Geek vs Life

We met Wil Wheaton at PAX this year. While we were standing in line, all of us wearing our Geek Vs Life shirts (available now from the store, all except the faux Atari shirt that’s part of this story), Jon says to me “We should have brought a shirt for Wil.” “Well, damn. I guess we’ll remember for next year to be more prepared.”

This year’s PAX was our first real foray into on live journalism as it was for the site. When we finally made our way to the front of the line, Mr. Wheaton says “That shirt is AWESOME!” I look down, muttering a curse at myself and our lack of forethought, and can feel Jon’s eyes burning a hole in the side of my head. We talk about gaming for a bit, got a picture and some video, and I promised to send Wil one of our shirts. He was kind and courteous, probably from his years doing the convention circuit, so at the time I couldn’t tell if this was practiced niceness or genuine, but it didn’t matter all that much. He was cool.

I suppose I was nervous. I was a huge fan of TNG, and had only just started reading his blog. The entire incident threw me off slightly. I packed up the shirt after the convention, and using the card he’d given us his address on (the best piece of swag from the weekend, IMHO) stopped by the post office on my way to work and sent it down. Over the course of the next few days, I’d wished that I’d put more on/in that small pouch. I’d wished we’d written on the shirt, put in a letter or something to make it more personal. So I’m doing this to attempt to make up for it, as a thank you for sharing his life with us. Here’s my review for his book, The Happiest Days of Our Lives.

Wil Wheaton is blessed with incredible articulation. His voice is inviting and close. As you read his work you feel like you’re sitting at the other side of the kitchen table from him, after the dice have been laid to rest for the evening, just talking. Not a celebrity, but just a geek putting to type what’s on his mind. You can’t help but feel close, and not alone.

Many of us don’t have the drive or talent to put down what we feel or what we’ve been through, nor do we feel comfortable enough to share it. Reading what Wil has put in his blog makes the big bad world seem smaller and kinder.

The Happiest Days of Our Lives is a collection of stories that can be found in his collection of digital work on the web. Most short and funny, one sad, all touching. It’s a quick read, and I found that I haven’t laughed as much with a book since Surely You’re Joking Mr. Feynman. It was simply a joy. It made me remember my own past; what I look back at fondly, what I look back at and want to kick myself for, and what I look back at and break down. It also reminded me that the happiest days of our lives are still happening.

Thank you for sharing, Wil.