How is COVID 19 Impacting Geek Life During Lock Down

Right now this is a tough time for everyone and now with the possibility of things slowly reopening what does that mean to current geek life. Most people think of geeks as the loner that lives in their parent’s basement, but that is not true for all geeks. Geek life is actual very social. There is everything from shopping experiences, to LARPing and of course the old mighty con. COVID 19 has taken this social interaction away from a lot of geeks. For many geeks, being a geek is very important as a way that they keep their sanity. Losing this outlet can cause depression to increase, so it is very important for geeks to stay active in their fandoms. Luckily there are ways to do this during lock down. This could be anything from video games, binge watching favorite series, or even writing fan fiction.

During this time I have been catching up on a lot of movies I missed due to my normally busy schedule. At the same time I have missed out on things I was looking forward to. I had been accepted to be official press at a con, first time I would have been official. Missed my normal Free Comic Book Day routine of running around the state to see what different comic book stores were doing. Even the week that things shut down I had been planning on going to a Marvel bingo event at a local brewry. Then I am also worrying about plans I had scheduled for later in the year.

Right now Free Comic Book Day has been postponed with no new set date. Free Comic Book Day has become very important to many small comic stores as a day when they get their heaviest foot traffic. These comic stores now have also been closed and not making money unless they also have online stores. I worry about how many comic stores will not be able to reopen. When things do start to reopen, please remember to support these smaller stores. Yes I will admit that sometimes they are pricier then other options, but many times they can be the only place to find that hard to find item. This also goes for small anime stores that in Colorado have been dropping of in the last decade.

When you are able to go out and enjoy geek shopping, please wear a face mask. I know that it is argued if the cloth ones are effective or not, but in my mind every little thing helps. You are also not just wearing a mask for yourself, but for others. This pandemic has been very scary because of how many people are asymptomatic. Someone could interact with you that appears well, but then when you go home you take the virus home with you. This could then infect your family and friends. Another thing to be aware of is that this virus can live on items for days. I know that many geeky products and not be directly cleaned with disinfecting wipes. Paper products like comics and collectibles can be damaged if you try to clean them. For items like this, time is your best defense. This means that when you buy something do not touch it for at least a week. I am actually letting things sit untouched for a month. This gives time for the virus to die. Also if you have a weak immune system I would also recommend wearing gloves both when you purchase these items in stores and at home until they have had a chance for time to kill anything on them. Placing items in the sun can help, but remember that many collectibles and paper products will fade with sun light. Be careful of this method.

Many of the fall cons still don’t know what they are doing. One of the major ones in Colorado is Nan Desu Kan (NDK). As of now on their website they say that they are still planning to go ahead with the con. Any regular con goer has at least heard of con funk. After this mass gathering it is normal to get a little sick from the con. It normally only lasts a few days, but how much worse will it be with COVID in the mix. Also all cons right now depend on if the rules about how many people can gather in one spot changes or not. Also if you have ever been to a con you know that social distancing is nonexistent. For cons if they are allowed to happen I recommend that you still protect yourself. I know personally that if the con does happen I will be wearing a face mask the whole time and have gloves for the dealer’s room. Hand sanitizer will also be a most in my con kit this year.

Face masks….yes I have been supporting them in my above writing. I know that there is a lot of kick back on them, but if my claustrophobic mother can learn to live with them so can others. Remember it is not just for yourself, but your families and others that you interact with. I will fully admit that I think less of people that are not wearing them. I feel that these people do not care about others so why should I care about them. The geek community has the power to make facial coverings a strong social movement. It will not only show that we care about others, but we can also do it more fashionably then they can. All you cosplayers out there, time to break out you mad sewing skills and let your geek flag fly. I want to challenge all of you to make the most amazing and functional masks out there. Even if you can’t sew, places like ShopDisney are creating geeky masks that you can buy (and the child one is really cute). Wearing a mask is a simple thing that each person can do and it has a potential to help the world get back to normal. The Japanese actually have a very strong mask culture. This can be seen in both their anime and popular culture products that make it to the U.S. I was actually able to by a BTS mask for my mom at the Asian store in Aurora Mall before everything shut down. They also had Fortnite ones.

A lot of phone app games have also been doing what they can to help us through these times. The different Candy Crush games have been randomly giving out 24 hours of unlimited lives. Pokemon Go has also adjusted many aspects of their game to make it more friendly to lock down measures. This includes everything from cutting walking distance for hatching eggs to remote raid passes.

As to the future is being built it is unclear what the new world will look like. I know that many of the social changes will have lasting effects at least for the next few decades like what happened after the Spanish flu. How much the geek world will be impacted is also unclear. I personally know that this will change parts of my life moving forward. The geek world can stay strong if we all work together to be happy and safe.