The Yahoo in Me

My humble beginnings as a geek girl come from a supportive father, mother, and stepfather. Through my childhood, as the first kid, first grandchild, and just all around ham for attention, I had a network of family to support my desires to know more about everything. So please forgive this long story in advance. I wanted to share with you more about me, so my readers can understand my drive. This will be a three-part series blog.

Elementary School

Despite moving all over Prince Georges (P.G.: Pretty Ghetto/Plead Guilty county – just some of the nicknames) and Charles County in Maryland, I always came back to Brandywine Elementary School. This is where I would be challenged by the same group of kids through 6th grade. There were about ten of us who were picked to be in the “talented and gifted” group of classes. This was before the “Tag” program sent you away to a special school. I wrote reports on Halley’s Comet, Hurricanes and Tornadoes: What to do When They Find You (after a visit from NBC4 Weatherman Bob Ryan). We dissected a grasshopper in 3rd grade. I remember one day in 3rd, January 28, 1986, I refused to do my homework based on some logical argument in my head, so my teacher decided my punishment would be to go to her husband’s 5th grade class and complete my assignment there. Instead of being embarrassed for being called out to an older kids class, I was actually able to witness the Challenger explosion on live TV. I wouldn’t have seen it if I had not been so stubborn.

Alicia (left) and Andrea (80s on the bottom, 90s on top)

In part of 4th – part of 6th, I went to J.C. Parks in Waldorf where I joined a statistics and analysis math class and participated in Olympics of the Mind (before the PC name change). I remember our thesis was on Cro-Magnon Man. All through school I was involved extracurricular in music and theater. I was in the “King and I” and “Brigadoon” at Charles County Community College, while my Father and Aunt always had leading roles. In school I performed hand bells, chorus — as a soloist, band (flute and Suzuki-method violin), as well as the lead in the “Pied Piper” musical which we performed on the White House ellipse for President Reagan. I did play the flute live. All the while, my father would take us to concerts to meet the A-list musicians of the 80s, like Tina Turner, who I was for Halloween one year.

I also remember somehow even though my parents didn’t make a lot of money, we had Intellivision, Atari, and a Texas Instruments computer. That was a black and green screen kids. No color. I learned to write my first codes for programming my own games. It was tedious hours of coding, but I remember it was fun when the results came out.

Middle School

Middle School was weird, because I started it in 6th grade for about a month in Waldorf, but moved back yet again to Brandywine elementary during my parents divorce. I was upset about coming back to PG county where 6th grade was still elementary. I was already accustomed to having my own locker. But returning meant being back with my old friends from kindergarten through 4th again. I remember my 6th grade teacher told my mother as I was at the top of my class, that I could accomplish anything I put my mind to and it was a good thing I hadn’t discovered boys yet.

I graduated elementary for the second time with the Presidential Academic Fitness Award. I then moved to Columbia, Maryland (a new place for the new family – Howard County) for the rest of Middle School (Oakland Mills) and part of HS. I continued in acting and singing, and a even soloist again. I remember winning the school’s talent show with my father’s arrangement of John Lennon’s “Imagine”.

I still played in the band, but switched from flute to percussion where I really enjoyed the Tympani. I think this switch to the rhythm section lay the ground work as I was discovering industrial and electronic music embracing New Order, Depeche Mode, and KMFDM. This was a time of adjustment as our family went from three kids to six to eight kids in just a few years.

…Coming next, The High School Years…