While shows like the Walking Dead have given rise to a whole new generation of fans. The problem? Most miss the point of what this genre of horror has been trying to make. If you look around you’ll see it – zombies… everywhere – they just don’t realize it. Let’s get into this…
Have you noticed that there are zombies… everywhere you look?
No? Maybe you’re not attuned to the “living dead” the way I am – as I’ve spent years learning everything I can about these monsters.
I’ve been a fan of zombies since I was 12-years-old and my friend’s older brother took us to the movies to watch George A. Romero’s 3rd installment of his zombie franchise – Day of the Dead.
I’m not going to lie – this movie scared the S**T out of me. I was afraid to walk outside after – I was that invested.
Come to find out – I come from a lineage of zombie phobics – as my mother and grandmother went to the drive-in to see Romero’s first film, Night of the Living Dead. As the story goes, they almost froze in the cold New York autumn air because they were too scared to get out of the car to put up the convertible roof.
I eventually watched every one of Romero’s offerings – as well as other zombie films I could find. I didn’t know why I was so attracted to these types of stories – other than the thrill of being scared…
But I knew there was something deeper than just the gore and jump scares.
There are a few “hidden meanings” that these storytellers are trying to get us to understand – but there’s one in particular that explains my fascination (and fear) of the living dead…
And that’s the loss of my individuality.
You see, my fear isn’t being killed, eaten or trapped by zombies. No, that doesn’t scare me…
What scares me is becoming a thoughtless, feelingless automaton whose only function is the endless search of living flesh – and just another face in the horde of faceless nobodies.
The Spark That Lit The Torch
Like many, one of the reasons I started lifting and working out was because of Arnold Schwarzenneger. My grandparents unknowingly created a monster by letting me watch Conan the Barbarian when I was 9-years-old. Seeing this man who looked like no other man I had ever seen before lit a fire in me that was only stoked by people like Sylvester Stallone and Jean Claude Van Damme.
These men stood out – and as a kid that was tired of blending in…
I wanted to stand out as well.
I started working out in gyms when I was 14…
By then, it wasn’t to stand out in a visual way – it was more to stand out on the football field. I wanted to get stronger so I could play better. Be better. And even though my focus had shifted – I always had the specter of Arnold’s Conan looking over my shoulder telling me to get bigger, get stronger – show the world who I was.
Lifting, working out – it helped me build an identity – even though I didn’t realize it. I just came to accept the name that most people call me, “Big Shawn” without realizing that I was standing out.
And while I’m more interested in blending in these days – the fear of losing my individuality hasn’t left me.
I don’t want to be one of these “regular” people. Do you know who I’m talking about? Those people who you don’t even notice when you walk by them in the mall or grocery store. The kind of people that are content with their lives as they are. They don’t see a reason to improve anything in their lives – including their level of fitness.
I hate to admit it, but… when I see these kinds of people – it elicits an anger in me I can’t explain. Angry because I can’t even entertain the thought of being that weak of a person – and they just accept it.
Zombies… Everywhere
To me, that’s not living – it’s simply surviving. In fact, it’s barely surviving – it’s waiting to die…
And that kind of surrender irks the ever-loving s**t out of me.
It also angers me because it reminds me of an even bigger fear than losing my uniqueness…
And that’s the fear of not being able to protect myself or those I love from the dangers of this world. Watching – helplessly – as the people I care about get hurt are the kinds of thoughts that keep me up at night.
While lifting and being big won’t actually protect them – being stronger than most people I come in contact with will help me better utilize the skills I’ve learned, won’t it?
These people – the ones who are fine with mediocrity and are simply living to watch TV…
They’re zombies.
And they’re everywhere.
Honestly, that’s not even accurate – if we’re going to be truthful – they’re not zombies. In the event of a REAL zombie apocalypse – they’re zombie food.
They’ll be the first to go…
And we’ll be the last to go because we’ll be hard to f**king kill.
“I always thought of the zombies as being about revolution, one generation consuming the next.” – George A. Romero
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