NeurobeautifulI’ve learned that “How are you?” is usually meant as a greeting, not a question. But if I give a trite answer, and the person responds by repeating the question a second time – slower, with emphasis – then I know it’s truly a question.
That’s when it gets complicated.
Many autistic people experience “alexithymia,” …
I’m terrified of improvisation, so I often spend more time preparing for things than actually doing them. It feels like building a staircase into the sky – I could attempt to fly, but falling is so painful that it isn’t worth the risk.
As a teacher assistant, I sometimes have to substitute for absent teachers. …
Musicals feel like heaven to me, because they portray a world that solves some specifically autistic problems.
For example, I’m not great at reading between the lines to figure out a person’s true intentions. Musicals solve this through solo songs that reveal exactly what the character is thinking and feeling.
Also, the real world has …
Writing clarifies my thoughts. Talking feels messier.
When I’m drafting a post, I often ramble a bit before stumbling on the main idea. Then I delete the first half of the draft, move the last sentence to the beginning, make some final adjustments, and post it. I usually continue to tweak it even after it’s …
“Are you okay?”
Whenever a stranger asks me this, my brain silently says, “No, I’m not. You’ve caught me in a startled state, only halfway recovered from an overwhelming moment. I’m trying to regain my sense of balance, as if I was spinning and suddenly stopped. Finding words right now feels like dizzily trying to …
“Just pick up the phone, it’s so much more efficient!”
It’s true that phone calls are more efficient if you’re measuring from start time to finish time, since most people don’t reply immediately to email. But if you’re measuring by overall time spent, then phone calls take longer for me because of all the steps …
I think that all summer camps should have a designated “un-camp” zone, where any camper may go at any time.
So, what would that look like?
Camp is a boisterous crowd, where kids are bombarded by noise and water activities. Un-camp would be away from the action, maybe a sunny clearing in the woods.
Camp …