Ben is happy to put on his own socks, as long as we’re happy to wait. Obviously, such pleasures are meant to be savored, not rushed. Ben knows how to party. Sock On!
Ben Knows Socks
Ben’s Choices
Last week, I posted a link to A.F. Lutz’s Psychology Today piece that, in part, touches on the absurdity of severely autistic people like Ben and her son Jonah being expected to make major decisions about their lives. Of course,
Amy Fisher Lutz Bridges the Divide
As I (and others) have written repeatedly, higher-functioning autism self-advocates are among the least aware of what our severely autistic loved ones need and are capable of — because most of them have had ZERO first-hand experience with them. Writer
Mike Royko and the 4th of July — A Classic
Another exception to my autism-related blog posts — Dad’s Fourth of July column. It has been among my all-time favorites since I was nine. Happy 4th! Mike Royko 1968 Chicago Daily News Fourth of July Column It was early last
Fast Food Faster
When it comes to eating out (almost always at allegedly “fast” food places), Ben loves it. But that’s all he loves about it. What he cannot stand (and everybody in the joint usually knows it) is the prelude: Ordering, especially
Tenor Ben
You know Ben is in a good mood when he’s singing. It is ALWAYS at full-blast-fortissimo. He really loves to belt it out in big, resonant spaces – like the gallery rooms and massive atrium at the Cleveland Art Museum,
E, A and T are Ben’s Favorite Letters in “Easter”
A springtime check-in with our favorite Autistic young man, beginning with his favorite holiday, based solely on the candy-factor… and the removal of all the Easter basket grass is essential to finding each and every bit of the good stuff.
Maybe Next Year (World Autism Awareness Day 2019)
“Maybe Next Year” is a phrase seared into my Chicago Cubs-fan brain. It’s also what goes through my head on Autism Awareness Day year after year, as bits and pieces of hard data and promising factoids sprinkle down like pixie
Face Time, Haircut Time, Winter Time
Apologies for foisting my face upon you so many times here, but I just found that my phone seems to randomly snap stills of Ben’s videocalls to us, and what a pleasant surprise! Ben calls at all times of day,
Hit Me With Your Best Shot (This American Life)
A pleasant/unpleasant surprise… I just got word from This American Life that they’ll be re-running our episode from 2007, “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” (it comes in the second half-hour of the show, “Unconditional Love”), centered around Ben’s move