stage one: grade 2
the socially mal-adjusted child. little did i know that it would last until now. i never really understood, or even vaguely grasped the concept, of recess games. tag was okay, but red-ass, foursquares, red devil? who comes up with these things anyway? i never won anyway. i was forever "it", the untouchable child. i moved half way through the year.stage two: grade 2.5
ostracized by peers and alone at recess. i had a hard time dealing with my 8 year-old crushes. i liked them fine and they liked me fine; the problem was "now what?". it was also a split class, a 2/3 split and the second-graders were the minority. and since i was the 'new kid', that scarred me even more.stage three: grade 3
the only girl in the third grade. again i was in a split class. of about 30 kids, 8 were in third grade; the rest were in fourth. and of the eight third-graders, i was the only girl. not exactly the perfect situation for a newly-pudgy, little, insecure girl.stage four: grades 4-9
the stay-at-home-and-study, i'm-not-allowed-to-take-the-bus-alone, bookish girl. i would never have though of doing anything out of the ordinary. i rejoiced in being bland.stage five: grades 10-12
rebellion and shock-value. two of my most important ideas at the time. i had to wear a uniform, so on civvies (non-uniform days), i'd wear the most outrageous outfit i could possibly concoct. i passed as "original", "funky", and "weird". liberation after self-confinement.stage six: grade 13-present
integration into the h.k.er culture. i'm totally into cafés and having h.k.-style drinks, although i'm slowly being weened from them. my cantonese has vastly improved and my vocabulary of slang has increased infinitely. i even get along great in the fob ircs.stage seven: coming soon
granola-eating, teva-wearing, hippie extraordinaire. i'm hunting for more broomstick skirts, some of those llama-wool sweaters and of course, a pair of tevas. no, i don't have a pair yet.