Yes! I am White and Nerdy.

"Weird Al" Yankovic rocked the Palace Theatre in Albany, New York last night. My friend and I were one of the lucky 2,844 in attendance-yes the house was packed-and we sat in the fifth row. Close enough to catch a drop of perspiration from the parody king's perfect pores. Alas, no sweat fell from Al's brow, though he signed t-shirts and ticket stubs while smiling for photos with the die-hards who waited after the show. We were two of these die-hards. I shook his hand and my cheek felt a tingle from Al's unruly mane. The next morning, as I showered, I considered cloning the DNA from the sloughed skin from my hand to create my own Weird Al. I thought better of it(it would take twenty years to grow-up plus there would be legal ramifications) and washed my hand.



I've loved the man since I was fifteen and first saw him in concert at twenty-five. I admire the creativity shown in his lyric genius, but it's his showmanship, stamina, and vocal ability that endears him to me. Al executed every word and every note with perfect precision while dancing and gyrating through the high impact choreography. During "Your Pitiful", a parody of James Blunt's "Your Beautiful" Al removed layers of clothing, each costume a symbol of loserism, finishing the final measures of the song dressed in a pink tutu and fishnet stockings. My love for Al has never wavered; this tableau cemented him in my heart for life. I will marry the man who can and willingly humiliates himself for comedy. Unfortunately, Mr. Yankovic is taken, but I know somewhere there is a fart- joke making, Sartre reading, pop culture spoofing long haired freak looking for me. And to help him find me I now wear my new "White and Nerdy" ball cap for my Central Park Workouts and whenever it is appropriate to wear a hat.

During my youth I tried to hide my dorkish tendencies, eschewing the math team for a long shot at the drill squad. I didn't make it, I dropped the flag, but I could do equations in my head. There was a Nerd that liked me in school and I didn't let him kiss me at the football game because I was afraid what my "friends" might think. He left me notes in my locker containing hieroglyphics and possibly kligon. He made me laugh. And I miss him.

"Weird Al's"popularity stems from his own admission of Nerddom and the way he has made it "OK", sexy even, for one to be a nerd,geek, dork, or freak. The labels really are one and the same. He gives his devoted fans someone to look up to, someone to say, that they have made it being bizarre and abnormal. Today I read Shakespeare, listen to Barry Manilow, and watch Documentaries with pride;this blog exists because I am Oddly off Center. Weird Al did not make me a nerd, but he makes me proud to be one. He owes his longevity to finding his own place in music and for the most part created the parody genre. I shudder to think that my children may never know the brilliance of parody because the world may never see another "Weird Al" Yankovic.