Heck, I wish I could fall closer to the stereotypical "modeller"! It would save me a lot of money.
I too use to suffer from a fear that if people found out my hobby that I would be laughed at. I hang with a twenty-something crowd that can be very callous. I was very into the party scene, where all the mattered was the clothes you wore, the girls you talked to, and how much money you had. I wouldn't have guests over to my house because I was sure that I would get ridiculed. Then, my girlfriend at the time was talking to a guy at the club and mentioned that I made models. He wouldn't stop pestering me for the rest of the night. He was so curious about the hobby, and the history.
It was then I realized that I was stereotyping these people from the club. I was doing the very thing that I feared that they would do. Over time, I introduced some of my closer friends to what I did, and for the most part they were fascinated by it. I had one buddy look at my models, and my references for almost an entire day! Now the group that I hang with, think that I am some kind of history professor something. It's pretty amusing.
Sure, some people are going to think it's "nerdy". These are people who you really don't need around you anyway. Anyone who has some substance to them, is going to find interest in what you do. No matter what it is.
Stuke
#:-)
