Exhaustion is winning. I’m tired. Call it burnout or fatigue or whatever else might fit. I cannot think clearly, I’m on edge, and I’m quite short-tempered with everything and everyone. I want a break. Time alone. Quiet time with minimal interactions with anyone… maybe no interactions at all. Before moving to…
Tag: isolation
LiveJournal, Yahoo Groups, Second Life, AIM (AOL Instant Messenger), Internet Relay Chat, and many other social and chat platforms have faded away over the years. Many of those spaces, particularly LiveJournal, once had supportive autistic communities. LiveJournal was where I found an autistic community that was okay. That was years…
As I mentioned in a recent podcast, I’m trying to engage more online and, once the pandemic passes, I hope to return to public speaking. (Virtual appearances are always an option, if your organization would like to hear my perspectives.) Some autistics are actively engaged in activism, with large numbers…
People are uncomfortable around me. I know that since I was in kindergarten or first grade. Research suggesting people form impressions of autistics within half a second doesn’t surprise me. I’m going to prepare a podcast on this topic, because I’m realizing the pandemic has somewhat freed me from trying…
Updating some notes on my life, for both personal reasons and to reconsider the aborted autobiography on life without knowing you are autistic, is depressing. A long list of personal and professional failings. Writing is my refuge, even though I haven’t made a career of it. When I get paid…
While many people seem eager for a “return to normal” as we shelter-at-home during the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m not ready for normal. The coronavirus situation only reinforces how comfortable my wife and I are not running around town or dashing about just to be doing something different. This isn’t to…
And so the “Coronavirus Disease 2019” (COVID-19) has led to the cancellation of my medical appointments (including a minor surgery) , the closure of our YMCA, an extended spring break for our daughters, runs on basic grocery items, a national toilet paper shortage (that isn’t real, but caused by panic),…
Midnight passed as I edited this post, trying to shape the words into something more eloquent. For as long as I can recall, I have worked late into the night on projects, seeming to think more clearly after dark in a relatively quiet setting. Yet, in these late night hours…
Hanging out with friends seems to be something that most of my Facebook “friends” do on a weekly basis. Some seem to be hanging out nightly. They are the social butterflies I sometimes envy, because social skills matter personally and professionally. I don’t get random emails, messages, or phone calls…
Countdown is 16 days. At this point, one finishes “just because” and for no other reason or purpose. After May, I hope — more than anything — to never set foot on campus again for any reason. I’ll even switch medical specialists if I can, to avoid being near campus.…