My sister once asked me how I managed to be both valedictorian and prom queen of my graduating class.  Nerd and popular don’t often mix.  It took several hours to figure out the answer.

I moved.

When I was 16 years old my family moved from Texas to Maryland.  In my new school, no one knew the awkward 14-year-old with braces. Instead, they met the 16-year-old me right after a Texan summer of life guarding, tanned skin, sunny blond highlights, and all.  One boy asked me out two days after we moved.  Another started leaving anonymous love notes in my locker.    And that was before I got a haircut that started turning heads as I walked down the street.