The Outcast

When I moved from private school to public school in the 5th grade I started having to ride the “regular bus” for the first time. Our Private School Bus only had two stops that parents brought their children to, but at the age of 10-years-old I started having to stand at the end of my driveway for the bus. I have no idea why, but when I got off the bus after school, I always ran down the driveway to my house. I don’t have a long driveway and it’s not like anyone was home waiting for me, but for some reason, I just ran – not a dead sprint, but definitely a jog. People started asking, “why do you run?” I had no answer. They’d sneer&point&laugh at me, yet though I had no reason to run down the driveway I also had no reason not to run down the driveway, so I continued to do so.
At work, I brush my teeth after breakfast and after lunch. I don’t have a “real reason” besides wanting clean teeth&fresh breath after eating. I’ve gotten several comments about “what healthy habits I practice,” but for the most part I get sneers&smirks as the catty women I work with glance down at the toothbrush&paste I carry.
I guess I don’t care, though. Just like running down the driveway wasn’t necessary or unnecessary, neither is brushing my teeth 3x a day, but I don’t plan on stopping just cos others label me an outcast for it. Every group needs someone to make fun of. The bus kids had me, now, I suppose, the Office women have me, too.