Aftermath: Capsule of Geekdom

In a small, non-descript strip mall in the middle of a university neighborhood in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico is a comic book shop. The shop is loud, the tables small. The owner, Gilberto Lopez-Arroyo is neither. His is a stocky man whose voice carries over the cacophony in the store, Capitan Granuja Comics & Games. For a few weeks last year Gilberto’s comic shop became a center of calm. Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico hard. College students were stranded, not knowing what happened to their families. They came to Capitan Granuja to charge their phones and play some games. Gilberto welcomed them all into his capsule of geekdom. This is Change Over Time and the latest installment of the Aftermath series, a look at Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria through the lens of my family. We talk about geeks, and how the community can help even when you don’t know it can.