Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Forum Message Board Snob!

Well, and there's a huge difference between wanting a place to say nice things about your kids--which is loving and joyous--and wanting to compete with people--which is hateful and nasty.

A college boyfriend of mine used to quote Gore Vidal: "Every time a friend succeeds, I die a little." I thought that was the dumbest, most limited view of the world that I'd ever heard. It's not like there's only so much success to go around! I want the good guys, the people I *like*, to do well! (Needless to say, said beau did NOT become DH!)

These are OUR kids, and I want to know that they're succeeding! I want to hear all the cool, great, amazing things they're learning to do. If it takes a village to raise a child, then this is an important part of my village...

I feel that way about hearing about the growth of my friends' ND kids, too, BTW. I think child development is amazing and cool, regardless of IQ. Kids are cool! We should celebrate that!

IMHO...

yes!

Yikes. *That's* a red flag. Kriston, I'm glad you ended up with a DH more in-line with your values.

There's a song by Morrissey called, "We Hate it when our Friends Become Successful". Let's all sing "We Love it when our Friends Kids Become Successful" .

Oh, yes! It was a HUGE red flag! So right, Jool!

I often wondered if he said stuff like that just to yank my chain. He did like to argue. But that was certainly one of his more appalling statements!

He was also the guy who flip-flopped between wanting to become a priest and wanting to marry me, practically in the same breath, so I learned not to trust much of anything he said...Yup, definitely dodged a bullet there!

That sounds like a novel in itself.

Maybe this makes me an "ist" or I've left my eastcoast roots and midwesternizer but I think merely quoting Vidal in college is fishy. :-)

LOL! Yes, yes, yes. You're all right! The boyfriend was bad news. I am embarrassed that it took me as long as it did to figure it out. In my defense, I was young and foolish and in love!

My point, however, was really that MANY people seem to take Vidal's words as wisdom and want their kids to stomp the "competition," especially on GT forums. They can't root for anyone else's kids because that would mean their own kids would be losing. I find that icky.

My foolish past notwithstanding!

I think we've all hung out with people that we later saw more 'in full' and realized they were not for us. At least when you realize it, you can correct the situation!

This is a great forum, I haven't shopped around much because I found this place first. The other thing I really like is if you have a question...you don't have to wait days! it's like minutes before you get a response. When you are stressing about something, that can be a real relief!!

Okay guys... enough with tainting Kriston about the old boyfriend, but only after I ask this last question. LOL So is this the same boyfriend you discussed a while back that you pined for b/c he broke your heart? (sorry if I am remembering that wrong. I didn't go back to read the older posts.) But you talked about an old boyfriend and if I remember correctly ... pined.

*sigh* ( )

Yes, there was probably some pining...I was pretty whupped. He was my first boyfriend who was an intellectual (in the best sense of the word). He liked to think about all kinds of stuff. That was pretty attractive to me at the time.

So there's another reason to be sure your kids are challenged in school--so they don't wind up dating jerks just because they talk about literature and philosophy!

(How was that for bringing it back to GT kids again? I AM trying!)