I posted about this last night, but because I didn’t think about the fact that some Facebook posts are friends-only, the link I provided was pretty useless to pretty much everyone who clicked it.  However, I’ve gotten permission from my friend to modify his original message and post it here.  Please, I don’t ever ask for anything from my readers.  I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask you to take five or six minutes to read this.  Making some kids smile has never required so little effort.  Here’s his message:

I’m serving with AmeriCorps for a year, mentoring and tutoring at a high school where most of the students are on the lowest rungs of the socioeconomic ladder.  And while I know this in the objective sense, it didn’t really hit me in the subjective sense until this past Saturday.

A local charity organization was redistributing used toys at the school and I went in to volunteer for a few hours.  A few students from the school also showed up to lend a hand, which was really decent of them.  One of the girls who helped out was is firmly situated in her nerd rep, such as being able to discuss the pros and cons of varous incarnations of the Doctor.  I’ll vouch for her.

Anyway, she comes up to me at one point and says, “Alright Mr. Schaible, I’m leaving.  My dad was in line for two hours, but he finally got some toys and we’re heading out.”  That’s how low on the ladder some of my students are — their family was at the school, collecting used toys to give as Christmas gifts.

Honestly, that kind of sucks.  And I want to be able to do something nice for her.  And, really, the rest of the nerd girls because I know she’s not alone in being able to argue the merits of various Harry Potter houses (or whatver they’re called; Higglepuff and Jauntyjoint and all that) or in coming from an incredibly depressing background.

As such, to do something nice for them, I want to get stickers for the girls.  I’m fairly sure they’ll be used, since every student has to carry a binder with them all day (which are ridiculously drawn upon and marked up) and most of the kids are allowed to use individually-assigned laptops while at school, which also get decorated.  (They can lose access to their laptop for being a terrible person, but c’mon; we know the nerds are generally the well-behaved kids and these girls are no exception.)  If nothing else, they can take it home and slap it on something

This is where my request comes in.  Living on my AmeriCorps stipend, I’m broke.  Too poor to be able to independently execute a project like this on the magnitude I believe it deserves, anyway.  I’m not kidding when I say I qualify for food stamps and assist with the after school program in part to eat dinner there.

So I’m asking for your help.  I’d like you to chip in by purchasing some nerdy stickers so I can hand them out to the nerd girls.  Obviously this won’t happen before Christmas, but who cares?  There’s no reason we can’t offer them support in January or even closer to the middle of February, when many of us collectively raise a middle finger to bullshit holidays that make single folk feel bad when they absolutely shouldn’t.

Why the nerd girls and not the nerd boys?  Because the dominant student culture at my school would best be described as Thug Life.  When the majority of kids are listening to Soulja Boy and you’re into Gackt, you’re weird.  When the majority of kids are trying to establish that they’re goons (seriously; I don’t think they know what goons are) and you’re talking about Full Metal Alchemist, you’re weird.  When the other girls are trying to get their weaves set and you’re rocking pink hair, you’re weird.  See where I’m going with this?

Now, I know how to talk to the nerd boys, being one myself.  I’m already consolidating my power with the nerd boys by playing Magic after school, talking about all the things I’ve done because I went to school, and generally trying to explain to them that you can still grow up to be educated, play with Lego, and get a girl.

But there’s nobody like myself for the girls and I know I don’t connect with them in the same way as I connect with the boys.  The girls don’t play Magic, don’t play the same video games, don’t listen to the same music…  But they’re still nerds, through and through.  And I know they love decorating their stuff, so why not stickers?

However, I digress.  If I’ve convinced you that my cause is worthy — and you totally know it is — just mail me some nerdy stickers and, at some point, I’ll hand them out.  Or maybe I’ll get the nerd boys to hand them out, since they know more of the nerd girls than I do (which is to say, I don’t know all of them because amazing as I am, I can’t be everywhere or know everyone in the school) and I’d rather build solidarity among them…  But, again, digression.

What qualifies as a nerdy sticker?  You tell me.  If you’ve read this far, odds are pretty good you’re one of us and have your own favorite nerd properties.  Maybe it’s Doctor Who.  Maybe it’s Harry Potter.  Maybe it’s Pokemon or Firefly or Stargate or Lego or Invader Zim or whatever.  I don’t care, because if you’re into it, chances are one of the nerd girls at my school is also into it.  Or maybe you’ll turn them onto it, and isn’t that kind of awesome?  Just make sure it’s safe for me to hand out to 9th and 10th grade students (mostly, anyway; the school is new this year and only has about a dozen 11th graders and one senior).

Where can you get nerdy stickers?  C’mon, you know how to use Google.  I’m sure you can find them all over the place.  RedBubble.com looks like a decent place to find some designerdy things, though I admit the prices seem steep.  Look around and be inventive; that’s half of what being nerdy is all about.  (“Knowing,” clearly, is the other half.)

How many do I need?  Look, if you contribute even one sticker, I’ll be ridiculously appreciative.  Even if I somehow finagled one sticker apiece from half of my Facebook posse, I’d have the girls covered — probably with multiple stickers per girl.  But I’m certainly not going to turn you down if you want to contribute a passel of stickers or rope one of your friends into my scheme.

Where can you send them? EDIT BY JOHN CHEESE: I’ve taken out his address because this message was originally sent to his real life friends through Facebook. The way we’d like people to do it (those who don’t know him) is to get a gift certificate that’s redeemable by email, and email that to him. Redbubble.com is a good place to start, and it has tons of nerdy stuff. The email you’ll want to send that gift certificate redemption code to is mr.schaible@gmail.com. But if you can find other places, please do. I’d rather he not get a thousand of the same sticker. I’d love to see how unique and creative you can get with your nerd powers. Back to Mr. Schaible:

I know this project has the opportunity to punch a lot of nerd girls in the heart… which sounds a lot creepier now that I type it out…  But I really want to let them know that despite the bullshit now, there’s a lot better waiting for them after school if they stay the course.  

P.S. Anything Twilight related will be immediately rejected into the firepit outside the convent where I’m living.  Seriously.