My Childhood

I was born in 1991, the year where society was transitioning from 80s pop culture to 90s pop culture. According to my mother, the morning I was born was "unusually sunny, bright and warm" for the time of the year. 

Without Dad to help out, my mom moved us to a small town so that the cost of living could be cheap enough for us to get by on only one income. The town I used to live in is a so-so place at best: they got a swimming pool, a Bowling Alley, and a cheap Movie Theatre, but not a lot else, and this is where my story actually begins.

My childhood is like any other person's childhood, it had it's share of ups and downs, but mine had more downs than ups. If it weren't for my friends, I would've had nothing. My friends were few and far in between as a child, though, as I was the "Odd one out" both in and out of school. I had lousy teachers throughout my whole school experience except for in Middle School and my Senior Year of High School.

As someone who's on the Autism Spectrum, I had always felt out of place. When I was a child, I believed myself to be the "Normal" one, and everyone else had a problem instead of me. 

Most of my whole school life I've had mean, bitter teachers who didn't like having me in their class because they thought I was a "Nuisance". The only times I had teachers who treated me with respect was in Middle School and in my Senior Year of High School.

Despite all of this, I had pretty normal "90's Kid" Childhood. I played Super Nintendo, played the original "Sonic the Hedgehog" trilogy, "Banjo-Kazooie", and the first "Pokemon" generation of games. I went to movies, school carnivals, and got up early on Saturday Mornings to watch Saturday Morning Cartoons, back when that was still a thing.

When I was 3 my mom took me to an animatronic Dinosaur show for kids at a concert hall in Missouri. According to my mother, the fact that I was the only child she could see that wasn't terrified to tears made her notice that there was something "Different" about me.

When I was 5, the Olympic Torch's route for the 1996 Atlanta games cut through the town where I lived in. I was too young to understand the cultural and historical significance of watching a marathon runner carry the Olympic Torch, but I understood that it was important to Mom, so I went along.

When I was 6, I organized a Litter Clean-up on the School Playground among my peers.

My teen years were about the same as my childhood years, except with teenage angst added on top of all the ups and downs. Linkin Park, Rise Against, Fall Out Boy and Three Days Grace helped to provide an outlet for my Angst. (And believe me, I had MORE than enough of it to go around...)

My first jobs were in middle school: Milkshake seller, Teacher's Lounge Pop Machine refiller, and Lunchroom Table-Wipe. I was paid a few dollars a day, but it was honest work, and the lunchladies were always very nice to me. In Middle School, I had won an Award for Perfect Attendance 2 years in a row, even! In the summer, I was the happiest, though, mainly because I could be on my own schedule and no one could tell me what to do and how to do it. 

High School was an awkward time for me, but who can't say the same? During my freshman year, I attended school at a 3 story building with no heat or air-conditioning, the winters there were miserable. 

At the end of my Freshman Year, I attended an after-school celebratory event called the "Lawn Party", an outdoor party meant to be held every year.

During my Sophomore Year, I was the equipment manager of the girl's Basketball Team. At the end of my sophomore year, a new high school building was built, it was one story, and had heating and air.

During my Senior Year, I got to paint on all the windows downtown with washable paint for homecoming and even got to ride on the Homecoming Float. If you're wondering if I went to Prom, I did, but I went by myself, but still had fun regardless. I danced, had some punch, and even participated in a mosh pit.

I graduated from High School in May 2009. To celebrate, my family took me on a trip to Universal Studios.

Today I'm 30.

I still play "Super Mario", "Sonic" "Banjo-Kazooie" and "Pokemon", I still listen to Three Days Grace, Fall Out Boy, Linkin Park and Rise Against, and I still watch cartoons and anime from the 90s and 2000s. Hey, just because I have to grow old doesn't mean I have to grow UP!