Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

What are the cool kids from your school up to these days?

80 replies

McOrange · 23/02/2024 14:24

I keep in touch a bit and sometimes see people on Facebook from my old school (25 years ago now) and the former geeks and losers are the ones who seem to be doing really well, mostly got “big” jobs and have families etc. Whereas the cool ones stayed in my home town and don’t seem to have amounted to much.

of course, there is way more to life than you can see in a fb snapshot, and more to life than big jobs, but I wish I could have told my school age self that it was cool to be academic and embrace that. As one of those geeks who had the piss taken out of me a lot, I wish I’d known it was ok to be uncool.

What are those who were cool in your school doing now? How about the geeks and uncool kids?

OP posts:
Bloomingdaffs · 23/02/2024 14:28

Some of the cool kids went on to have good jobs and some didn't Same as the geeks really.

Runningwildish · 23/02/2024 14:30

Doesn't every one think they are one of the cool kids? The geeks probably think they are cool as do all the other friendship groups

Bloomingdaffs · 23/02/2024 14:31

The geeks were just as cliquey as the cool kids. Neither were better than the other, just different.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

General education
MissusKay · 23/02/2024 14:33

Runningwildish · 23/02/2024 14:30

Doesn't every one think they are one of the cool kids? The geeks probably think they are cool as do all the other friendship groups

Nope. I wasn't a social outcast but I was definitely not cool. 😂

It's kind of a mix. There's no clear cut lines. The cooler kids just tried to get married earlier for whatever reason

OneRingToRuleThemAll · 23/02/2024 14:33

The geeks know they aren't a cool kid! The highly academic people did really well. The bullies didn't do well at all, but looking back I feel sorry for them - their life must have been awful. The 'mean girls' peaked in high school and didn't do much of note after.

Bloomingdaffs · 23/02/2024 14:34

The 'cool' kids weren't all bullies though.

Cheeesus · 23/02/2024 14:34

Runningwildish · 23/02/2024 14:30

Doesn't every one think they are one of the cool kids? The geeks probably think they are cool as do all the other friendship groups

At our school it was very clear if you were one of the cool ones, the middle ones or the geeks. Clear to everyone. I was a middle one and did not think I was one of the cool ones. Why would I? 😂

IncognitoUsername · 23/02/2024 14:35

My friend married the Head boy who we were all in love with - proper fairytale wedding, beautiful home etc. Everyone was envious till he turned out to be abusive, drug taking and a womanizer. Thankfully she got rid of him and is now a strong single mum with a successful career. One girl who was tipped as an Oxbridge candidate had 3 kids by the time she was 21 and has been married several times. The lad who was playing for a football academy did his cruciate ligament and never played for the first team. Most of us just live fairly normal lives. No-one has become famous or notorious 😂

Runningwildish · 23/02/2024 14:35

MissusKay · 23/02/2024 14:33

Nope. I wasn't a social outcast but I was definitely not cool. 😂

It's kind of a mix. There's no clear cut lines. The cooler kids just tried to get married earlier for whatever reason

Show quote history

But in my friendship group we would have regarded anyone whose aim was to get married early as distinctly uncool.

Cheeesus · 23/02/2024 14:35

Bloomingdaffs · 23/02/2024 14:34

The 'cool' kids weren't all bullies though.

No. Some were lovely and just effortlessly popular.

Comedycook · 23/02/2024 14:36

Married fairly well off men and are working/having children. Nothing wild.

Comedycook · 23/02/2024 14:37

The cool girls in my school weren't bullies though. They were usually just pretty, popular with boys and came from well off families

Original poster
McOrange · 23/02/2024 14:38

MissusKay · 23/02/2024 14:33

Nope. I wasn't a social outcast but I was definitely not cool. 😂

It's kind of a mix. There's no clear cut lines. The cooler kids just tried to get married earlier for whatever reason

Show quote history

Yes! All the cool ones got married and had babies really young

OP posts:
Original poster
McOrange · 23/02/2024 14:38

IncognitoUsername · 23/02/2024 14:35

My friend married the Head boy who we were all in love with - proper fairytale wedding, beautiful home etc. Everyone was envious till he turned out to be abusive, drug taking and a womanizer. Thankfully she got rid of him and is now a strong single mum with a successful career. One girl who was tipped as an Oxbridge candidate had 3 kids by the time she was 21 and has been married several times. The lad who was playing for a football academy did his cruciate ligament and never played for the first team. Most of us just live fairly normal lives. No-one has become famous or notorious 😂

Poor woman, good for her for getting away

OP posts:
Bloomingdaffs · 23/02/2024 14:39

This is one of those threads were the OP want's to hear that all the cool kids had 3 kids by they time they were 21 and work in Tesco and the geeks are all earning 6 figure sums after graduating from a Red Brick.

Yepidid · 23/02/2024 14:44

A couple of the cool kids did really well, TV presenter and something very high up in Netflix. - These were ultra cool
The loud rebellious cool kids Not so impressive. Stayed in same area had kids young, didn't go to uni.
Average quite kids all seemed to go to uni and get decent jobs.
Ultra nerds are hugely impressive Oxbridge professors, Top IT types. These were the boys to aim for looking back!

Meadowfinch · 23/02/2024 14:44

The notable ones from our hugely respectable grammar school are an orthopedic surgeon, an MP, and a jazz saxophonist. One runs her own design agency.

One very brainy person went to work for Porton Down, and I believe is still there. One went off the rails and was last heard of being a travelling preacher in India.

But some of the straight As people do quite ordinary things like GP's receptionist or cake decorator. Plenty of SAHMs despite their Russell Group degrees. I was always lower half of the class but I am at least employed and contributing to GDP. 🙂

Wetblanket78 · 23/02/2024 14:46

A girl in my year in the juniors who seemed to excel at everything including sports music etc. She went to a differant secondary school to me. I hadn't seen her since we left juniors. She was in the local rag a few years ago. She was a PCSO but got done for fraud. She booked a luxury holiday on her mum's and stepdads credit card for her and her child costing thousands. Of course she was sacked.

Theresplendentemmaforbes · 23/02/2024 14:48

The popular kids in my year are mostly still in our home town or very nearby (next town along). Mostly trades (for men), nursing/admin/retail/benefits for mums. Part of me thinks it's a bit sad, some, from what I have seen via social media, have never left our home town for work/travel, but another part thinks it's quite sweet as they all seem to have remained close friends and have that 'community' that I don't have.

The geeks like me (who were obviously the actual cool ones) are quite varied. Some are successful in careers/life, some not so much but we all seem to have moved away.

We went to a very deprived school in a deprived area. As I have professional career and was able to buy a home this would put me in the 'successful' category but as I'm on a just above average salary and have a tiny house I probably wouldn't be considered successful if you grew up in a middle class household/school.

Hardbackwriter · 23/02/2024 14:51

Runningwildish · 23/02/2024 14:30

Doesn't every one think they are one of the cool kids? The geeks probably think they are cool as do all the other friendship groups

I think the opposite - everyone, even the 'cool kids', recalls being lonely and awkward and worrying about fitting in at school. It's part of the experience of adolescence. There is also a massive numerical discrepancy between the number of people who remember being bullied and the number of people who remember taking part in bullying.

Sufac · 23/02/2024 14:51

Most of the people on my social media have got married and had children. Not sure what half their jobs are as people don’t tend to post about that. All seem to be doing well. A couple of the more unpopular ones aren’t doing so well, and one of the cool guys is lead singer/guitarist of a pretty famous band. I would say mostly even, but the more popular ones seem to be more wealthy.

kennt · 23/02/2024 14:53

I'm 45 and went to a girls' school in North London. The cool girls ended up as a GP, accountant, political advisor, journalist, make up artist. It was quite a trendy bit of London so lots have stayed in the area - it's the ones who haven't done so well who had to leave the home town as they can't afford to buy here.

Frumpitydoo · 23/02/2024 14:55

Best one from my school was the utter geek to end all geeks who became a temporarilyfamous body building porn star.

Readytoevolve · 23/02/2024 14:56

Very medicore lives.
Most of them never left their small town and small minds. Still hang around together, made very few new friends.

15 years on.…. the mean girls still make fun of a girl they didn’t like. Their WhatsApp group is titled after her. So they are still nasty, mediocre little bitches.

Soonenough · 23/02/2024 14:56

The boring sensible ones went on to have safe careers mostly teaching . Meanwhile the rest of us had OK jobs snd families. But now at retirement age those teachers have a pretty good pension and enjoying the benefits.