical 90's style nerd, not too dissimilar from the average 70's-80's computer nerd. The iconic giant glasses and pants that came to just above his ankles held up by suspenders Originally supposed to be a one time character his popularity soon made him the main character in the show. Not everyone was quite on the level of Urkel and with the popularity of Scrubs came the realization that many of us were, in fact, blerds.

I’m want to blog about an array of my interests that others may deem as uncool because I know how it was to grow up being told that all the things you are interested in are “a bit weird.” I want to show that it is alright for others not to like the same things as long as your nerdom makes you happy.