Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Non-Romantic Relationships
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 12-21-2016, 12:14 PM
 
3,670 posts, read 7,163,903 times
Reputation: 4269

Advertisements

My family members are all over the spectrum. I'm fairly intelligent myself and to be honest I find my intelligence more of a burden than anything else. I'd rather gossip or do something outdoorsy than talk about science or whatever.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 12-21-2016, 01:03 PM
 
21,382 posts, read 7,945,609 times
Reputation: 18150
Quote:
Originally Posted by scend57 View Post
On-the-money response, +1

That's aaaaall i'm saying, i can tell you actually read through my post and "got" what i was trying to convey

I also do not believe pointing out this simple observation is "putting myself on a pedestal" I mean, by my own admission the handful of friends i do have i regard as being "generally" more intelligent than myself.

It's not that i'm claiming to be some super-genius , i was merely pointing out that after countless interactions and knowing them for so long i have come to the conclusion that i am "generally" more intelligent than my immediate family members. That's all. "Equality" is a leftist myth, the truth is there ARE varying differences between people. This is neither "good" nor "bad", but just reality and "how it is". Only leftist/SJW types "take offense" at this reality-based notion

Regarding your family's "boring" opinion of you, I have a similar thing happen to me, except my family tells me i come across as "too serious" rather than "boring". I get this "you're too serious" comment often.
And somehow I think that you and that poster would have zero to talk about.

Isn't it amazing how easy it is to have conversations when it's all about you?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 01:41 PM
 
Location: The Great West
2,084 posts, read 2,622,289 times
Reputation: 4112
Quote:
Originally Posted by EA View Post

[snip]

Side note: you can really tell the unintelligent posters from the intelligent ones in threads like this. It's hilarious and a fun thing to do whilst bored at family functions.

Disclaimer. Not calling anyone unintelligent or intelligent. Not insulting anyone. Just making an observation about no one specific.
Learn about humility, dude. Why go on about how brilliant you are?

Some people really just don't see the value of emotional intelligence or social interaction. Being proficient in those takes intelligence.

Last edited by savoytruffle; 12-21-2016 at 01:52 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 02:16 PM
 
Location: Athol, Idaho
2,181 posts, read 1,628,749 times
Reputation: 3220
My brother is a genius. I have something to compare with and therefore know that I'm not. I still think I can relate to the OPs problem because often I'm the only one at our family gatherings that is smarter than the average bear. I don't want to do the really petty gossip stuff which is huge if my mom is there. I was raised in it, but it just took the one time of it making the rounds, blowing up and hurting feelings and I was done. Then there are the people that think they're smart. They say much much more than the people like my brother that actually are. Small does of this can be funny. Small doses. It's why comedy movies and TV shows always have dumb people. We like to laugh at dumb people. We need our dumb people, just not quite so many as we have.

Someone said that kids suck. I think I can agree with this. I love mine, but having people you love is a liability. Other people suck and can only make you unhappy. The best people I know just don't get in the way of me being happy. They can't make me happy. You can't really make someone else happy.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 09:52 PM
 
2,144 posts, read 1,879,306 times
Reputation: 10604
I'm not a genius. At least I don't think I am. My ex-husband did because I use big words. My eldest sister doesn't because I dropped out of college after one year.

I don't want to talk about the weather, sports, or gossip either. Some of my family members -- even the highly intelligent and educated -- do. We have widely varied interests and none of us have much in common, but we still have fun conversations when we get together.

I think most of it is about caring.

More than one of the 'intelligent' people on this thread have stated that they don't care about what the other people have to say. I would guess they don't particularly care about the people themselves. If you care about someone, you find a way to connect. If you don't, why waste everyone's time and potentially cause problems because of perceived chasms between intellect levels?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 10:04 PM
 
Location: Phoenix
3,211 posts, read 2,243,156 times
Reputation: 2607
My father was very educated and comes from a family of Doctors, lawyers and professors while my mother's family is from redneck family tree where most are in the trades or work at plants. It was obvious the level of intelligence gap which might have been more related to their experiences and education between my 2 parents. Anyway, I consider myself an educated intellectual redneck. I have a Phd but feel just as connected to the janitors. I should point out that my redneck family which my Mom came from was/is much more fun to hang around with than my father's stod educated family.


I try not to 'value' someone based on their intelligence. Anyway, good luck to OP.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 10:16 PM
 
Location: Ontario, Canada
31,373 posts, read 20,184,822 times
Reputation: 14070
Quote:
Originally Posted by scend57 View Post
I consider myself to be fairly intelligent and informed on a variety of things. At the same time, i notice most of my immediate family is no where near the same wavelength intelligence-wise.

Needless to say i can feel very "alone" even when surrounded by tons of relatives at family gatherings like picnics and dinners, i just don't "have anything in common" with them other than blood/genetics. Usually i find myself off to the side or in the corner as i honestly have nothing to say or add to their conversations (sports don't interest me, and random family gossip doesn't interest me either)

This has been a source of frustration for me for QUITE some time now, although i keep this to myself and do not mention it to family members. Anyone else "the smart one" in their family? And how do you cope with this intellectual loneliness??

I mean, the internet is a great outlet for finding like-minded individuals and all, but i GOTTA admit i feel awfully lonely in the "real world" at times The reality is neither the internet nor these smartphones are a proper substitute for real, living people.... and therein lies the problem for us loner types. You can literally be in a room of like 50 family members and feel like the loneliest person in the world.

Strangely, even though i'm Mexican-american i notice that of the handful of good friends i do have they are all white. I don't know what it is but i'm just "drawn" to intelligent people, even if they're outside my own race, i just have this "craving" for intelligence like you wouldn't believe. When i find out someone is intelligent they AUTOMATICALLY go up a few points in terms of likeability regardless of any other flaws they might have.

Anyways, sorry to rant but i just felt like venting a bit. I just don't have much to do these last 2 weeks of the year (and no-one similarly-minded to talk to anyway ) so i'm finding myself staying up late on forums killing time etc.

Anyone else deal with a similar "intelligence gap" in their family? Any ideas?
Your IQ may well be slightly above room temperature but you come across as a boor and a bore.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2016, 10:45 PM
 
Location: So Cal
52,267 posts, read 52,686,640 times
Reputation: 52777
Quote:
Originally Posted by TroutDude View Post
Your IQ may well be slightly above room temperature but you come across as a boor and a bore.
Yep, there are many form of intelligence. Book smart is one thing, reading a situation and knowing how to integrate yourself into it is another. Sounds like the OP is lacking in some of those skills. Just being book smart alone doesn't do a wit for me in terms of someone I wanna hang with.

I think people put far far too much emphasis on test scores and grades and things of that order and ignore the other intangible softer skills that one can have. Ones that really pay off better in the longer run I'm finding out in life. LOL, I always made the mistake of letting my resume do the talking and the world doesn't' work that way.

I once had a supervisor at work tell me this, "I don't care if you're the smartest guy going, if I can't work with you it doesn't matter" I think the OP might benefit a bit from that advice.......
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-22-2016, 05:10 AM
 
Location: Where the sun likes to shine!!
20,548 posts, read 30,394,464 times
Reputation: 88951
Quote:
Originally Posted by Murk View Post
More than one of the 'intelligent' people on this thread have stated that they don't care about what the other people have to say. I would guess they don't particularly care about the people themselves. If you care about someone, you find a way to connect. If you don't, why waste everyone's time and potentially cause problems because of perceived chasms between intellect levels?
Exactly.



Quote:
Originally Posted by American Expat View Post
My father was very educated and comes from a family of Doctors, lawyers and professors while my mother's family is from redneck family tree where most are in the trades or work at plants. It was obvious the level of intelligence gap which might have been more related to their experiences and education between my 2 parents. Anyway, I consider myself an educated intellectual redneck. I have a Phd but feel just as connected to the janitors. I should point out that my redneck family which my Mom came from was/is much more fun to hang around with than my father's stod educated family.


I try not to 'value' someone based on their intelligence. Anyway, good luck to OP.


I know people who are better educated and they tend to be more stodgy. My everyday lower educated friends tend to be more fun and laugh a whole lot more. I can be pretty serious but I'd hang out with a fun/happy person anytime





On another note…at parties and get togethers many people want to let go. They don't want to talk about work when they are home. There is nothing wrong with keeping it light.

Last edited by ylisa7; 12-22-2016 at 05:42 AM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-22-2016, 05:36 AM
 
350 posts, read 333,418 times
Reputation: 856
"Anyways"???? One of my pet peeves ranking with "I seen". Intelligent people should know better.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Non-Romantic Relationships

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top