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I graduated in '97, I wonder if we were the same year? Anyway, I will agree with you on the pressure to go to a top school but I don't think the emphasis was so much that it *must* be an Ivy but that it *must* be a top school a TOP tier or an "Ivy Caliber" school, period. I will say this though, as trying as SHS was, I was very prepared when I went to my "Ivy Caliber" college.
Also, I should point out that many, maybe even most, of my SHS cohorts are doing extremely well. I don't think I've come across one single person I went to SHS with that is not successful (success defined as a high paying, high profile, or prestigious career). This even includes those that were not the most academically competitive. I compare this to friends that I knew from other towns in "not so great school districts", and the differences are staggering.
This is a classic Scarsdalian. People are only successful in life if they have high paying, high profile or prestigious careers. I guess school teachers (like those who taught him at Scarsdale) are total failures.
This is a classic Scarsdalian. People are only successful in life if they have high paying, high profile or prestigious careers. I guess school teachers (like those who taught him at Scarsdale) are total failures.
LOL I so agree. Another reason to avoid Scarsdale like the plague and live life for what really matters.
LOL this "classic Scarsdalian" is a she and she is furthest thing from what you would consider to be the typical Scarsdale native. I'm sure if you had seen me on Metro North, you'd assume I was getting off in Mount Vernon, or better yet, if you had seen me in the supermarket you would have asked me where something was because you assumed I worked there. Or perhaps, you would have stumbled over tying to pronounce my very African last name and just assumed that I lived in Scarsdale because my parents must be diplomats. For added "umph", I now live in Bedford Stuyvesant (and yes, much to the confusion of many on the NYC board, I CHOSE to live in that neighborhood).
ANYWAY, you may not agree but "success" in this country, by and large, is defined by those three criteria. I didn't write those rules, capitalism did. So that makes this "classic Scarsdalian" a capitalist and capitalism is one of the backbones of America. I guess that makes me a classic all-American...
"I now live in Bedford Stuyvesant (and yes, much to the confusion of many on the NYC board, I CHOSE to live in that neighborhood)."
And no doubt you chose that neigborhood because of the schools.
There needs to be a sarcasm font, because I can't tell if this comment is tongue and cheek.
No kids, so it's a moot point. The better question is, if I had kids, would I be living in Bed-Stuy...? (I can help with that answer, I wouldn't be living in NYC, period. I drank the "suburbs are better for a family" Kool-Aid a long time ago). Maybe the real question is, if I had kids, and lived in the suburbs, would I CHOOSE to live in Scarsdale again? Ahh, now THAT's a good question...
LOL this "classic Scarsdalian" is a she and she is furthest thing from what you would consider to be the typical Scarsdale native. I'm sure if you had seen me on Metro North, you'd assume I was getting off in Mount Vernon, or better yet, if you had seen me in the supermarket you would have asked me where something was because you assumed I worked there. Or perhaps, you would have stumbled over tying to pronounce my very African last name and just assumed that I lived in Scarsdale because my parents must be diplomats. For added "umph", I now live in Bedford Stuyvesant (and yes, much to the confusion of many on the NYC board, I CHOSE to live in that neighborhood).
ANYWAY, you may not agree but "success" in this country, by and large, is defined by those three criteria. I didn't write those rules, capitalism did. So that makes this "classic Scarsdalian" a capitalist and capitalism is one of the backbones of America. I guess that makes me a classic all-American...
Not all Americans view success the way you apparently do. In this joyous holiday season, I suggest you reflect on your life and your priorities. Try seeing the movie “It’s A Wonderful Life” that illustrates a person's true wealth is measured by the love and support of family and friends. The latter are far more important than money or possessions.
Try reading the book “Tuesdays With Morrie”, which contains these examples of wisdom:
• So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they’re chasing the wrong things.
• The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.
• The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.
• Money is not a substitute for tenderness, and power is not a substitute for tenderness.
• The big things—how we think, what we value—those you must choose yourself. You can’t let anyone--or any society—determine those for you.
First of all, I do agree that if you were to think about the people who are considered "successful" in our society, they would be the people with prestigious jobs, lots of money, they would be famous/well-known, etc. That is just how success is viewed on a superficial level.
Beyond that though, it is also true that having a prestigious job and making lots of money, etc... has no bearing on one's happiness or how much joy you have in your life and/or share with others. Who is it that said, "Being happy is wanting what you have"???
So are people in Scarsdale more concerned with the first definition of success? Maybe, but I think that's not a Scarsdale thing, it's a NYC/Westchester thing.
(and yes, I do live in Scarsdale, but we're moving...)
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