Salvete, Autismi!

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(I think that's the word for Autism in Latin...)

I am a math student at the University of Toronto, and I think I have Asperger's Syndrome, according to what I have read about it, and what my friends have told me. I realized this just recently, but I don't have much of a reaction to it--I like it just fine. I like the fact that I have particular interests and talents that makes me unique, but am not really bothered by not interacting well. I am probably improving on it, but it never bothered me much. That's probably because I'd rather play with Legos than play tag with other people.

My particular talents (and interests) include mainly math and art, although I do have interest in languages like Latin. I'm seeing a correlation between math and languages though--the algorithms used in languages, namely syntax and grammar are analogous to using mathematical algorithms. I've recently become interested in rollerblading as well, and is probably one of the only sports I don't completely fail at, even though I've fallen several times already. Like most people with AS, I am clumsy.

Like most people with AS, I have problems interacting with other people. This is because I am insensitive and don't understand people when they give me strange looks, or decide not to tell me anything. On the flip side, I learn to deal with emotional situations better and can think more rationally. I also say things without much emotion, and when I say something like being hit by a van, they think it's unusual. I can only learn to pick up on the way people interact socially by memorizing what people tell me about them. I do not feel what they feel. I'm also not bothered by being lonely, which is why not being able to make friends didn't particularly bother me. I'm virtually uninterested in having a love life or marrying. I don't understand love much either, but I see it as trouble more than something that's worthwhile. I've also been told that feeling love is not something I can control. I can't say that I've felt it though. I'm personally of the theory that my self awareness is so strong that it completely suppresses whatever other emotions I might have. Particularly around other people. It's just a theory though. I've also been jokingly called a robot because of being insensitive. A friend said she didn't like the label because it meant just being another carbon copy, but being a robot to me just means not understanding how people feel. I might be able to know what they feel, but can't feel it myself. Yet, I still consider myself unique.

I think I know where I got the robot label from. When I was 6 or 7, I used to watch Terminator 2 a lot. Watching it (and a few other movies not related to Terminator) further reaffirmed what I believed about emotions--that they prevented people from making rational choices. I used to do poorly at English because I could not understand how the characters felt or why they did certain things. Irrational things bother me.

I once had a neuropsychologist diagnose me for something related to a car accident, and he claimed that I "scored off the charts". I had difficulty believing him because I didn't think I was that smart. According to him, I beat some lawyers, professors, other university level students at some of thoses tests.

But nonetheless, I am still happy. I could not do this well or come this far without my interests and talents in mathematical logic and art.

As another side note--I am ambidexterous. Sort of. I taught myself to write with both hands.

Currently, I am probably going to get a teaching assistant position for mathematics with another autistic teacher who teaches a class of autistic students. I heard she was excited about having me because she doesn't teach math, and I have an interest in it and teaching.

Welcome!

I am very much the same way. Hope you find some good friends here!

Hello Angelus-Mortis

Welcome to WP

I can write with both hands also. Thw writing will look very similar with both hands, but i am a slower writer with my left hand than my right hand.

I trained my left hand to copy the handwriting style of my English teacher. Someone actually came by and remarked that my writing did look like my teacher's. If someone were to look through a binder of my notes, they'd notice that the handwriting on the left side of the page looks different from the one on the right side. Though I wonder if a handwriting analyst would be able to tell if the same person wrote it.

Welcome to WrongPlanet!

Heya. I like a bit of Latin meself, but usually from a book in ready-made phrases. The one in my signature is one of my mottos: "Life without books is death."

Mine says "You call it magic because it mystifies you. I call it beauty because I understand it."

Mihi placet te cognoscere!

(Is that correct?)

Your introduction was a fascinating read. I'm looking forward to seeing you post often.

"It moves me that you understand (me)!"

I think. Something like that? Although in a more literal translation, it would say something like "it moves to/for me".

Heh. I'd read that it meant the equivalent of "Pleased to meet you."

Encantada then. I actually do speak Spanish.

Well, cognoscere could be translated as to meet, and placere does have one meaning of to please (probably; I'll need to check up on my vocabularly again), so it would mean to meet. Besides, Latin sayings translated literally don't always translate to idiomatic English. For example, they say amabo te to mean "please", but translated literally, it means "I will love you (if)". It's the same with saying thank you; you say "gratias ago"; "I give gratitude", etc. I just translated cognoscere that way because it made sense in an autistic context.

Nice to meet you, Angelus-Mortis.

Welcome,

I see you are finding your way around.

Welcome to WP!

Tim