[Scuba Steve]

I have no doubt that if things were as they are now I would also have been diagnosed with ADD. At the time I was pretty much on my own; parents worked late, we lived in a semi-rural area and I was alone until the evening hours. It gave me a lot of time to spend with the car and a basic set of tools, go on long distance bike rides or explore the wilderness out in the county.

School was pretty much the same thing, having a lot of acquaintances but maybe only a couple of actual friends and being off of pretty much everyone's radar except for a few vocal ones from successful families who insisted that I would never amount to anything. That really stuck with me. In general people were more indifferent than hostile. It really wasn't a bad experience, but not great either.

College was a change in the right direction. The first year was rough with just trying to survive as an engineering major but each year after that was better all the way through grad school. By the time I hit my mid-20s it was like all the clouds had lifted - people say that engineers are late bloomers and it's probably true.

Moments that stand out to me...
1. By the time the 10 year reunion came along I was well established in my career and work had moved me to LA for a while, then Seattle earlier that year. I was a month into dating a 20 year old who would later become my wife, who confuses me to this day why she likes me so much. 0lbs gained/lost, no hair loss. It was probably my first confirmation in life that things actually were turning out alright. I'll do the 20 year one when it gets here; if nothing else it's a reason to go back and see my parents again.

2. The ones who were the worst, either mentally (you'll never amount to anything in life) or physically continue to struggle. One keeps getting worthless degree after degree and will have probably spent every day from age 18-40 in school by the time he's done. If he's lucky he'll figure out what he wants to do or be able to teach somewhere.

3. Drugs can destroy people. It really hit hard when someone I considered a friend back then wound up an addict. He was voted most likely to succeed. A couple of years later on a visit back home I ran into the younger brother of a real snob trying to push his car into a parking space on the square. I helped him out and listened for a while to his story about how George Bush was personally out to get him and how he needed to move to Alaska to escape. No clue what he was on but that guy's mind was gone.

I wouldn't go back and do it again - adulthood is a lot more rewarding. I'm way too stubborn and success in life probably came both from personal drive, plus not wanting to accept the prediction from others that I would never amount to anything. There's no need to hear that again.