Same-ish boat, here. I don't have any wise words, but can assure you you're not alone. Just graduated college and have been living in the same house since I was 4 years old. Everyone moved away. My town is a bunch of rich dipshits so everyone's in high school or a parent. No in between.

Don't feel bad about having "lagged behind" others, be proud of yourself that you're moving forward instead of just stagnating. And stop comparing yourself to others, even the best and brightest lag behind others. We all have our place, just set goals for yourself and keep moving forward towards them. Your goal should be making yourself happier not beating others.

>>17314094
I know your pain, OP.

In school, I was always the kid that, "Was incredibly intelligent, but never applied himself". I've had multiple legitimate IQ tests done, and I've always scored within the "gifted" range. But when I graduated, I never went to college.

I went directly into the work force, and started making money. Meanwhile, my friends were off at school, having fun, meeting girls our age, and meeting people that could connect them to long lasting careers.

Fast forward, I'm about to turn 26. I work as a custodian/maintenance man. I clean toilets and change light bulbs for a living. I spend all of my free time reading and writing.

My closest friends are biologists and physicists. One friend works at NASA, another is a geologist. My siblings are all successful, too. My brother runs an organization that helps athletes recover from injuries. My sister travels the world, teaching foreign students and scholars about US culture. Even my younger sister was accepted into a prestigious school, and is about to publish her first book on criminology.

Thanksgiving is awful. Being invited to dinner parties is awful. We can talk about literature and science, but if work comes up, I fade into the wallpaper.

I'd save up to go to school, but I wouldn't even know what to do once I had.

>>17314440
Holy fuck, are you me?

>>17314446
I don't know! How similar are we, exactly?

>>17314440
>Thanksgiving is awful
yea thats the exact feeling I have with family meetups. I have a vacation coming up that I'm dreading. "So anon what have you been up to? tell me all about your life"
and it takes two seconds
>>17314123
well, my other half of the original post didn't go through before but basically I went on to say that I am proud of my recent achievements, but it doesn't make the situation I'm in any easier. I can't have a relationship. It just doesn't work at my age while living with your parents. What woman would be ok with the fact that we could only hang out at specific times because other people in my house needed sleep?

>>17314440

Isn't gifted 130+?

>>17314094
I'm in the same boat OP
The important thing is you aren't giving up
I'm way too old to go into medicine
But I'm going to do it. What else is there to do?
I know a doctor who spent 20 years in med school and didn't practice until he was 40 years old!
You just have to keep going. You're young and have so much more time than you think!

>>17314440
Intelligent people have a hard time applying themselves because nothing really challenges them

>>17314094
I'm 24 and live with my grandmother. Lol its really embarrassing so I feel you. I've wasted a lot of good years and I felt bad about it.

But I got over it and I'm picking the pieces up. You're going in a surefire direction so keep going forward. I'm not even going to school, I'm banking on teaching myself web design and earning a living from that so you have a leg up on me.

>>17314094
I remember seeing this, and wanted to post in it. I am in the same kind of boat OP, though I am 27 and grown tired of college already. Though I still plan to just finish and just get a dumb associates degree. All I have left is a math credit, and some other general credit. After that all the other courses are online so that I can focus on getting a stable job again easier. I may get a BS degree unsure yet at the moment.

I was going to get a lame arts degree but it takes to long due to distantce of the school along with my jobs hours working for the school, and usually never gets you far. But art is more of a hobby of mine today.

But yeah I dread at seeing friends where they are at now, and stuff that goes on around me. But it never helps me that I had jobs turn me down, some letting me go becuase work got slow, and a guy who ended up lying setting me back an extra year.