With Friends Like These . . .

I got to thinking about the gamer stereotype so often portrayed in movies and TV prior to the current ascendancy of the geek and still somewhat although more because we geeks can laugh at it as well.

How do your gaming buddies stack up to the imagined stereotype?

Obviously details aren't required, so I won't go into those of my gaming friends, though I will point out that they really do not fit the mold.

Among the groups over the years I have gamed with a wide variety of individuals. Some have gone on to less than ideal things, though most are well established and some very accomplished in their professions and fields of study.

I'll skip the ones that went to the dark side since those are very few and no longer among my gaming friends or friends at all.

A number of PHDs - anthropology, criminology, professors at universities, biologists,
Various Masters, BS, BA degrees - teachers, government employees, non-profit organizations, journalists, corporate managers,
A plethora of various sorts of certifications - IT professionals, Legal professionals, and other pursuits,

I know I'm missing something from what sounds like a decidedly nerdy list, but my point is that these people don't fit the profile despite those types of credentials.

Their other hobbies and activities run the gamut from athletics and sports, to art, photography, music, pretty much you name it. Some of them even produce material for games as a side business.

Also, they don't fall into the snobby stereotypes those credentials are often associated with. These folks can sit down for a game and dive into the silliest, most absurd fun, all without the shame society so often tries to heap on "those that are different".

Nowhere on these lists are the maladjusted misfits the stereotype suggests.