The West Coast: A Land of (Social) Opportunity for Aspies?

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I went to San Francisco 12 years ago, and had no problems.

Nevermind my original comment. I must've been tired or huffing glue to think Toronto was "west" by any definition of the term.

I live in northern California, in the countryside, better than the city. Couldn't imagine going back to the city where everyone knows what's going on in life.

I know this is a very old thread but I had to say my piece as well. I've always found the West Coast to be a very neurotypical place in its mannerisms and I agree with a couple of other posters on here that the West Coast is NOT a good place if you are an Aspie. I didn't find it to be a particularly tolerant place with respect to how people's thought processes are. There is diversity in race/religion/sexuality/etc. but not in individual thought. Having tons of ethnic restaurants and bars and all the hipster related businesses does not make a place more diverse or more enlightened. Spouting off political nonsense doesn't make a person smarter or more informed; they just parroted what someone else told them. The truly weird people are just weird by default and they don't blog or sing or brag on about how weird or diverse they are. Given that Aspies are naturally odd to most other people this does cause some tension and stress between the two groups and from what I've experienced social skills and politics factor into your success on the job or in your personal life much more out west than the East. No, I can't say that the West Coast is a land of opportunity for most Aspies, sorry to say.

In addition, to me most people on the West Coast and much of the western US have the same mentality; I would say that the thought process of someone in Southern California is basically the same as someone in rural Montana, for example (their personal mannerisms and some trivial political differences are the only real difference between them), so changing from one state to another out here doesn't really change much.

I lived in BC for most of my adult life, and left within a year of discovering my AS. It became clearer that I had been extending too much benefit of the doubt to my community. I have not had any social success here, though, except with another ex-west coast dweller of the extreme kind.

I moved to California before I ever even considered I was autistic. This place made it so much harder! The people here want way too much attention. I've done pretty well out here but it's because I isolate myself. Don't plan on moving out here and making a million new friends.

And don't think having money makes living in California so much better. It just gets you respect and attention you don't want. I used to be the guy in a Ferrari. Now I just stay home.

My first night in Hollywood, my friend's roommate kept me up for hours, trying to explain who he was, based on the car he used to drive. I remember that it was critical to his identity that he had not had a luggage rack on his trunk lid. I think he finally just gave up on the foreigner.

The best people in California are the Mexicans. 50-100% of what comes out of everyone else's mouth is bull s**t.