You can call me many types of names, and, on most, I won’t disagree, or even put up a fight. But one thing you cannot call me is stupid. In fact, I actually belong to an organization called Mensa, which purports to carry a membership of people in the top 2% of intelligence in the world.

To be totally and completely honest, I have never done anything with this membership. I’ve not attended a meeting, nor a social event. I’ve not voted or even interacted (knowingly) with any member. Nor have I (surprisingly enough) used my Mensa card for bragging rights. Less interesting is the fact that I am in Mensa, but the reason why I joined in the first place. And it was simply an act of revenge.

About 20 years ago, I dated someone that wasn’t exactly present in the relationship. He wasn’t abusive, he was absent. I served a limited purpose to him, and that was enough for him. He also once said, in not so many words, that I was too stupid to understand his job.

The day after we broke up (which wasn’t long after that comment), I began my plan of revenge. First, I researched and found the next testing date for Mensa in Rhode Island, and, after a two week wait and a three-hour test, was quickly accepted. Upon receipt of my card from the organization, I promptly took a photo and sent it to my ex.

Next, I took a course on how to “do what he did for a living” (some form of computer web programming that was far too dull to recall), and received a certificate of completion for the class, with a perfect score on all tests. Unsurprisingly, I also photographed and sent the certificate to my ex.

What does this say about me? Am I an intellect snob? Maybe. But one thing you should never call me, unless you want to incur my wrath, is stupid.

We should take care not to make intellect our god: it has, of course, powerful muscles, but no personality.

Albert Einstein