Guess what! My neighbor just told me a story about how people like you (he’s never met you, he’s just generalizing) are stupid, lazy, and probably shouldn’t even exist. You really want to hear all about it, right?

No?

What if I approach it differently, and say, “My neighbor said the most horrible thing about people with autism yesterday, you would not believe it! He actually said ___________! Isn’t that disgusting?! I’m so grossed out!” Continue Reading

 

The first time I suspected I was autistic was after reading an article about how visual thinking can make writing difficult. I was 27 years old and immediately recognized my lifelong troubles with writing, especially fiction–trying to translate the vivid movie in my brain into descriptive language is painful, frustrating, and takes a long, long time.

I told my best friend at the time, a woman younger than me but much better traveled, both literally and socially. She raised her eyebrows and said, “I don’t think so. The people with autism that I’ve known are way worse.” Continue Reading