Scott Phillip Cook

Wrote for the Frontline, and in my sophomore year I was treasurer of the Fort Hunt Amateur Rocket Society (i.e., complete geek).

I'm still in touch with my two biggest crushes, and they are still gorgeous. I really enjoyed the teachers who were the most un-teacher-like - Jane Glazer for journalism, and Bill Monticone for electronics. My oddest memory was seeing some kid (never did catch his name) shooting himself in the head in the electronics lab while trying to use a drill press to bore a hole through a bullet so he could put a chain through it. He wasn't badly injured, but there was a lot of blood. My other favorite memory was going to the 20th reunion and striking up a conversation with a sweet woman in line for the buffet. We chatted about jobs and kids and had a nice time - and then she turned so I could see her nametag, and realized I had been talking to our Homecoming Queen. The thought of talking to her back in high school would have been incomprehensible - there were about 17 strata of social layers between us - but it's nice that time erases all that crap.

Not be so afraid of the girls. I missed out on a lot of nice relationships because I didn't have the nerve to walk up to them and start talking. It's something I made sure my kids didn't suffer - they are all outgoing and not afraid of anything.