Alt, Growing Up Geek: Veronica Belmont
By Veronica Belmont 
posted June 21st 2010 1:41PM
posted June 21st 2010 1:41PM
Welcome to Growing Up Geek, a new feature where we take a look back at our youth, and tell stories of growing up to be the nerds that we are. We're happy to kick off the series with Veronica Belmont.
I was born in the year of the ColecoVision. This isn't that unusual or interesting until you factor in that my mother was a VP at Coleco at that time. OK, well, it's still probably not that interesting unless you're me and trying to figure out the defining moments that turned you into a "geeky" adult.
An abundance of video games, toys, puzzles, board games... it's a pretty awesome environment to grow up in, especially for a kid whose father also happened to work in the toy industry (he was an engineer for Hasbro in those days). For me, it was just totally normal to walk into the living room and see a pile of toys on the floor, in varying states of production and disarray. I'd take them apart, put them back together, and spend hours trying to find different ways to destroy them. Things haven't changed too much.
An abundance of video games, toys, puzzles, board games... it's a pretty awesome environment to grow up in, especially for a kid whose father also happened to work in the toy industry (he was an engineer for Hasbro in those days). For me, it was just totally normal to walk into the living room and see a pile of toys on the floor, in varying states of production and disarray. I'd take them apart, put them back together, and spend hours trying to find different ways to destroy them. Things haven't changed too much.
This isn't that weird for your average geek, but I guess it may be a little less typical for your average adolescent girl at the time. Yet I wasn't even aware that this behavior was somehow different until I hit high school. My mom wasn't trying to convince me to pursue more "girlie" interests; my friends in the neighborhood were totally down to role-play Jurassic Park or TMNT; and I was fortunate (in my opinion) to not have any sibling competition for the consoles or computers until I was 10. There were never any expectations to try and be anything other than who I was, as long as I did my best.
By the time I became a totally self-aware and shameless geek, I also realized that to be part of the geek club just means that you're a lot more obsessed than the average person for any particular subject. Calling someone a "geek" doesn't have the same negative connotations it used to: on the Internet, it's a badge of honor, and it means you're passionate. While I still retain many of my perhaps tomboyish interests, my geekiness has grown and changed with me over time: when suddenly I found myself in front of a camera at CNET after doing production work for so long (and not knowing the meaning of "mascara") I threw myself into learning everything I could about makeup. Makeup! Now among my circle of girlfriends (and certain on-camera gentlemen as well) I'm the makeup guru. To me, it's less about what you're geeking out on, and more about connecting with other people that have the same passions as you.
Veronica is a technology and gaming-centric video host based out of San Francisco. Currently her projects include Qore (a monthly interactive magazine about the PS3 for Sony) and Tekzilla (a weekly tech help and how-to show on Revision3.com). She has also written for Slate, DoubleX, MaximumPC and PC Gamer Magazine. Follow her on Twitter!
I am 41. Here are my memories of growing up in the 70's/80's...
Commodore PET, Odyssey, Home Box Office, Apple IIe, BASIC, 6502 Assembly Code, Vic-20, C-64, Amiga, Atari 5200, Zaxxon, Defender, Pac-man, Space Invaders, Compuserve, BBS's, Speed Racer, Justice League of America, cylon raiders, sleestak, rotary phones, 300 baud modems, Turbo Pascal, VisiCalc, Lotus123, CP/M, Gopher, Telnet, Video Toaster, dot matrix printers, 8" floppies, NeXT, LightWave3D, DeluxePaint, Compute!'s Gazette magazine, Phone Phreaking...
...ah, the tech memories of my youth are swarming back into my head.
I really have my Dad to thank. He funded all my gadgets and was a geek in his own time (1950's). Ham radio operator, CB Radio handle 'Star Trek'; "breaker-breaker 1-9, we are bumper to bumper on the Pallisades parkway but your signal is DFQ (deadfull quiet)", morse code, electronic circuit builder, model airplane builder, plaster of paris volcano maker for my school science project.
I remember him making a wireless phone call to my step mom from our car over his ham radio back in 1970. Half duplex, public airways:
"Honey, we are on the air. Do you need me to bring home some milk? This is Wb2aqg, mobile. Over."
"What do you mean we are on the air? Hello?"
Good times.
@rlopin er, phone call was around 1978, not 1970.
@rlopin
I'm a few years younger than you, but I'm "Old School" Growing Up Geek, too.
Computers: Apple II E -- fav game -- Ultima III - V
C-64, Amiga 500, Amiga 2000 -- fav game -- Defender of the Crown
Pre-Internet I was on B.B.S's, where I played text based games. Gotta love the green monitor.The name of the BBS game I played was called "The Crunch Booger" and the Sysop who ran it was called D.T. Legna.
I had a 300 baud modem, a 1200 baud modem, a 2400 baud Supra Modem, and I always wanted the US Robotics 9600 baud modem (which was $600 at the time).
Dungeons and Dragons, YES. Painted figurines, had Gary Gygax Monster Manuals one and two, and plenty o twenty-sided dice.
Pin Pan Alley was the arcade of choice, where Ms. Pacman and Gauntlet where my two favorite games.
I also found time to mix in some Laser Tag.
I went to Comic Book Conventions in Chicago WAY before they became cool and dominated by Hollywood. Still have my early editions of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And the graphic novel style Dark Knights.
To laugh at a picture of me from the good ol' days, you can see my brace-face here: http://www.covertyouthagency.com/
Just go under the heading "Nerdball."
I would think that anyone that visits Engadget is at least some kind of geek. Big geek. Little geek. Weirdo geek. Closet geek. A geek nevertheless.
@James1 You are right!
To build on that list: Computer geek (classic), Music geek, Comic book geek, etc. Basically anyone obsessed with a hobby that has its own jargon is a geek.
@James1 Haha, I am a shamelessly OBSESSED geek.
Coleco Vision FTW. You are made of win Veronica.
I am shamelessly entranced by this woman.
from cutie pie to hot geek :)