OK, here we go. I weirdly enjoy hearing about how other people with autism cope with it, and their life experiences. Makes me realise I'm not alone! (Warning: As is usual with me, long post incoming.)
I've always been fairly open about being autistic, though weirdly, not being open about it helped me get a job with Sainsbury's back in 2013. Yeah, no idea how that worked when I was told that if I'd mentioned it on the job application, it wouldn't have made a difference, though my past experiences make me think differently.
My parents thought something was a bit different about me from when I was very young. For example, there was only one kind of baby food I'd eat, which caused a problem when it became difficult to get hold of. So cue Mum going all over Birmingham to try and find it! Another one was the difficulty they had in getting me to eat, of all things, potatoes. How was it done? Well, I used to watch Countdown quite a bit when I was younger, often while standing on my head. Don't ask.
Mum got me eating Alphabet Letters, eventually replacing the letter I with just straight chips, before then showing me what was in them. This process took about a YEAR. I've also become better with eating different vegetables over the past couple of years - for ages, I'd only eat carrots. Still won't touch salad, though, so ordering burgers can be a challenge at times. Can't wait for Maccies to actually properly allow you to make your own burger.
I was finally diagnosed with Asperger syndrome in December 2003 when I was 11 years old. Finally, I had an answer as to why I was a bit weird. I sometimes find noisy environments challenging to deal with, so investing in some noise-cancelling headphones last year was an absolute game-changer. Using ordinary earbuds when I'm out and about now just feels so wrong. I thrive on routine, so the current state of affairs in the world makes things rather challenging, though working in a retail environment since September 2013 has really helped, especially knowing that anything can change quickly.
On the subject of work, getting this job with Sainsbury's was a real game-changer. I'd just moved up to Staffordshire with my parents, who rightfully pressured me into getting a job after I'd dropped out of uni. Somehow got something with Sainsbury's on the clothing department, which wasn't my first choice, but I enjoyed it. After a few changes in team leader, I finally ended up with someome who was excellent and started to help me properly develop. (She'd joined the store after me and was promoted ahead of me, but I didn't really care. She was better than me anyway.) I was left in charge of the department when she was away on a couple of occasions, with a list of things that needed to be done on each day. The first time, everything was all done. The second time? I walked into the clothing cage on the Friday morning to see everything for that week had already been done, aside from a delivery that wasn't due until the following day. I had to quickly think of something to do that day, so I decided to sort through the clothing cage, which hadn't been done for a very long time.
I'm not too keen on crowds, and have come close to panic attacks on one or two occasions, most notably back in November 2016 when I was crossing Westminster Bridge in London with Mike on a Saturday evening. Having said that, my head was all over the place due to my grandmother having died a couple of days previously, and I hadn't had the chance to properly process everything that was going on. I don't know how I manage in theme park queues, though having people to talk to and a phone does often help. Plus I can deal with noise and crowds at concerts OK as well.
Changes in plans is something I've never been able to deal with well. I like to know exactly what's supposed to be happening at any point in time. When I did the Tube Challenge in 2017 and then in 2018, I had a plan set out to an insane degree, but knew there was the potential for it to go wrong. We missed out by three stations in 2017 due to a few factors, most notably a jobsworth bus driver for a connection we needed to make, but JUST completed it in 2018 - the sticking point was because of a signal failure on the District line at Earl's Court, which if you know the Tube is THE single worst place for a signal failure to occur on that line! We (myself and Mike) tried the Paris Métro challenge in November, which involved a lot more thinking on our feet due to not knowing the network as well as London and also because of some wonderful protests from the
gilets jaunes closing several stations. Despite all that, we managed to get over 90% of the stations on the network, which we were very proud of. Plus we helped to raise a chunk of money for charity, so it's all good!
I've been a fan of Formula 1 (to the extent that back on TTF, my username was 'formula1fan' - I decided to use my real name on here as a chance for a fresh start on a new site) for about 18 years. I just randomly happened upon it one Sunday morning in 2002 when I turned the TV on and thought 'Ooh, this looks interesting'. A couple of years later, it was my specialist subject when I appeared as a contestant on Junior Mastermind! I didn't win - I finished last in my heat - but I loved the experience. Dealing with failure is something I've never found easy, but I coped with that fairly well. I managed to work out that in the heats, I got the seventh-highest score out of the 20 contestants in the series, and the highest score of anyone who finished last in their heat. The heat I was in was the second one to be filmed, but because it was so much closer than the one filmed first, they just swapped the transmission order around. I was the first contestant in my heat, so I kinda claim I was the first-ever contestant on Junior Mastermind. I'm clutching at straws with that one, though.
I'm also a huge fan of the Eurovision Song Contest, to the extent that I can recall the running order of each final since 2011, and the semi-finals since 2016.
Understanding my emotions has often been tricky, especially when I started questioning my sexuality shortly after my 19th birthday. Growing up in the church, I'd been taught that homosexuality is unnatural and wrong, so knowing I was something I'd been led to believe was wrong really ruined my mental state for a long time, and I still find things very tricky, especially given I'm still not out to my family. How on earth I've managed to keep it hidden for this long baffles me, but I do think my parents know and are waiting for me to come out to them, which is a position that I do respect.
Theatre is another love of mine. I've seen a number of productions over the years, but my two favourites are 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time' and 'Dear Evan Hansen'. I read the novel of the former play, and thoroughly enjoyed it due to how I was able to identify with the central character on a number of levels. It being turned into a play was a wonderful thing, and I saw it about four times. Seeing different facets of myself being acted out in front of me was wonderful, yet uncomfortable at times, though I guess that's one of the main purposes of theatre. As for DEH? Well...That musical pulled me through so many emotions during the show that I've never experienced before. Sitting in one of the boxes RIGHT by the stage helped me connect with it in a way I've never known in any other show. It's so amazingly relatable, yet also uncomfortable as well, and there were several themes that have crossovers with my autism and homosexuality. The novel, which was written to accompany the play, makes more obvious references to the main character possibly being autistic. The show's apparently being made into a film, and I'd hope that they try to incorporate elements of both the show and the novel together when it comes to shooting it.
Finding friends has always been tricky, especially with moving around the country quite a bit, but I feel so lucky to have settled in Cheshire now. My church has a number of people of a similar age to me, which really helped me settle into the area. And as for TST? Well, if it weren't for this site, I wouldn't be where I am now, and I truly mean that. I feel as though I've become a much more well-rounded human being, and have done so many things that I never would've thought I'd do several years ago. I've travelled across Europe, I've learned a lot about history, I've learned more about social situations that my parents never taught me...And more seriously, I've come to terms with who I am. I cannot thank you guys enough for the support you've given me over the years since I became more active and started attending meets. It's amazing how much something of a snap decision to travel over 300 miles on my own to meet people I'd only known online for a few months has changed my life. Thanks, everyone.