I’m sure there are enough dweebs on the Internet to make this an interesting thread:
Have there been any points in your life, where, had something gone slightly differently, you would have been a high school stud, drinking alcohol, shoplifting, and sleeping around with the hot chicks?
For me, the turning point was the last day of school, in 5th grade. My elementary school friends, who later went on to be cool, invited me to go to the town center with them. Alas, I was not allowed to go to the Center without my mommy - I went home, wasn’t invited to anything else over the whole summer, and was de facto outed by the time we entered the sixth grade.
Not really. I was something of a nerd, but I knew enough about how to fit in so that it wasn’t a big problem (I also had a reputation as the class brain).
Of course, in my school, being a cheerleader and being smart were not mutually exclusive: in my senior year, the cheerleading squad had the valedictorian and saluditorian of the Senior Class and the future valedictorian of the Junior Class. I never realized that other people thought cheerleaders weren’t smart.
I became a semi-celebrity in my town for my performance on a high school quiz-bowl TV show, but since graduation was just three weeks later, any chance of capitalizing on it (slim, no doubt) vanished pretty quickly. Still, it was nice while it lasted.
I won a trip to England from MTV when I was a senior. It was a “Twisted Invasion;” one winner from each state and a guest flew to London for Twisted Sister’s opening European concert, and we all had to dress up like lead singer Dee Snider. My notoriety for that temporarily replaced my notoriety for…other things.
I became a semi-celebrity in my town for my performance on a high school quiz-bowl TV show, and I was still a year-plus away from graduation, but it was not the passport to coolness that you might think.
I was approached to go to the 84 Olympics to, get this, compete in an exhibition sport.
Sounded good to me! But here is how Mom and Dad saw it: College postponed, lots of money for travel, training, equipment. Not eligible for any assistance from the US teams, or “sponsors” (would have made me a “Pro”, or some such shit). And even if I was the best in the world (which I wasn’t, maybe, but maybe I was we’ll never know now), no chance for a medal, not even a tin-foil one.
That discussion didn’t go far.
I never thought about it much, but sometimes, when I go skiing (much older now, but still damn good and better than I thought I would be at this age), I wish I had pursued it.
Hell no. The most famous I ever got was appearing on a television show featuring the work of talented and precocious young writers so I was destined for geekhood right now. The story was about a bunch of high school kids hunting an alien at their school. I wish there was some way for me to forcibly take it off air.
I was on Teen Jeopardy when I was a senior, and although I already had a reputation as Brilliant McLiterate (their words, not mine :P) suddenly all the random underclassmen and sports players (and teachers I’d never had, and security guards…) in the hall knew who I was! That was pretty neat. For the last half of the year, at least, I’d place myself in the “high school celebrity” category. But I think it would have gotten grating had it been any longer than that.
When I was in grade ten there was a fair bit of controversy over budget cutbacks. I started a student protest group called SAGA - “Students Against Government Assholes.” (Nothing like the wit of a fifteen-year-old.) Set up a simple bulletin board for organizing, printed pamphlets, and carried off one rally. The local news was there, which could have really helped my student rep – except… …their presence wigged me out completely. It felt like all the blood in my body was forced into my head, and I… could… not… speak.
Another Teen Jeopardy contestant here. I got an article (with pictures) about me in both local papers. My show was repeated a few days before I started college, so I was recognized by many of my new classmates. I’m sure it was more surreal for them than it was for me.
I was very good in the science/biology classes because the interested me a lot, and my freshman year, one of the ‘popular’ guys asked if he could copy off my 1st semester final. I said no, knowing that is I was caught, I would fail, too, and that was the beginning of 4 years of sheer hell for me. He went on to become a big ‘jock’ in school, homecoming king, the whole 9 yards, and he and his friends tortured me to no end. I could tell stories…
But anyway, that one little incedent put me right down at the bottom of the pecking order in high school. I hated it. Worst 4 years of my life.
I had one of the girls in the dorm recognize me, too! Now we borrow each others’ clothes all the time and see dumb movies together. Did you get tired of the “…so, uh, how’d you get on?” question from people who obviously wanted to have something to say but couldn’t think of anything else?
we’ll never know now), no chance for a medal, not even a tin-foil one.
Did you get tired of the “…so, uh, how’d you get on?” question from people who obviously wanted to have something to say but couldn’t think of anything else?