Val lets us have a sneak peek into her world of games.

This is such a nerdy thing for me to do… Even for me!

What do you normally do on a Sunday morning? Sleep in? Have breakfast in bed? Get up and go for an early morning bike ride, followed by breakfast at a cute cafe? These are normal things, that normal people seem to do. Awesome. I, however, last Sunday did things a little differently.

I’m normally the type to have a sleep in till 9 or 10 am, slowly get up and make us some breakfast, then maybe go for a little drive and see what the ocean looks like (not that it’s changed or anything). This is my normal Sunday. Last Sunday, however, I was awake at 4 in the morning. What was I doing? I was watching a guy in the UK, live-streaming himself playing Minecraft on YouTube. Yes… I will admit it… This is what I did. I sat up and waited for him to jump online, have a chat with me and the other 60,000 people who were doing the same (yes, that many), and then slay the Ender Dragon using his enchanted bow with Power, Flame and Punch. (insert confused looks from non-gamers *here*)

Now, I know you’re probably thinking that I’ve lost a million brownie points with you now. I even told my boss today and he couldn’t quite believe that I would get up at that ungodly time of the morning to watch a 20yr old dude play a video game. Like, honestly, I think about it and think “Wow, that is kinda lame”… but then I think about it a bit longer and think to myself “No, this is not lame. This is extremely awesome!”.

I think this because, to be honest, I was always kind of the odd one out at school. Sure, I had friends, but I was a drama kid and if I started to be too passionate about a script or musical or piece of costuming I found, start jumping around or start singing “Willkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome!!”, I saw the rolled eyes I got in return. I saw them laugh and say “we’re laughing WITH you”, but it was AT me. Was I too passionate? Maybe. But it was something I loved.

Now, I love video games. I love playing them, I love sharing them on my YouTube channel, I love watching other people play them and I love reviewing them. I’ve even found millions of others around the world who love them just as much as I do, if not, more (if that is EVEN possible). I finally feel like I am a part of something. A couple of years back, I felt like I hadn’t found myself. Sure, I was gay and I was a part of the gay community… but I never felt like I ‘fitted in’. I’d never met any other lesbians like me who were into cars, motorbikes and video games, but also liked doing nail art, wearing dresses from time to time and styling my hair… a mixed bag, really.. Maybe I didn’t look hard enough? But, with finding all these other nerds, who are willing to get up at 4 am to watch an episode of Minecraft, I finally feel like I’ve found my ‘clan’.

So, call me a nerd, call me a geek… And I would agree with you. I AM those things, but it means I’m passionate about it, I love it and no matter what others are going to say, watching a fellow gamer on the other side of the world playing a game is not weird at all!!