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Like something out of a boring, bad comic book, this girl was my archrival, my nemesis.  She followed me from elementary school to High School and was always dogging me.  I was big in science, even at an early age.  Every year, they had this thing called the Science Fair where kids would perform some experiment or analysis and then the exhibits would be judged.  The best from each grade would go on to a citywide competition at the Franklin Institute. 

In 3rd grade, I invented a periscope using prisms instead of mirrors and my charts and diagrams showed how the optics worked.  I won second prize.  Molly won first prize.  Her experiment was development of chick embryos using radiological analysis.  Who could even pronounce it?

In 4^th grade, I built a transistor radio from scratch and my charts and diagrams showed how the electronics worked.  I won second prize.  Molly won first prize.  Her experiment was a chromatographic analysis of blood showing the difference between phenotypes and genotypes. 

In 5^th grade, I built an analog computer out of resistors and potentiometers.  It could multiply and divide simply by twisting some dials.  My charts and diagrams showed the underlying theory.  I won second prize.  Molly won first prize.  I don’t remember exactly what her experiment was but I think it was sonoluminescence. 

While my parents were very supportive and my dad helped me out, they insisted that I do every part of the exhibit myself.  Even though my experiments were interesting and educational, at least they looked like they were done by someone who hadn’t hit puberty yet.  Molly’s exhibits, on the other hand, appeared as if they were produced by a pharmaceutical research lab or a government agency.  In elementary school, Molly was always sickly, staying out of school for sometimes months on end.  Yet somehow, she always managed to get good grades and win the awards.  She was very heavy and I don’t know if it was related to her “condition” or not.  I sometimes wonder if she was embarrassed to be in school and stayed out for long periods of time so as to not subject herself to the taunts of her classmates.  She certainly stayed home long enough to perform some of the experiments but I believe she had more than a little help from her parents.

When we moved to the suburbs, I thought I was finally free of the curse that was Molly; but it was not to be.  Her family moved out to the same suburb not too much later and there she was, in my science classes, following me, beating me.  I had enough trouble competing with my brother; I certainly didn’t need some girl on my heels. 

In High School, I joined the American Chemical Society research group, a biological survey and inserted myself into the day-to-day workings of the Future Scientists of America.  By my senior year, there was no question that I was going to be president and I was determined to make it the most exciting year ever.  The club had a rather sizeable amount of cash set aside in the treasury.  They collected dues every year but never spent them on anything.  My idea was to use some of the money to make the club more enjoyable and entice more people to join.  But there was Molly Talbot, dogging me again.  She ran for president and lost but in those days, the runner-up became Vice President.  You had to admire her persistence, she knew she didn’t have a chance but she ran anyway.

One idea I had was getting pizza and soda for every meeting. When I told her of my plans for revitalizing the club, she said no, she wouldn’t be a part of it, that the money would better be spent on other things.  She wanted to run the club the old-fashioned way.  I wanted to bring life, not just refreshments to the meetings.  She wanted to bring lectures and pretzels.  I had no choice but to ease her out but how to do it?  Machiavelli took over.  I drafted a constitution and created a new position, Executive Vice President.  The new constitution reduced the role of the duly elected Vice President to being in charge of refreshments and transportation.  At the first meeting of the year, I had the club vote to ratify it.  It was unanimous save one vote: that’s right, Molly Talbot.  Nobody else had taken the time to read the thing but her.  After it passed, I immediately named one of my friends Executive Vice President and the coup was complete.  That Molly was now in charge of refreshments, the thing she objected to the most, was sweet irony.  We had pizza at every meeting, much to Molly’s chagrin.  I have to wonder how she is doing now.