...but you weren't actually THE nerd

I was listening to This American Life on podcast. Ira Glass started out talking about how, while people are always claiming to have been a nerd in high school, it's often because we don't remember who the actual nerds were. We were maybe not necessarily popular, or maybe we only had a handful of friends, but few of us were the nerds. The pariahs with no friends at all. The ones who would taint you for spending time with them. The ones you saw every day, remembering your lessons from Sunday school, and seriously doubting that your Sunday school teacher realized what she was saying when she suggested that you spend time with this kid. I mean, sure, you didn't participate in taunting him...until maybe he danced with you in gym class in front of the alpha dogs...and what were you supposed to do? You didn't taunt, anyway, you just sort of crumpled your nose. You wouldn't have made things better for the nerd. You weren't popular enough for that. You just would have caused a scene, dragging the innocent nerd down even further, and plummeting along with him. I say, "him" because I don't recall any female pariahs at my school. Actually, I can think of one girl who wore her girl scout uniform to school all the way through high school and surprised no one when, on the announcements, we found out she had a scholarship from the Juliette Lowe foundation. But it wasn't the same for the girl scout. People generally just ignored her and she had some friends, some fellow matronly and out-dated friends. Maybe it was because I didn't know her in elementary school when the serious nerd pummelling happened, and maybe being ignored is just as bad, but boy nerds, that was the stuff of serious abuse. I, of course, can't say the name of the nerd I knew, the bottom-of-the-barrel nerd who was absolutely always an untouchable, regardless of his age or stage, the nerd that I never saw spending time with anyone else at all, but I know his name. First and last. I can't think of the popular kids' names, they changed in status every year, but the nerd reigned supreme for my entire 7 years in that city, elementary through high school, on and on and on. There was one week, in 6th grade, during which a different kid actually pooped in his pants, that nerd number 1 lost his throne, and it only took one slip-up, leaving his fly undone while wearing no underpants, for him to regain it. I remember so many things about him. I wonder what he does now. He liked computers and he played the clarinet and he's every nerd everywhere except that, somehow, he was alone. He was the only one who was just that bad, in the entire school. Actually, as the schools got bigger, with more students, I suspect that he gained some anonymity. Probably, there were other elementary schools' nerds in my high school that I just didn't know. I just don't remember my nerd having any friends. I think of the movies, the 16 candles, etc., with groups of nerds, and I don't remember a group. Just the lone kid.