Visible mojo for Gn2Dlnd, since I can't mojo you. What a cutie! :D

My high school self saw no reason to put in effort in class. Very unlike me as I am now. I tell my coworkers I was (barely) a C student and they don't believe me. I had no plan, no goals whatsoever, in any facet of my life. My family had no idea how to instill such a concept. Life was merely tolerated as a means to the end of watching television and generally doing nothing. I did have a love of information and learning for its own sake, but as soon as it was structured in any way, I was out.

I hated nearly all of my teachers, probably mostly because they had power over me. I did love Academic Decathlon (and scored best in team) for some very simple reasons: There wasn't a teacher, there was a coach; the information I learned was all new to me and involved new ways of thinking about technology, art, etc; and it was a competition.

I briefly dated a boy who, a couple years after we broke up, died in a car accident. I had a guy on the football team chase me a while, but it quickly turned from flirting to stalking. Instead, I dated a guy who turned out to be gay (and more than a little crazy, too). After high school I still knew nothing about relationships, as these never went further than kissing.

My wardrobe was 90% hand-me-downs and thrift shop purchases. I wore my mom's 70's clothing, mixed with the few pieces I bought from the local skimpy slutty chick shop (which I often biked to). One day it was slashed men's jeans and men's flannels, the next it was tiny jeans shorts with bright tights underneath and a too-large t-shirt.

I don't cringe when looking back at myself then. For some reason I still "own it" with all of its faults. Yup, that was me, dressed like a tomboy and a whore at the same time, sitting with the misfits that I hated, eventually getting my personality in order so I could make some real friends and have some real fun. It was what it was, and I could never ask her to be anything else, as I still understand her and her (lack of) motivation.

Yesterday was my daugther's first day at Corona High School as a freshman. Any advice for her seeings as how you went to the same school? (I'm assuming you're meaning Corona CA of course.)

The one thing I'd tell myself (and do tell others) is that once you leave high school the people worth knowing aren't the ones who care who you were then.

No amount of money could ever get me back to high school, even knowing what I know now.

I've skipped all of my high school reunions so far. I've kept up with a few good folks, but overall, it wasn't a happy time, and I don't take any pleasure in revisiting it. Plus, I was kind of an asshat at the time.

My 10 year reunion was the same night as the night portion a 2 day MouseAdventure. I picked MA without thinking twice. No regrets.

I skipped a reunion because it was ridiculously expensive and a reunion of 3 consecutive graduating years. No thanks.

Ooooh. I'd like that better, because I mainly knew people either one grade above or below. There were some great peeps there, but in my own class... um, not so much.

Um, go Panthers?

You know, 28 years later, I can't imagine that any of the teachers I had are still there. Like anyone looking back on high school, it was a mix of peer pressure, bullying, unreported inappropriate behavior by teachers, and an unhappy home life. Oh, and coming to terms with being gay during the '70s. What? That's not everyone's experience?

Just help her to know that the world doesn't begin and end at CHS. If she's having fun at school, great. If she's not, get her involved with community theater or horseback riding. Something meaningful that has no connection to what goes on on campus.

I look back on high school and just want to laugh.

The boy I was then is so different from the man I am now. In high school I never felt like I belonged, I was always on the outside looking in, and trying to be part of a group any group. I felt like I didn't fit even with the outcasts.

I always did well in class because I liked being right, and answering teacher's questions was one time I knew I could be right. However, my social skills were painfully poor.

I had been a large kid and even after puberty I always thought of myself as the "fat kid." I was never motivated to work out, get into shape, or gain any physical skills, so even when I lost weight I was still uncoordinated, which I though of as being fat. Looking back I was not fat at all, much smaller than I am now in fact, but I always thought of myself that way.

Clothing: I wore rugby shirts and jeans all the time in high school. if it was colder that 80 I was in a rugby shirt and jeans. (I thought they kinda hid the fat.)

Grooming: I hated "dressing up," I would never comb my hair, tuck in my shirt, or even bother buttoning my rugby shirts right.

Social: I loved forced group activities, that is activities where there was something going on besides just hanging out. I felt awkward talking to people so having a purpose made socializing easier for me. So, I was into D&D, a lot, theater, chess, boy scouts, ren faire and so on. Now all these things are great and I still like some of them but I was obsessed then.

all in all I don't regret who I was in high school but I wish I could go back and tell myself "this really doesn't matter that much, the world doesn't care that you didn't have friends in high school, don't try so hard it just makes you look desperate."