"Then, of course, there was the scene in math class, when Grassl walked up to the chalkboard to prove to his teacher that he had just miscalculated. One classmate said his confidence came across like snobbishness.
At the start of 12th grade, he translated a magazine into Latin -- the music charts, the ads, everything -- just for fun. "
He was a bright kid, whose energies lost focus, and apparently his brightness went unappreciated.
I think that this is more common than not. I live in a large city (L.A.) ... but worked and goofed off for a couple of years in a TINY town only a few blocks long. Most residents either liked or coped with small town life ... but those who didn't were miserable.