Last night I cooked dinner for one of my work colleagues, his wife, and their son, 16, who has Asperger's. Today, the colleague told me it was interesting to watch the interaction between me and his son. He put it something like: I got a kick out of watching the bandwidth you two had. I told my colleague that his son seemed pretty normal to me, which got me a bemused "Yeah, well...." response. So, I asked him if his son interacted much with other people, and the guy said, "No, but he seems to relate to you." Go figure. (The son is the only certified Asperger person I've met in real life. Although there are some others I suspect....) I don't think I have a really good sense of how I come across to people.
What did you make to eat, Energeia?
Baked chicken, seasoned with butter, parseley, oregano, salt, pepper, and cumin; mashed potatoes (the aspie(s) really went for those), cranberry sauce, salad, and molasses cookies, which I actually baked myself.
I have a limited cooking repertoire.
Beautiful.
Your repetoire doesn't sound limited to me.
I need to check the dictionary for the meaning of limited! wow! :wink: :lol:
Well, I've got the chicken dish, and various pasta dishes, and pork chops, and quiche, and that's about it. Oh yeah, rice. :lol:
a real feast, I'd say :smile:
I want to go to Energeia's house for dinner! :grin:
It sounds divine.
And now I must ask more about your interaction with this young man with Asperger's...
Does he remind you of anyone else you've met?
Did YOU feel the "bandwidth" between the two of you that his father sensed?
How about these other people you've met whose dx is unknown to you but whom you suspect are also aspies? Do you "click" with them?
What traits would lead you to think someone was an aspie?
I am a nosy little b****, I admit, but this is such an interesting opening statement. If the questions are too personal, you can just lull me into complacency with another menu... :smile:
Hi CBC--see below
And now I must ask more about your interaction with this young man with Asperger's...
Does he remind you of anyone else you've met?
***I don't know him well enough to say. He actually seemed pretty normal to me! I'd actually met him once before, when he was 12 or 13--he and I got into a competition about "states and capitols." Hmmmm...
Did YOU feel the "bandwidth" between the two of you that his father sensed?
***No--as I said, he seemed pretty normal to me. Perhaps my standards for "normality" are off???
How about these other people you've met whose dx is unknown to you but whom you suspect are also aspies? Do you "click" with them?
***Yes. I like people who are intense and focussed. And straightforward!
What traits would lead you to think someone was an aspie?
***I'd wonder about it if someone seemed really linear, focussed, intensely interested in a small number of things, doesn't do "chat", other people think the person is weird, I get along with them when others don't--that kind of thing.
I am a nosy little b****, I admit, but this is such an interesting opening statement. If the questions are too personal, you can just lull me into complacency with another menu... :smile:
***No problem--another aspie trait is asking potentially socially inappropriate questions--I do it all the time (and, btw, this doesn't apply to your questions) :smile: :grin:
Wow, you can make quiche! I would love to be able to make it!
Slightly more on topic, one of the things I love about being with my HFA nephew is that I don't have to try and figure out what he's feeling - it's just obvious. It finally makes sense how NTs do that with each other!
(He's also my little canary - he'll reliably freak out in overwhelming situations about five minutes before I do. So if he starts kicking off then I know I have enough time to grab him and run!)
Hi Energeia, thanks for taking the time. "Intense, focussed and straightforward"---reminds me of someone I know! He seemed odd to me at first but he grows on me. As for my own standards of normality, I guess they must be off too, because I seem pretty normal to myself & am often surprised by the feedback I get from my more conventional friends.
Socially inappropriate questions... :smile: I went to a cookout at about age 35, old enough to have some manners, and insulted 2 people within about 15 minutes! Around people I know well, I know how to be tactful, but in new situations I tend to be rusty. Then I'll think, "I just need to get out more." Hard to tell cause from effect!