nerdiness is just as cultivated as geekiness. where is the line drawn?

i went to a nerd-attracting thing the other night. i was quite confused about the venue and made eye contact with a man wearing a not-quite-cool hat, with gingerish facial hair. we realised we were attending the same thing. he said in a strangulated, unintentionally comic but still cultivated voice "while we are both waiting here, we might as well pass the time doing that popular activity known as conversing." he continued talking like that.

how do people make the choice to be outright nerdy? unbashedly nerdy? does there need to be a new category to replace nerdiness now it's a lifestyle choice?