"I’m “exceptionalâ€- a democratic term used to avoid the damning labels of “gifted†and “deprived†(which used to mean “bright†and “retardedâ€) and as soon as “exceptional†begins to mean anything to anyone they’ll change it. The idea seems to be: use an expression as long as it doesn’t mean anything to anybody. “Exceptional†refers to both ends of the spectrum, so all my life I’ve been exceptional."