New Kid

Now we're getting close to that day in my Sophomore geometry class. The moment I like to trace my footsteps back to.

It was hard to move from all my friends in Southern California, where I was always picked first for team sports to this cold damp tree infested region where I had to prove myself all over again. The kids in Washington state didn't seem to put academics or sports as high up the value scale as people in California had. I remember they asked me, "Are you a Husky or a Cougar?" They just kept asking that over and over and I had no idea what on earth they were talking about. They wore strange gear too, like parkas and raincoats. I didn't think much of this new place at all. And so I read a lot of books, especially science fiction and fantasy.

There was no orchestra program at school and I seemed to be a grade ahead of everyone else. So for some very odd reason the kids made fun of me for my intelligence. I remember being called dexter and bookworm and things like that in seventh grade. It is sad but I did indeed dumb myself down to fit in. I found that B's were better than A's as far as social standing went. School seemed like a great big waste of time.