Was a very smart punk/arts/theater kid, went to a top liberal arts college and on to graduate school. Stayed with and eventually married my college boyfriend who was the same in high school (although in a different state) and we are very happy now. We are still quirky, but have good social skills and are reasonably attractive enough to fit in well with other highly educated people in professional jobs (i.e. no one expects us to have nips and tucks and we know enough former punks/goths/hippies to not be expected to dye the gray or wear a lot of makeup).

I will say that while I was outside the mainstream in my Midwestern high school, I was part of a robust social group of many kids who played in bands and had interests outside of sports and whatever else. So, I wasn't isolated in high school, just not cookie cutter or in the "popular" crowd. Having a strong set of friendships really makes the difference in terms of social skills and embracing who you are.

Anonymous wrote:Those of ypu who say you got out of the small town? Why? I always have wanted to live in a small town and do not understand why you rate success as getting out OF one?

Small towns can be a great place to grow up and a great place to live once you have established yourself, provided you can get work there. However, they tend to have a dirth of jobs in well-paying, interesting fields and a lack of quality post-highschool educational opportunities. For young people who grow up there, especially if it is a place far from a major metropolitan area, they have no choice but to leave in order to secure a stable place in the 21st century economy.

Those of ypu who say you got out of the small town? Why? I always have wanted to live in a small town and do not understand why you rate success as getting out OF one?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

Why are nearly all of the world leaders old and not particularly attractive?

Politics is the haven for ugly people who must try to make up for their shortcomings in the looks department by gaining power and influence. Attractive people have innate power and the ability to influence. We generally are content to leave the often distasteful role of politics to the uglies. We are perfectly content to live our beautiful lives out of the limelight.

This. Sadly?, in the end, it's all about breeding with the best specimens to improve the gene pool. Forget intelligence and civility, it's all about producing the healthiest offspring, just like animals.

Wow that's impressive, PP. I have to agree with PPs who said it matters where you came from. My large Boston suburb bred some celebs. Writer of Beautiful Girls came from and based the movie on our town. I was cheerleading captain and popular, but also nice and smart. Not the very top, but top 25% in a competitive school. Went to a good college on a pretty much full ride and married my fraternity party-boy, college sweetheart. We are still pretty young and working hard and are moving up. Still very close with all my HS girls (8 of us) although we don't live in the same state. Most of them stayed in the area, but all went to college, some grad school and have successful careers and families. Funny though, several married HS guys, who they met up with after we graduated. On FB, I'm friends with a ton of HS people, popular and not, I like seeing most kids are doing well.

Great story!

I was the outcast goth girl. Everyone thought I was a druggie (I wasn't) and a slut (not that either) and a mute (well, I was painfully shy). I also happened to be a math whiz. Aced my SAT math portion, went to Cal Tech, shed my goth-wear, gained confidence with all the nerdy boys fawning all over me (it was a 10 - 1, boy -girl ratio), started to blossom, recruited to work for what was at the time a small startup in Sunnyvale, became ungodly rich by the time I was 35, quite confident at this point in my life, yes, some plastic surgery along the way also helped, ended up marrying a boy from high school actually! Saw him at our 15 year reunion, he did not recognize me, but I had a huge crush on him throughout high school (he was a jock and a brain and homecoming king). Our kids love hearing this story over and over and I suppose I don't mind sharing it over and over.

The Frog Princess

Anonymous wrote:I was near the top of my class (graduated 5th!), played three sports, was a student council officer, was voted on to homecoming court, played cello in the orchestra, and was involved in a million other things. I was popular and academic in high school, but I went to a math/science (STEM) magnet school. I'm now an attorney, married with 2 kids.

Life was good in high school and is pretty sweet now. I know it may appear that I live a charmed life, but I've worked extremely hard since high school and it's payed off.

Well, not quite. It's actually "paid off" and not "payed off" . . .

I agree with the PP that said social skills mean a lot. I moved to my HS freshman year and was treated like an outcast. However, even though my self-esteem took a hit sometimes, I just kept at it. By the end of my senior year, I was cheerleading captain, varsity track, 3rd in my class, student body president and 4-year scholarship winner. I also had friends from every "group" around high school.

I went to the college of my choice and pursued the career I had always wanted to pursue. I have married my best friend (not from high school!) and have 3 great kids.

I consider myself both hard-working and damn, damn lucky, because - believe me - I was not the smartest, the prettiest, the fastest, or the wittiest in any sense. I was, however, smart enough, pretty enough, fast enough and witty enough. Most importantly, I tried my best to be kind to everyone.

Tell your daughter to keep plugging away at her dreams. She'll be fine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

Why are nearly all of the world leaders old and not particularly attractive?

A DC centric response.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

Why are nearly all of the world leaders old and not particularly attractive?

They don't really rule the world. Look at the priority of the masses....look at who has the most Twitter followers in the world.

Politicians get no respect. There is really only one that the masses give a shit about and nearly half of the population seethes hate for him.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

Why are nearly all of the world leaders old and not particularly attractive?

Politics is the haven for ugly people who must try to make up for their shortcomings in the looks department by gaining power and influence. Attractive people have innate power and the ability to influence. We generally are content to leave the often distasteful role of politics to the uglies. We are perfectly content to live our beautiful lives out of the limelight.

Anonymous wrote:Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

Why are nearly all of the world leaders old and not particularly attractive?

Actually beauty and youth rule the world.

I admit to still believing that the nerds will inherit the earth, but agree with previous posters that a lot of it is about confidence, social skill, luck, and money. I was a serious nerd in H.S. but not the bottom of the pile. I got teased a lot all through school, through much of high school, and although it hurt I always knew the kids teasing me were idiots. I was a lot smarter than the kids around me and I was also super sensitive and a bit tone deaf socially as a younger kid. But I had a good circle of friends by the end of senior year in high school and we all stayed in touch through college.

To the extent I'm successful now, I think it's because I worked my ass off (and came from a solid upper middle class household) and got into an Ivy League college, where I also worked my ass off and got into a top law school, where I also worked my ass off. When I was making a lot of money I saved and invested. I'm married to a deeply nerdy man who is even smarter than I am, and who shares my values and my outlook on life. We are very happy together. We are comfortable financially (probably rich by most people's standards but middle of the pack in our part of Montgomery County). Our kids are smart, and nerdy, but a lot better adjusted than we were, not least because around here it's cool to be smart.

In my view, part of what it means to be "nerdy" is to care about what you care about, without worrying what everyone else thinks. By that standard, I really do think that the nerds rule the world.