Some people just like to know things. Why are things the way they are? What do things do? What are other people doing & enjoying? What's it like doing this, what was it like doing that? I find things fascinating. You can get lost in it. It's addicting.
That kind of stuff isn't always able to be monetized unfortunately. I am practical. I do what I do for money b/c society's created a certain way you have to do certain things to make money. Money doesn't bring happiness anyways.
I think that's one of the reasons I'm a pro & college sports nerd despite not really being athletic. I didn't want to be the loser. I wanted to fit in. Sports were considered acceptable.
It’s a real interest now, but certainly social norms helped shape the interest. As well as being taken to games & the teams being good. It’s easy to get behind something & cheer for it. I have an underdog mentality too. I like seeing underdogs win, usually being an underdog myself. I suppose that’s why I’m not real athletic, I’d feel bad winning lol. I feel that way playing non-sporting events when I beat someone lol. If I was a champion, I'd feel incomplete. I'd think to myself 'that's all there is?'
Watching a fantasy cartoon: dumb & nerdy
Watching the playoffs: cool
I’m reminded of savants you used to see who can list every baseball players stats, birthdates, weights, years played, etc. These people generally not athletic but loved that information anyways.
I’ve always loved learning for the sake of learning. This doesn’t necessarily make me Jeopardy contestant material, but it does mean I understand how lots of things work. Sometimes, better than folks who are more oriented around reciting lists. Although That’s what I was getting at in the post you quoted.
Not that one approach is better than the other. Another college friend could rattle off stats for just about every professional athlete going back decades, and his enthusiasm was contagious. Sports can also be thought of as a metaphor for life. Competition, cooperation, back-stories, and the struggle against adversity is all part of the game. Pun intended, I suppose.
Money may not bring happiness, but financial security does provide a layer of protection against otherwise difficult times. I do well enough financially, but I'm more of a saver than a spender.
There are different kinds of nerds, to be sure. Even pointing the finger at myself. Some might be able to tell you the first episode of Doctor Who that featured K-9, for instance. I may not know the answer to that question, but I did build a cardboard mockup when I was a kid. From the experience, I learned a little about robotics and how abstract shapes can be made to resemble a dog.
For what it's worth, the fantasy cartoon sounds more interesting to me than watching the playoffs, but I get the appeal of both. What would be more my style, however, is to personally play the sport or make a creative project of my own.
