My older brother wont let me uni to school because it will ruin his “rep” along with mine (which i hate to admit but its so true) Im in grade 9 , he’s grade 10. Most my friends bmx and i havent told them i muni but im scared they’ll think im a clown or something. thx for any help
Just go for it, if somebody dosent think unicycling is cool then their opinion is preety much worthless anyway, highschoolers can be tough (especally if your only a freshmen) but who cares. Youll probalby have just as many people want to try it, or think that is cool.
Just go do it, its all or nothing
NO!
Don’t do it! We all know how important it is to fit-in when in high school. Whatever you do, DO NOT ride your uni to school. It is more important NOT to be an individual and NOT to listen to that inner, joyous voice of being unique. DO NOT let everybody, anybody, know that you might one of the many that may express every moment as a celebration. It is far better to not draw any attention to yourself, especially as a freshman. Beisdes, what can a freshman teach upper-class folks about joy, about adventure?
It seems we have a tie: 1 for 1 against. Here’s my thoughts: When I was in high school, I made a half hearted effort to fit in, I tried to dress like everyone else, and to make everyone think I was cool really hard. I didn’t really fool anyone, when it came down to it, I was down right impervious to peer pressures to conform, said really weird things pretty often, and pretty much got made fun of incessantly. I’d venture to say that it is the exact way most people would say they experienced high school. Part of me says YES, be an individual and ride that sucker through the halls until you get busted. But, that is better suited to college where the only thing people try to do is show everyone that they are different in a conforming way. Actually, you should not, be flagrant about your unique skill. If you ride it to school, people will make fun of you and your brother to, sort of, make sure that you don’t go “one up” on them. You will get some positive attention, but that will only make others more bitter. However, don’t be secretive about it. Don’t worry if people see you around on it. Try to get friends into it, and by all means, get in as much trouble as you can get away with in highschool. If others try to tease you about your skills, don’t act like it’s a big deal, just play it off and move on. It’s cliche, but in reality, they are just jealous. Hope this helps! Keep the rubber side down!
-Gauss
I think Tommy’s cheek is aching from having his tongue buried so deeply in it that only a talented oral surgeon could extract it.
I’m voting with Tommy if he can slip that by.
Think about it, take a decision, and make the best out of it
I think Tmornstar is “Peeing out of the pot” (Venezuelan saying) by saying that it is important to fit-in in high-school. It is a mistake to do things just because others do it, and just as bad to do things just because others don’t do it (i.e. to be an “individual”…what ever that means in this context, where you are doing it just to not confirm, rendering you dependant to the “common” folks). It is my view that before taking any decision, you are to inform yourself about the different possibilities you have at hand. You then study these possibilities: their pros and cons. You weigh these as to which course of action will do you best in the long run, and then you pick the one that will benefit you the most. That is, you take the decision because you find it within reason that is the best course of action from all the alternatives. That way all the responsibility of the decision lies on you: it was your decision and there’s no one you can credit/blame for it other than yourself.
So there’s no clear cut yes/no answer that anyone in the forum should give you. “Do it to show you individuality” would be doing it to show how small you truly are inside. “Don’t do it because others will think you are weird” would be not doing it because you are what others think of you. Neither is an attractive alternative to someone with self-love. Do it/don’t do it because you find it within reason to be the best course of action (e.g. do it because it gets you from class-room to class-room, and it’s more fun than walking from one to the other, or don’t do it because it is too much trouble to take the unicycle in the bus on the way to school)
Best,
~Charles
i say go for it. i did and i didnt get much bad feedback. actually people told me to ride more and thaught it was neat that i could hop up and down steps and do trials and freestyle stuff. and when my friends make fun of me for unicycling i show them up on my bmx which im just as them and im just as good as the best riders at my school are. i even bring my uni to the skateparks and stuff when i go bmx riding and if i go somewhere new i also bring it. if asomeone makes fun of you for riding just tell them to ride it and if they can ride over 20 ft then they can make fun of you heheheheh also you might even meet someone else at school who rides a uni but is too shy like you to bring it to school. i say go for it. if it fails then you have another 2 -3 years to get your flow back and start fitting in again well goodluck and tell us how it works out peace out Kyle Grasso
uh
I was actually planning on riding it to school and locking it up in the bike racks like i did in elementry school , not around the halls. Also now that i’ve been through pros/cons i realized how someone who walks by and sees an odd bike in the rack while surrounded by peers might consider kicking in the spokes. that is quite the risk!!
> i realized how someone who walks by and sees an odd bike in >the rack while surrounded by peers might consider kicking in the >spokes. that is quite the risk!
The best way to get around this is to find a really cool teacher, become good friends with them and store your uni in their classroom or office (if they have it).
Also, having a skatepark right across the street from your school, and being able to do some neet stuff in there (messing around in the halfpipe, stairs, up and down ramps) will help all of those jerk people that would normally think you're a loser hold you in higher regard. Most will probably want to try. Then YOU get to laugh at somebody falling on their face a lot!!;)Harper is right. I just returned from the oral surgeon. Back in the early to mid-70s I had to put up with the hassles of peer preasure becasue I rode my bicycle every where. Riding my bike brought me so much pleasure and adventure - everyday - that the teasing was far worth it. Besides, I formed the first bike club and eco club. Both of which are still going now, almost 30 years later. Just think about what a high school student could do if you just stepped out of your comfort zone to nurture yourself AND enlighten others to unicycling AND to listen to that inner voice that screams - HAVE FUN! Just becasue others are afraid to experience life to the fullest don’t let somebody else limit your horizons.:o
OK, I’m confused by Tmornstar’s change of view
uuuhhh… was the first post by Tmornstar supposed to be ironic? I didn’t get Harper’s refference to a dental surgeon, is that supposed to be an in-side joke?.. this is the only problem that I see w/computer communication: it’s hard to convey emotion along with the words (to tell if someone’s kidding/being serious/etc.)… but it’s so aweseome for everythine else…
Lates,
~C
Sorry to confuse you. Please reread what I wrote at first and hear the the words “joyous” and “adventure” and read between the lines knowing that this is directed at a teenager. What would you have done if you were told, as a teen, to conform?
I ditto Tommy’s apology. The reference is to the phrase, “tongue in cheek” suggesting that one is being sarcastic. It is an inside joke only in that, knowing Tommy through his posts, this is something he could write only tongue in cheek. He, in fact, is so sincere that he wants you to be sure it is sarcastic by exaggerating it excessively. To those of us familiar with him this was pretty much unsubtle.
Ok… I get it now…
When reading Tmornstar’s first post, I did get the feeling that he was being sarcastic, for he was saying “DO NOT let everybody, anybody, know that you might one of the many that may express every moment as a celebration”… which did sound sarcastic… but not being familiar with his posts, I couldn’t tell. I wasn’t familiar w/the toungue in cheek expression either… I guess we all understand each other now.
Thanks for the clarification!
~Charles
Awe, heck, I’ll conform with the others here: Don’t conform. Ride the sucker down the halls. I sure do it. The waxed floors are fun for spin turns. Life is too short.
-gauss
Maybe my experience is unique, I dont ride my unicycle to school (Its way too far) but everybody at school knows i ride a unicycle. I bring it to a few school events and mess around on it, and only a few people I hate anyway have made fun of me for it. I have had mostly positive experiences, but that may be because I am a senior in high school so i only have a few other seniors that would make fun of me. As a freshmen you would have a few people from every class. Its your decision but dont let a few jerks spoil your fun
Yeah, I say go for it too… All those guys making fun of you will later be unimaginative, boring do-nothings. You’ll see them in college as you ride by too; they will be the drunken ones cussing at you with all the drunken babes hanging off of them… wait a minute! Hmmmmmmmm… Not sure where I’m going here… Quick, somebody help me out!
=====
^ funny part
V serious part
In any case, they’re making fun of you because you have something they don’t – innovation and uniqueness. That won’t ever change, whether you ride a unicycle or not! So enjoy it and be yourself. If someone kicks in the spokes, get them fixed and store it somewhere else. High school is rough and your uni will make it much better. And the friends you make because of it will be much better ones than the ones that you (probably won’t) make by stifling your natural self.
(43 year old guy who rode his bike to high school and was definitely not in the in crowd, but went on to do many things that the football players never even dreamed of, blah blah blah)
P.S. Besides, it will help your skills so that when unis get in the Olympics, you can win a gold.
I read Tommy’s post and decided to conform. Was that wrong? Is it to late to change my mind? Who’s toung is this in my cheek? What was the owner of this toung eating? Please, show consideration for your fellow posters, and brush first.
Christopher
I’m grade 8 and everyone at school knows that i unicycle. i have a wierd rep anyway, but you might be surprised at hoe many people can unicycle. One warning: if anyone with any newspaper talks to u about unicycling DO NOT DO IT AT SCHOOL. Most embarssing day of my life. But i’d just let them know, but don’t put it on the bike racks or anything. Talk to the sectary or a teacher about storage
go for it
Don’t worry. It is up to you wehter you wat to ride to school or not. Dont worry about your brothers rep. If it can be ruined by this then his rep is not that big anyway. As for you, i think you should go out and muni with your bmx friends.