are you the black sheep of your family, and why

[Tismine]

Yes. They don't understand how I can work frantically in the kitchen for hours to bake a perfect cake, and then give it away to whomever looks like they need it. They're confused my extreme selflessness and overbearing selfishness. They question how someone so intellegent can be so stupid. They don't get me at all...I don't understand them, either, for that matter. It's easy to deal with, though. When in their presence, I behave how they expect me to. I'm not unhappy, they leave me to breathe in my books, and soothe butter into flour.

[badteccy]

Yes, but not so much for the way I dress. For my mom's side I don't really know why...but for my dad's it's because I didn't go to a hotsy tostsy school and probably because I haven't gotten into any trouble, as everyone else seems to have done...asses.
I also have very different ideas and I am perfectly happy being a democrat and not going to an Ivy League school

[DarkWinter]

It's simple with me...I don't believe in going with the flow. I most always go against the grain. Life's too short to follow others and become sheep.

[Subphonic]

Traditionally black sheep were basically sacrificial as they were more susceptible to disease, if your black sheep died then you checked out all your others.

Moving on from farming, quickly.

I pretty much come from a family of black sheep: My dad is the struggling artist who always slighty disappoints the catholic(ish, ie. at Christmas) grandparents and my mum is the intellectual in a family who refused to watch the BBC as it was "too posh", my parents don't talk, funnily enough. Then there's my sister who was dressed up as a doll by my grandparents as a kid but eventually shaved all but one tuft of (green) hair off whilst stoned and ran away with some (genuine, as in Romany) Gypsies, now settled with kids, outside of wedlock of course.

[invaders_say_ni]

Well, there's the obvious "I dress different than all of them" thing, but I'm not really going to count that. I refuse to drink or do drugs, especially since it pretty much just creates more problems if you don't use them responsibly. I'm an artist, suck at sports, refuse to do anything more athletic than DDR, and don't own my own ATV or dirt bike. Nobody on my dad's side likes to read. Oh, and I'm pretty accepting of minorities, while my aunt still thinks that anyone who isn't exactly like her and her kids is "OMGTEHDEVIL."

edit: basically yes.

[Draconysius]

Much in common with Invaders, being a black sheep in my family goes far beyond my appearance. For one thing, I'm not blatantly *ahem* racist. I also like to keep to myself, while the rest of the family is quite outspoken.
I also have no interest in NASCAR or the local news.

[izCloudy]

It dawned on me that I might be the current black sheep just now and this is what came up in Google. I have at least one reputation shattering incident in my past. I live in a neighborhood where people get shot. I haven't been doing a very good job of staying employed. I have a salmonella infested gecko for a pet. All of my close friends are considered to be "bad" by my immediate family members. All of my immediate family members are married and working as teachers. I'm adopted so it could be that it was genetically inevitable that I would end up a little different. It was not my plan though...

[Jaye Jang]

Yes -- but mainly because I'm so normal compared to the rest of my family. (Now you know how weird the rest of my family is. Told you I had a rather twisted childhood).

[SweetJane]

NO. The black sheep of my family told his mom that he was going to sign up for the army and put on the front lines in Iraq (we assume to get away from his wife and children). His mom (my aunt) told him she'd start worrying when all of his papers were submitted. He was previously kicked out of the Navy, so I don't know how well that would have gone down.

I'm not the black sheep, but so far I sometimes feel like the fuck-up kid in my household.

My brother is extremely Gen-x, and currently makes more money than my mom (who I think makes slightly more money than my father). He's a geologist who overcame his dyslexia and has a condo in pheonix.

I'm uh... I don't fit in with most other gen-yers, but that's not so bad... but I'm sitting here as an art student who just totalled her car as a result of a bad reaction (the worst panick attack/mood swing I have EVER had) from her anti-depressants.

I mean, I have a real plan to get my shit together, and my brother is 30 and I'm 19... but christ, my brother never fucked up the way I have. That and my brother was mad at me for "smoking" with my parents, which is bullshit in itself.

Anyway. I'm a little fucked up, but I'm not the black sheep.

[Saya]

I'm not the black sheep, most of my family either doesn't talk to us because of my parents' divorce or just fear for my immortal soul, but there are family members who are worse (like my uncle who's trying to disprove once and for all there is no God), so I'm never singled out. Mom's just afraid I'll go on a hunger strike or get arrested for protesting or die of protein deficiency, while dad thinks I'm just a little nutty but might be on to something.

[Apathy's_Child]

Nope. My family think I'm awesome.

[Ophelia's Snorkel]

My family actually call me their Black Sheep. It's something that's easy to pass off as a joke or term of endearment if I express any distaste for it. However, I don't get into trouble, have a terrible reputation, end up in and out of criminal court...you get the picture. It is solely a reaction to my appearance and my rejection of their religion.

They'd honestly rather have me committing terrible acts in my Sunday best - it's easier for the family to hide "unpleasant" things that way.

[SiouxsiePernova]

No, as I have a wonderful relationship with all of the members of my immediate family.

[Catch]

I'm different from my family, but not the black sheep. Most of my family respects me and often thinks I'm doing better than I really am. It makes things hard so I avoid big family gatherings. Of course one of the problems is related to chronic depression. Yah, they think I'm cool but I'm usually closed off.

[creature6]

i enjoy being the black sheep of my family.

[Jaye Jang]

LOL Creature6, that just made my day. Which means I should post this on THAT thread. Oh, now I'm so confused. Nothing worse than a confused black sheep.

[creature6]

[CallMeDeth]

No, because despite our obvious philosophical differences (I'm an existentialist/nihilist and they're more or less agnostic and mainstream), we mostly have an understanding between each other to respect our differences, except for my jesus-loving older sister who thinks that I'm probably going to hell. I usually do, however, have some problems being understood by my parents for the reasons behind my decisions to be a musician, paint my nails black, watch horror movies all the time, and reading anything but mainstream (read predicable) literature.

[Lady_Alyce]

I guess that I'm considered the 'black sheep' in the family. I'm the total oddball when it comes to my family and we had a shakey relationship up til about two months ago.
My mom even presented me with a stuffed animal that was a black sheep. She also gave me a matching eye mask to go with it.

[Ben Lahnger]

I'm the green Quetzalcoatl in my family ...

because I will it to be so.

[creature6]

[vindicatedxjin]

Yes. I think the only reason is because my mom married my step dad and had two kids with her...so they were more of a happy family while I was the one who was usually feeling left out... I was half-asian and didn't know my father and they were so close...so I always felt like they would be happier and better off without me.... I felt more comfortable staying with my grandparents because they made me feel like I belonged somewhere. I also was the only one who liked art, playing instruments, and back when I was younger....gothic fashion.... so that made my family think that I was kinda wierd..even though they were merely close minded. I'm still considered the black sheep till this day because I moved out without telling anyone last year and ended up pierced and tattooed. Anywhoo...yah...

[Lord Wotton]

Not of my extended family who accept me for who I am however I managed to sit through an hour of my mum and step dad talking about how my lifestyle and choices are unnatural in the most ignorant and bigoted way I've heard.

In my mind anyway, they are the black sheep of MY family.

[carakitty]

Originally Posted by Solumina

Nope, my family loves me even if they do think me a bit eccentric

Yup, took the words right out of my mouth.

[Still Jack]

No. Not really.