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…
Tag: Minnesota
For a graduate course in curriculum, we have been asked to experiment with “mind mapping” software. I believe any organizational tool might help autistic students. They probably help most students. As my previous post reflects, I’ve never been comfortable with such maps personally, though I realize many people find the…
Some weekends are long, even when they technically aren’t that bad. They just seem to pass slowly, while I get nothing accomplished. We have a bathroom to finish. It’s tiled, almost. It is usable. But unfinished. I don’t know why I am so exhausted by the weekends, but I am.…
Before school started, my wife and I purchased a bright yellow 49cc scooter that qualifies as a moped in Minnesota. This has a number of benefits, not the least of which is that you can park a moped in a bike rack legally, while a motorcycle must park in a…
I need routines, and this school year (as well as the move to the Midwest in general) has already been playing havoc with my routines. Plus, I simply don’t like the claustrophobia I am experiencing in the city. Today was tough. I held on as long as I could, but…
Having recently moved into our new house, I am finding it as overwhelming as anyone else might. Yet the things that bother me most are probably not the things that would worry most people. 1) Sounds. The house sounds different. The new new ceiling fan buzzes, lights in the basement…
We are in the process of moving, which is overwhelming for most people. In my case, it’s physically and emotionally debilitating this week. I am exhausted just thinking about all the productivity lost during the last year… and now I will lose at least another year. Worse, I know this…
I like my routines. Actually, predictability and safety are what I like. It isn’t that I follow the same routine every day, just that I like to have things available to me in case I feel stressed. I want my radio programs at the times I expect. I hate it…
Thursday I was fortunate enough to attend a Minnesota Public Radio forum on autism with Prof. Roy Richard Grinker, one of America’s leading anthropologists and the grandson of one of our greatest psychiatric minds. I won’t pitch Grinker’s book Unstrange Minds, beyond writing that anyone interested in autism and the…
I wasn’t even thinking about writing on or talking about my story until I arrived in Minnesota. Here’s one reason that changed: “You’re not really helping anyone if you become some sort of activist or motivational speaker.” I wasn’t sure how to respond. A professor was suggesting I not tell…