Ten years after writing those geeks off....

Think back a decade plus readers. We were still in good old high school, conforming to our respective clique, and getting drunk at football games on Friday nights. My life revolved around these mind numbing activities, I admit, and I was kind of close minded and snobby. I wasn't ever so popular to have any real impact on the social milleau that WAS Beaverton High School, but I certainly did not make an effort to make friends with members or perceived members of groups far outside my comfort zone.

Let us review some of the main high school social clicks:

Sports people
Stoners
Drinkers
Theater geeks
Goths
Band people
Cheerleaders
Straight-arrows (non-religious)
Nerds
Rich kids with new cars and zero personality
Trench coat clad
Mormons
Asians
Shut-ins
Drop-outs
People who accelled in what most considered weird things, like archery or 4-H

These labels, while certainly limiting, do function to organize the ratty teenagers that attend our public schools in the past and even today. Labels in high school are de facto realities of life. We all know it, so why fight it?

I will fast forward to the POINT of this article, being that labels can be overcome once we leave high school and anyone is capable of achieving their dreams.

I sound like I could give some kind of bad, shoddy graduation speech right now...

Last night I attended a music performance of the Everyone Orchestra at the Independent in the grand city of San Francisco. I don't normally go to these kinds of shows, but my roommate C. happens to be a devoted fan of the lead musician, Steve Kimock (formerly of the Grateful Dead). The Everyone Orchestra is a unique concept in that it features a gaggle of established and up and coming musicians that agree to work together for a short period of time and play gigs that feature their wide and impressive improvisational talents.

So the show last night featured Steve, other musicians and one Asher Fulero.

Asher Fulero went to my high school. I think he graduated with us. A few weeks ago when looking at the lineup, I immediately recognized his name. Anyway, from my shady recollection, in high school Asher used to belong to the trench coat and band contingent. He was kind of not involved in mainstream high school activities, and was therefore snubbed by most of us middle-ground schmucks.

As it happens, Asher is now some kind of pimped out and rocking keyboardist these days, and last night he was playing with the legendary guitarist Steve Kimock and the Everyone Orchestra! We showed up to the show and there he was, getting funky on his Nord keyboard/synthesizer unit, impressing the crowd with his melodies and even singing a bit.

I am excited about my little tally of strange people from high school going gold. So far we have:

1. Ari Shapiro, high school theater nerd, currently a correspondent for NPR
2. Asher Fulero, high school band and trench coat kid, current a keyboard pimp

This list is to be continued...