I recently spoke at the Autism Society of Minnesota. It was a good experience, overall, and I think the audience enjoyed the presentation. When I speak, I never know how well things went, but my wife noticed the comments people made because she was sitting in the audience. AuSM has…
The Autistic Me
This coming weekend is supposed to remain below 0F, with some areas of Minnesota experiencing a windchill of -50F or worse. Sponsors have canceled a major skiing competition due to safety concerns. It was deemed too cold for ice sculptors to work on the famous Winter Carnival attractions in St.…
This is a rant, based on exchanges elsewhere… One of the unavoidable aspects of writing and speaking publicly about autism is that I am certain to offend someone with nearly every sentence I type or speak. I have been told I don’t know “anything at all” about autism or its…
I am scheduled to speak at a workshop sponsored by the Autism Society of Minnesota on January 23, 2008, in St. Paul. If anyone cares to meet me and hear me ramble about university students with autism spectrum disorders, this is a good opportunity. (Visit http://www.ausm.org for more information.) The…
Today the media are reporting an analysis of autism rates in California since the removal of thimerosal from most vaccines. The autism rate, or more accurately the rate of diagnoses, is still climbing in the state. Study challenges drug’s role in autism By Jia-Rui Chong, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer…
I am definitely a hypersensitive individual — physically (and emotionally). The cold weather of Minnesota forces me to wear more clothes, including hats, gloves, and even a face mask at times. Thermal pants for the windchill are also required some mornings. I itch. I scratch. I get annoyed. It’s like…
November 29, 2007, was a lousy day. I did poorly, very poorly, on an exam in statistics. The damage to self-esteem was fairly deep. I’m not supposed to do poorly on any test, in any class. I’ve seldom done well with written tests — it is painful to write for…
In the last two weeks, I spoke at two universities, prepared two elaborate brochures, and continued analyzing research dealing with online communities and autism. To be blunt: I’m exhausted. And yet, tonight or tomorrow I will submit another proposal to present my research to a conference. Though I am tired,…
I missed some school deadlines. I know excuses are inexcusable, and being even a week or two off schedule bothers me. But, the last few weeks have been miserable. New Glasses. I’ve never worn prescription glasses before, but I ended up needing them to deal with some strange color separations…
My original intention was to seek a doctorate to develop better digital writing tools for students, without specializing in autism or other special needs. Right now, it seems I’m heading towards disabilities and writing. I wish I could educate far more teachers on developmental disorders and brain injuries so we…