When One Blog Isn’t Enough
Okay, so I am officially hooked on this blogging gig. Not only is blogging fun, it also is making me a more productive writer. Like so many activities, the more I write… well… the more I write! An object in motion…
Also, the more I write, the more I want to write about writing and reading, but that’s not really the purpose of this blog, so I’ve started a separate “author’s blog” for discussions of all things literary. This will allow me to focus on posting three of four weekly intensity and creativity posts here on Everyday Intensity and concentrate on my other passion—the written word—there.
In Defense of the Written Word
As I’ve mentioned here
before, I have taught at an engineering college for several years. I had a math minor in college. Some of my best friends are in technical fields and my brother is a doctor. In short, I have a soft spot for science geeks.
However, I sometimes feel the need to stand up for word geeks, especially today when we hear so much about education’s practicality. Consider this bit of dialogue from Adventureland (note: Joel is played by Martin Starr of Freaks and Geeks):
Sue: What are you majoring in?
Joel: Russian literature and Slavic languages.
Sue: Oh wow, that’s pretty interesting. What career track is that?
Joel: Cabby, hot dog vendor, marijuana delivery guy. The world is my oyster.
Likewise, James says, “I majored in Comparative Literature and Renaissance Studies. Unless someone needs help restoring a fresco, I’m screwed.”
But is he really? David Brooks recently offered a refreshing defense of the humanities in his New York Times column:
“Studying the humanities will give you a wealth of analogies. People think by comparison — Iraq is either like Vietnam or Bosnia; your boss is like Narcissus or Solon. People who have a wealth of analogies in their minds can think more precisely than those with few analogies. If you go through college without reading Thucydides, Herodotus and Gibbon, you’ll have been cheated out of a great repertoire of comparisons.”
Word geeks often read voraciously for pleasure, soaking up both non-fiction and fiction in a variety of topics, slowly and steadily testing and forming their assumptions and opinions, continually synthesizing and making connections. However, their 10,000 hours of practice required for mastery often don’t add up to the same measurable results available to more single-focused disciplines. In fact, perhaps because word geeks are often also creative, they tend, in my experience and observations, to be late-bloomers. Just when their friends are planning for retirement, they are just getting started. It is important to remind young word geeks not to compare themselves against classmates whose interests are narrower or for whom public success comes earlier.
That’s not to say that narrow or scientific interests are in any way worse than broader ones or the liberal arts. In fact, my point is not to make evaluative comparisons at all! Only to see and to appreciate the intelligence and skill and work that go into living the intense and creative life—regardless of one’s area of passion.
You Need Never Outgrow Legos
Just for fun: Several Facebook friends recently alerted me to this TED Talk about Legos for Grownups:
Related Lego Posts:
- National Engineers Week
- Another Reason To Love Engineers
- LEGO Music Videos
- LEGO Movie Tributes
- More Multimedia Poetry: Music, Video and (of course) LEGOs
- Brontë Sisters Power Dolls and LEGO Star Wars Saga
The Big Bang Theory
Finally, at a recent lunch with good friends, I learned that some of them have not seen The Big Bang Theory. This must be remedied ASAP! Whether you are a science geek or word geek or both, or just someone who loves smart, original comedy, check out episodes on the CBS website, or get a taste with this clip, “Talk Nerdy to Me: Beautiful Minds“:
Have a wonderful, geeky weekend, everyone!
Lisa, thanks for your “defense of the written word.” I’ve been thinking a lot about how education cuts means fewer arts classes in primary education, as well as the significance of teaching the creative arts to young people, asking myself: “What significant life skills are taught through liberal and creative arts?” So, your post begins to address these concerns.
Congrats on a new blog! I too find blogging to be infectious. There’s a way in which is kind of fuels itself. After finishing one blog post, I want to start writing another one right away!
Ami, I’m so glad that my thoughts on the liberal (and creative) arts resonated with you. These are really important questions, especially, as you wrote, in our current climate of school budget cuts. My son and I were discussing this issue today. Long-term happiness in one’s field of study is one aspect that we often don’t measure or talk about when weighing careers or majors. Yet, I see that many of the more creative or liberal arts people I know are, at mid-life, really happy with their jobs, even when those jobs aren’t perfect. Just what is that worth, and how do we talk about it?
Thanks so much for your response! Lots to ponder…