The Mighty Jerd 104

Alright all you aspiring Jerds out there in Internet-land, it is time for yet another edition of “Get to Know the Mighty Jerd!”

Over the past year I have been slowly mapping out exactly how I came to be such a Nerd of the highest order (my origin story if you will) by detailing all the things that piqued my interest as a small child, and how they influenced me growing up. Up until now they have been all about my geeky obsessions, the hobbies I partook in and the stuff I really enjoyed. Now, I know I promised to regale you all with tales of my awkward, early high school years (wait for it, it’s coming… I promise!) spent dreaming of becoming Batman, working at Renaissance Faires and comic book shops, all the while failing miserably to attract the fairer sex; I thought I would take things in a different direction today though.

If you haven’t followed along with the story so far, give The Mighty Jerd 101, 102 and 103 a read as well if you want to know all about the jock hiding behind the nerd curtain!

Why Sharks Scare the Crap Out of Me pt 1

While not one of my personal geeks, I know the horror genre is a big deal in the geek community at large. I can think of only two particularly significant times where this genre intersected with my childhood in a meaningful way:

1. Watching the “Amityville Horror” as a small child and being convinced it was real. Growing up in an older home with a creepy basement and attic definitely helped my expansive imagination torture me for many a bed-time after seeing it… to this day I can’t remember how I saw it so young, as my parents were pretty overprotective of me, all I know is that it terrified me! Watching the movie now I wonder why it got to me so bad, as it is pretty laughable, but at the time it really freaked me out.
2. “Jaws“. I’m not going to beat around the bush here, as I briefly covered this back in The Mighty Jerd 103, but this book (and later the movie) forever scarred me and still terrifies me to this day. When people discuss their Top 5 Horror Movie of All Time lists it is always hovering around the top spot, vacillating slightly in position but always dominating most of the competition, and I think out of all the horror movies of its time it holds up the best to this day.

So rather than sit here and write paragraph after paragraph on exactly how this tale of a man-eating shark messed me up, I figured it would be easier to just tell you. Enjoy!

YouTube only captures the finest images!

So there you go, another glimpse into the mind of your good pal The Mighty Jerd. For all you horror fans out there, I’d really love to know what book or movie got into your head as a kid and has never let go of its stranglehold on the fear center of your brain. Let me know in the comments below!

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