Roleplaying

I'm a geek i know. Maybe even a dork. Whatever, not only do i thoroughly deserve these apellations, but i enjoy them. One of the geekiest things i do is Roleplaying. For those not in the know, roleplaying is a leisure (and leisurely) past time where in players design and create characters and then play these characters in a very loosely scripted fashion. One of the players takes on the mantle of GM (Games master, also know as storyguide, storyteller, dungeon master, director and a host of less wekll used epithets). The GM roleplays all the stories minor characters and sets the scene and generally keeps things ticking along.
Think of it as a play with the players playing the major characters and the GM playing all the supporting roles, villains, and chorus girls, and also being the director, producer, lighting guy and ticket seller.
The worlds these games are set in are usually not earth as we know it. For instance, in my favourite games, Ars Magica, Cyberpunk, D&D and Vampire (and to a lesser extent, the rest of the world of darkness games) the world as, respectively, Mythic Europe circa 1220 (Europe as the people then believed it was, complete with faeries, demons and dragons), 2020 post apocalypse America, a swords and sorcery world called Toril and finally a version of earth just like ours but full of corruption, ghosts, vampires, etc.
The aim of these games is not to win, winning as such is impossible. The aim is to take your characters through stories and enjoy oneself. Usually the characters face trials and tribulations, hopefully conquer (or at least survive) them and go on to be wiser, more powerful and more interesting.
All actions of the characters and GM are spoken not acted out. There is a form of roleplaying where the players dress up like their characters and act it all out called LARP (Live Action Role Play) but this is very much a different kettle of fish to what is known as "tabletop" or "Pen and Paper" Roleplaying.
The main joys of roleplaying i think come from escapism. Many of the people i roleplay with pay characters very different from their everyday self and use RP as a way to express this side of their character. Some play idealised versions of themselves, some play total opposites. One friend invariably plays women despite being a guy, another tends to play rather dumb characters who have problems interacting on an intellectual level. Another tends towards characters VERY hostile to authority and yet another plays cheeky backstabbers. I personally tend to find myself playing very clever, sinister, usually evil but very polite people. I think for me this allows me to air all my naturally evil tendencies in a safe environment, allowing me to be pleasant and friendly the rest of the time.
Roleplaying has various bad reputations, firstly as hugely geeky. Fair enough. Secondly, it came under major attack by my favourite idiots, the Christian Right. This was way before my start in Roleplaying in the 1980's, but basically D&D got accused of inducing satanism, suicide, murder and all other kinds of ridiculous nonsense. Its all long blown over now but you can still find an article or two on the web warning of the satanic reach of young dorks playing D&D.
If you get the chance, give it a go. You may have fun. If not fair enough but at least you know what you are missing.