The Nerd Zone

As Salaam Alaykum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu,

It’s not quite ‘The Twilight Zone’ but perhaps equally as scary for the non-nerd.

The nerd zone is my wife’s take on what I had previously referred to as ‘the zone’. The zone is the special time when work just seems to flow naturally and effortlessly. It is during that time that I write more code at a higher level of quality. It’s that time when writing is easy for me and my thoughts appear on paper as if by magic. It’s that time when I’m reading something that I struggled with and it suddenly makes sense. It’s that time when I’m so focused that I forget about the pot of coffee and it burns before I’ve even had a cup. It’s a light switch turned on in my head. What seemed tedious before is now a pleasure and the end result is admirable.

I complained yesterday that I don’t have enough quiet time to sit and really get stuck into my work and as a result I have to push things back further and further. It’s hard to get into the zone with a baby on your lap, typing with one hand or when the wife asks you to do some mundane task every few minutes. ‘Abdullah can you check the bathroom door and make sure I closed it?’. ‘Sure’.

My wife was really good about my complaint, she offered to seal me up in a room with a refrigerator, a coffee machine and oxygen. Just so that I have a chance to reach the nerd zone or perhaps to shield herself from my nerdiness.

The funny thing about her use of the term nerd zone was the matter of fact way that she said it. There was no joking in her voice, her tone was serious. I had to say, ‘wait a minute, did you say “the nerd zone”’. She hesitated and laughed before she admitted it.

I embrace it and it will henceforth be known as ‘the nerd zone’. I also embrace the term nerd or geek. I am a nerd, I like nerdy things and I’m proud of it. But what does it say about the woman who married a nerd?

Oh Allah have mercy on the ummah of Muhammad, salallahu alayhi wa sallam. Forgive our shortcomings, our laziness, our impatience and our inabilities. Admit us into your paradise and protect us from your hell. All praise and thanks belong to you, there is no god except you.