What were you like as a child?

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Anything after age 10 doesnt count .

i was quiet, obsessed with reptiles and science stuff. loved dinosaurs and drawing...had the longest messiest brown hair you'd ever seen.
a typical summer day consisted of me getting up early, eating wild berries for breakfast, and wandering/playing make believe by myself in the woods or with the cats until it got late.
occasionally having a friend to play make believe with was great, too. at school i had a few friends and was oblivious to everyone apart from them, pretty much. life was so simple and non-stressful back then.

what were you like?

I never stopped talking about the same stuff all day. I was blunt and unintentonally comical. And inspite of all that I was very happy and couldn't care less.

Because I have no recollection of most these things, I have to rely on what my mom told me about myself years ago. I could read at 3; I could also tie my shoes and use words like "sufficient" correctly. I had an immense vocabulary, and interacted with adults as though they were peers. I *do* remember annoying the crap out of my grandmother while she tried to read me Richard Scarry stories at bedtime (I was about 5 or so). I'd already read the books and knew them by heart, so I'd make up new dialog or screw around with the words as I read along with her, which frustrated her to no end. Mom used to laugh about stuff I'd done that'd exasperated her to no end - like the time my long twin ponytails interfered with something I was drawing whilst sitting on the floor (my hair was long enough for me to sit on, back then). Annoyed, I found some scissors and cut off the offending ponytail ends so that they'd stop grazing the floor and getting in my way.

I never had any true peers at that age, however. My mom was alone, having booted my shiftless, irresponsible, drug-using biological dad (her first husband) when I was 6 months old, and relying on friends and relatives for support. I didn't really have any social interaction with other children until I attended a "nursery school" at age 4. Both preschool and kindergarten were, apparently, difficult for me. Mom told me that my teachers had complained to her that I wouldn't share toys with other kids, and had no desire to join in their (irritating, nonsensical) play. Somewhere along the line, I was put through a battery of IQ tests; it was determined that I would skip Grade 1 and go directly into Grade 2. This was quashed, however, as I was deemed too "socially immature" for such a move. Instead, I participated in upper grade levels' reading and social studies groups for several years.

Throughout grade school, there was an undercurrent of "wrong"-ness. I had no real friends. A couple of kids on my street often dropped by to play in the backyard, ride bikes, and the like, but more often than not, I was left alone while they went off to play elsewhere. Two girls whom I thought were my friends regularly linked arms while the three of us were out on the school playground, and "ran off" on me. "Running off" became a favorite game of theirs, and I eventually hung around by myself or stayed inside during recess. Taunts like "weirdo" and "oddball" were tossed at me; I wish I could remember what I'd done to warrant those labels (it was about this time that I began to be bullied because of my height, as well, but that's another story). I really have no idea. I *do* remember arguing with classmates at about age 8 or 9, prefacing my side of the discussion with, "Well, EVERYONE knows that..." I'm guessing that everyone *didn't* know whatever it was; I had no clue that other people didn't know everything I did, and didn't think the way I did.

It seems as though I had no sense of others' feelings, either. I remember an incident in Grade 4, in which the teacher asked us to correct one another's spelling quizzes. The poor student whose quiz I corrected received a "Horrible!! ! See me!! !" mark from yours truly. I remember the teacher angrily calling me over to her desk and demanding an explanation. I was simply imitating the teacher - or so I thought - and had no clue that I'd hurt the other student with my comments. Back then, I only cared about what was "correct" and "right," and that student's spelling quiz just didn't pass muster.

In Grade 5, I was placed in the town's multi-district gifted program, where I finally met some kids who were at least "nice" to me. For one day each week, I had the privilege of hanging out with other smart kids, taking field trips to local science centers and participating in enrichment activities. None of these kids ever befriended me (nor I them) outside of the gifted program, which seems odd in retrospect...

There was a lot of love at home, though, especially from Mom. Home was "safe." I drew, painted, made loads of crappy crafts, made up elaborate dance routines in the basement rec room, and read anything I could get my hands on. My grandparents cherished me, in spite of my irritating mannerisms. I never felt unwanted, at least where my family was concerned. When my brothers came along (when I was 5 and 10, respectively), I treated them as though they were my own babies - I couldn't wait to hold and cuddle them, as they were adorable and I found them fascinating.

Too bad my relatively-idyllic childhood had to go straight to hell because of the nightmare of public school!

i know. i had to endure school in a different language i did not understand, with people who hated americans...

i was smaller than i am now

I was angry, furious even. I think I came out already seriously pissed off and have been very slowly mellowing down lol.

seriously though, I was a walking tantrum. everything had to be my way or I was kicking and screaming on the floor like that kid from that condom ad.

also, I was incredibly embarassing, I had some sort of radar for the most embarassing things to say and I'd always say them in front of other people and that made my parents cringe.

I was a little annoying disaster

I was a very happy child who was out going, but couldn't socialise with my peers. Then came public school, and I turned into someone who hated books, even with topics I liked. I was a master at day dreaming and pretend play for one person, me. After time, I avoided my peers, occasionaly saying something only to get screamed at. Socialiseing at school equaled painful consequence, and unfortunatly I carried that fear into Church, Girls scouts, and play grounds. Most of the time, I displaced myself slightly from reality.

My primary focus was visual stimuli, desite the fact I had more auditory issues. I was also a game addict back then as well. My most fondest day dreams aren't really child friendly ones. Somehow, back then I couldn't get enough of the concept of splattered insides.
-.- I'll, uhm. end it there.

Just saying how I was. hahah My day dreams oh boy.

Last edited by LiendaBalla on 24 Sep 2009, 12:00 pm, edited 3 times in total.

I was a strong, healthy, super cute, super naive wonder boy with snow white hair and sky blue eyes that painted orange Christmas trees in the kindergarten, which by the way was how my mom found out that I'm colorblind (red/green). I still remember asking the other kids: "Is this pink? Is this pink then? What is this? Is it pink?"

And then I magically turned into this misplaced chunk of flesh with irrational depressions and realizations about how silly religion and the current political scene are.

I never stopped spacing out, though...

lol, that's quite cute, actually. XD. sorry bout your being colour-blind, though. i bet christmas is annoying for you.

lol spacing out's a blast, isnt it.

Ah, don't be sorry. The colorblindness doesn't bother me as much as it did when I was a kid.

Spacing out will never be boring!! !

ok, that's good. do people ever point out that your clothes dont match? XD.

nope! lol, but it's a bit awkward when someone asks you something, right next to your head, and you dont respond. XD

btw, this is unrelated, but do you really work in area 51?

ok, that's good. do people ever point out that your clothes dont match? XD.

nope! lol, but it's a bit awkward when someone asks you something, right next to your head, and you dont respond. XD

btw, this is unrelated, but do you really work in area 51?

No. But I hate telling people that I'm colorblind because they always, and with no exceptions, ask questions about what color this and that are.

I've found I only respond to my name. They can say it as silently as they want, I'll jump out of whatever daydream that is going on. Nothing else works though, unless they yell.

Who said work? I'm the one they experiment on.

Growing up i was shy, extremely shy. My mom agreed with the teachers to keep me one more year in nursery school. I started K and didn't do so well socially. I wouldn't play with the other kids. Only the teachers. I would sit in the corner far from everyone and play alone. I was obsessed with unicorns and dogs. Unicorns lasted til sometime just after h.s. and i still love all dogs (ok, not all, a lot of small dogs annoy me) and read about them and i am really wanting one again. (my dog had bone cancer so we had to put her down). I had friends and i went to their houses if they lived around me. I was tested for the gifted program 2 years in a row, but failed miserably. I guess they gave up on me. My mom thought i'd be a mathmetician when i grew up. She always said i was intelligent. I never got along with my brother. I always tattled on him and who got in trouble? ME! lol! I was also known as squeaker (rocked in my crib when i was a baby to put myself to sleep), motor mouth, and miss innocent. I could never do wrong.

lol, i can imagine that. we had an art teacher who was colour blind, once. i dont really see the point in asking you because it is never some spectacular new colour, is it? isnt it just sort of...wrong?

same (unless i'm in a convo with them), actually. well, often anyways. im usually in my own head, that or i never expect anyone to talk to ME...because they usually dont. lol.

XD nice. easy way to get payed! but I was serious. XD

I seemed quite strange as a kid. At early ages, I was terrified of plants, apparantely I once screamed in a train station when I saw leaves blowing around. I also hated stickers (I still don't like them these days) and in fact, my plant phobia hasn't worn off completely, I like most plants, but there are some weeds I don't like to touch. I was also quiet in school, and I think teachers noticed there was something different about me.

Here's my childhood obsession list! (The years mentioned are just an approximate guess)

Toy Cars - 2-5
Pokemon - 5-7
Rugrats - 7-9
The Fairly OddParents - 9-10 (Although I still watch it these days, it's my 3rd favourite show)
SpongeBob SquarePants - 10-Now