Hello all,
I'm 43 and still living with my parents in Cincinnati, Ohio. I was always told to do well in school, be smart, apply yourself and learn all you can. I have a Bachelor's degree in business and passed the CPA Exam. I also went to night school for HVAC - heating, ventilation and air conditioning.
So far I have done well (still living at home with a supportive family behind me). I own my own car and two motorcycles (and I work on them too). Nice computer with extra parts, stereo, TV, good number of CDs, DVDs and books. A couple of weeks ago (Feb. 1, 2010) I celebrated 5-years of cancer remission (bone marrow transplant cured Hodgkins Lymphoma Feb. 1 2005). For a pretty smart guy who can appreciate scientific stuff, this was fascinating (you might not like needles and throwing up, so I won't say more). I am grateful.
Several years ago, I was helping another computer geek dispose of old computer equipment. He suggested that I had Asperger's because he had it and recognized it in me right away. What he said made sense. (I've seen psychiatrists and the diagnosis of Asperger's never came up. Strange. And recently, Ritalin from my doctor had absolutely no effect.)
I really believe people are interested in what I say, even though they really are not. And sometimes I say detailed things without telling you what the broad subject is that I am talking about (or otherwise "off topic" things -- hurts, but it is true). I want people to like me, so I talk quite a lot. This means I do badly at job interviews. And my physical coordination has never been very good.
In written communication, I do well -- I back up and fill in the broad subject, then get specific.
I often have poor focus and multitasking skills (other times I am amazing). This shows up in different ways. I can troubleshoot spyware and Windows/linux software problems, but I cannot write a program (because I simply won't find where my error is) or understand how a network works. If I don't have a lot of time, I can brush my teeth while driving a manual transmission car with no problem, but when I get where I am going, a simple radio playing can almost destroy my concentration.
I have known about my poor focus since the age of 5, when we made little things with construction paper. Should I cut first, should I glue the one piece of paper onto the other, should I fold the paper first, or should I color the paper with my crayon before doing anything else?
Spending time considering the different options wastes time, like an under-powered computer trying to run lots of demanding programs all at once. This is probably why my life is so disorganized and my bedroom is a mess. And sometimes when I start a project, it can be more involved and take more time than I thought. I put my antenna on Photobucket (Renaissance_Man_1966), but don't yet have enough posts to put a link in this post.
Friends? Only a few. Social life? Very little. I'll probably never get married or have any kids, but I would like to learn coping skills to get better at these "people person" kinds of things. I need to seek out Asperger's resources and ways to improve myself.
I'll get a signature soon. The avatar will probably be me a few years ago, before chemo. I look the same now, just a little older and with a little more gray hair.
14 Feb 2010, 6:47 pm
