When I wrote a blog called “Who Were You In High School” I wasn’t expecting it to strike such a chord with everyone from the former geeks to the former goddesses.
One of the cool “Duran Duran girls” that I wrote about posted a comment saying: “It’s funny to suppose that other people thought we may be cool – I still felt like an odd bod and outsider. Could have something to do with how glamorous and popular with boys the leaders of the Duran Duran group were. I was certainly not popular with boys and had some serious hair challenges amongst other things.”
Isn’t perception a funny thing? The blog was also picked up by Mamamia. It got 142 comments, ranging from “Wow. I thought this was a photo of me until I enlarged it. Same school, same hairdo. Thanks for the flashback” to “I was an emo, a nerd, a geek, a hippy, a bully, bullied, a girly-girl, a role model, a bad influence, a muso, a prankster, a debbie downer, a teacher’s pet, a scientist, a bogan, a boarder” and “Hey, that’s my school! I was in the year below you Alana. I have fond memories of hanging out in the girls’ area with my goody goody friends. The tuff girls would smoke in C block toilets. I’m not sure what the cool girls did at lunch time – maybe snuck off to Gardo for some shopping?? I’m glad I was at school in the 80′s. We were pretty carefree. Girls today seem to have so much pressure to always look good. I can’t remember ever worrying too much about anything”, oh and “I was the girl who didn’t stick up for a bullied girl in our class. When I think of high school I think of her and how mean everyone was to her and even those of us who weren’t directly horrible, were by our indifference, as much to blame. I have wanted to contact her to say sorry for not stopping the bullying but I worry about bringing it back up for her.” Eeek.
And then, one morning, I got lots of messages and calls from people who saw my high school photo flash up on The Today Show, during a discussion of high school bullying, provoked by Lisa Wilkinson seeing my blog on Mamamia.
The blog eventually earned a place as the 15th most-popular one I’ve written at Housegoeshome, behind all the controversial Kathleen Folbigg ones (ironic considering she could very well have taken the photo, above) and a gossip item about Princess Kate’s “boobies”. So it seems fitting that it gets a rerun on its anniversary, together with another pic of me in my “uniform” for the school magazine, Missprint (I think we created the T-shirt logos with contact – teens tend to live in the moment).
I was the weird girl wearing a black armband when Split Enz broke up. And a red cap, long before sunsense was fashionable. When it rained, I wore my dad’s old green raincoat. Not terribly fashionable either, but I thought it was COOL. I didn’t move with the Duran Duran crowd. They invited me to sit at their picnic table once, but said my odd-bod friends couldn’t come. I tried it, didn’t like it. The odd-bod crowd were more fun or at least more accepting. They didn’t bully you if you wore a bow-tie to school – they wore one too. Even without the bow tie, I didn’t have the right look. My hair was red, my skin was pale, my freckles were extensive. I wasn’t popular with boys. I didn’t get kissed until I was 15, even then it was by a boy with no front teeth (search “When I was 15″). I had a mad crush on a boy in the year above mine, Chris Evans. He was blonde and blue-eyed and gorgeous. He never gave me a second glance. He dated a dark-eyed beauty in my year called Alison. I eventually dated a boy in the year above mine, who hung with his own odd-bod crowd. They played cards every lunchtime in a classroom, not handball in the quadrangle. I think my boyfriend got invited to hang with the male-equivalent of the Duran Duran crowd, but decided his odd-bod friends more fun too. I was obsessed with fantasy and science fiction. My idea of a bulk fun day was to catch the train to Sydney and head to the Galaxy Bookshop. I was hopeless at maths, excellent at ancient history. I dreamed about time-travelling to ancient Crete (they had running water, you know). Would the high-school me would recognise the 43-year-old me? I still have a soft spot for Neil Finn (The Pajama Club rocks). I favour a straw cowboy hat these days (younger me would be into that, the cowboy from The Village People was her favorite). I wish I’d hung onto the green raincoat, it would have been quite handy this dreary summer. I’ve learned to move with the Duran-Duran crowd when required, but I never feel like I truly belong. I don’t have the stamina for it. Having the “right” everything, doing the “right” everything, saying the “right” everything … exhausting. My heart remains with the odd-bods. They’re still the interesting ones in my book.
How about you? Who were you in high school?
housegoeshome 
I seem to remember getting u to stand right there so chris evans was in the pic… lol
Hehehe. The things we did to attract a boy’s attention. I worked in the school canteen for a year and a half to attract a certain boy’s attention. I also cut his photo out of the Lambtonian (no cool title like Missprint) to put in my locket. I was one of the nerds – geeks didn’t exist in the 80s.
Wow, the Lambtonian is quite the title.
You remember right, Megz!
Hi Alana, I know who I was in high school – one of the ‘Duran Duran’ girls! I have been reading your blog since the original “Who We’re You in High School?” was published on Mamamia a year ago. My sister phoned me and said with outrage “You weren’t cool!” And of course I wasn’t. I was, and still am, a dag (which really is the correct 80s term). I suppose it is all about perception and I think that you were probably using the ‘Duran Duran’ group in a metaphorical sense. We know it was really the girls that hung out in the quadrangle that were the cool ones! I really hope that you don’t feel that my group was negative towards you – I know that I felt that you and the others in your group (Hi Megan) were friends. I remember you wearing that bow tie, the green raincoat, doing 4 Unit English and I always loved your fabulous hair! I also remember having a conversation with you in D Block about that black armband. You were always quite unique and had a great sense of your own individuality. It’s been really interesting following your career over the years and reading your blog – you’re much braver than me! Regards Louise
Yes, its a euphemism for what I perceived as being cool. And yes! Dag is a more accurate term for what we both thought we were. And the Duran Duran crowd were more fringe cool at Kotara than main event. But I liked their style! You have a much better memory than me. Thx for the kind words.
Oh my god, this brings back memories. I was a band geek. Still am. Proud.