Once in a while, it’ll come up in conversation that I got a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. Sometimes people will respond with something along the lines of, “Wow, you must be really smart,” whereupon I respond by laughing myself into a coma while they back away slowly. Good times.

The truth is, I was never smart enough for chemistry. But I pursued it anyway—or more accurately, it pursued me. Here’s why.

Unlike other individuals in my Storytime series, my high school chemistry...