Serious Amateur

I think I have mentioned this term before. A Thundercat inspired me into coining it. I have a fairly good idea of what it means but I don’t want to define it too narrowly because it can be used to refer to a lot of people. Instead, I would like to paint some pictures for you to derive your own damn meaning…

Remember the rich boy in college who would turn up for the street-soccer game dressed like he could be the first replacement choice for Liverpool, especially when they are down and out which is pretty much all the time anyway? Well, he is NOT a Serious Amateur. Even if he did have some skills (and I could have had a million dollars).

But the girl who competes like the Warrior Princess Xena over a board game of no less stature than ‘Taboo’ even when the skills are no match for the nonchalant opposition as can be seen from the back-to-back effortless defeats, She is.

Serious Amateurs inhabit that tiny territory that has not been claimed by the amateurs or the professionals. It is a growing profession (How ironic) and is normally associated with that phase of a civilization’s growth when
- the majority have decided to relinquish arms
- insidious boredom has been seeping in for at least a select segment of well-off people who can lead quite comfortable lives with relative ease without over-exerting themselves, and
- in absence of warriors with claimed and verifiable kills, the finer ladies have decided to offer themselves to those who demonstrate proficiency, even if only perceived, in more than one vocation.

This period may or may not be followed with decay. Think medieval renaissance. Leonardo Da Vinci, Michaelangelo and thousands of others who wanted to be like them and you would know what I am talking about. Those Thousands of Others could be called Serious Amateurs (As long as you pay royalty to me each time you refer to them or anybody else as such).

Alright, I may have gone a bit too far. No. I have gone a bit too far. This is already getting too serious for my comfort. Perhaps we need another pictograph (This is only a second for me and so I thank you in advance to visit a secluded place to make fun of it before continuing your reading):-

Hmm. Now, that I think about it, what I really want to be is…. The Cool Dude.

Funny, how perspectives change once you visualize your thoughts.