A Difficult Receipt Story

The day after I got back from New Hampshire, I went to Lake Lotawana with my brothers to see my grandparents, Uncle Todd, Aunt Laura, and cousins Abby and Eric, where I sold my aunt the receipt coasters she hired me to make and got paid fifty dollars for it. After a dinner of fries, brisket, and ribs, my granddad drove my brothers, cousins, aunt and uncle, and I on a boat ride. Over the next few days, I enjoyed my Lonely Planet Germany book, learning about many World War Two, East Soviet, and beer halls, going to Starbuck’s, and reading Water Touching Stone. The next Thursday I went to my art class and on the next Friday I worked from 4-7, getting a new Sweet Leaf Tea cap from my drink I bought with my dinner afterwards. Two days later I practiced my flute for half an hour, playing tunes from my Hobbit flute solo book. Afterwards I realized I probably ought to RSVP to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network Kansas City chapter July meeting on Facebook soon. I also remembered a promise I had made four months ago for after I sold my receipt coasters to my aunt, I would donate a portion of it to the memorial scholarship fund of a girl, and friend to the THRIVE program, Erin Hook, who died in a car wreck along with another female friend, Jennifer Reeder, also a supporter of the THRIVE program, as well as a portion of the money to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network. That night I donated $10 to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network and put in a section saying, “in honor of,” “Erin Hook and Jennifer Reeder.” That night I put up a post about it on Facebook, and later saw Barbara Mayfield commented saying, “I admire your selflessness, Ben.” Beth Rutt, the director of the Student Wellness and Recreation Center wrote, “Ben, you are a great example for us to pay it forward.” Despite people’s comments, I felt restless that night, pacing nonstop as I have many times throughout my life, mostly when younger. The couch no longer felt like a place I could sit on, and I felt so much better on the outdoor swing, reading my Lonely Planet Germany book while struggling to hold a flashlight to read it. But it was no go, and I continually paced until I finally felt able to go to sleep. The next morning, I found out I got 17 likes on that post about my donation, including from Abby, Dr. Downing, and my dad. I also practiced my flute for another half hour. That next night I made my donation to the Erin L. Hook Memorial Scholarship Fund, writing in the memo, “In honor of a champion of the disability community who helped coordinate events for her alma matter's THRIVE program for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities through the THRIVE formals of 2012 and 2013 and Zumba. May this legacy be carried on throughout the life of our world and let its champion, Erin L. Hook and her friend Jennifer Reeder, be recognized and rewarded in memory for her work to make this possible.” But as I saw Hook’s smiling face, so, full of life, which it was no longer. I made another Facebook post that night where I posted my tribute. That night was another night of constant pacing like I had not remembered for a while. I woke up the next morning, I saw my status had gotten seventeen likes again and Mary, a girl from the THRIVE program shared it, writing, “an example for us all." That night I went to Winstead’s, Barnes and Noble with my granddad before going to the Pathless Land, and got back feeling quite restless again, and quite some time to fall asleep. I awoke the next morning feeling my stomachache a bit and told my Mom I thought I ought to sleep in and didn’t feel able to go to my art class. She understood, and I slept until twelve, like I had so many times since coming home for the summer, when I felt better physically then. I got through the day much better without the need to pace and clicked “going” on the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network Kansas City chapter July meeting’s page.

A Retreat in New Hampshire

I woke up on the last Sunday of June with my brother Cam taking me to the Kansas City airport and caught my plane to Baltimore, where I read some of Water Touching Stone to pass the time. At the Baltimore airport, I got a Rolling Stone special issue on Michael Jackson (a man I’ve heard to be autistic) and an Essence magazine special issue on Maya Angelou. I also enjoyed an Arby’s brisket sandwich for lunch. I made it to New Hampshire where I met my grandmom and my mom and we drove down to the cabin in Mirror Lake where my mom and Dave, Uncle Andy and Aunt Marge, and I would stay. I met my mom’s cousin Rich there and got two new bottle caps for my collection from the drinks we got there. Later Dave and I canoed across Mirror Lake to the house where my grandmom, Uncle John and Aunt Nin were staying, where we enjoyed some kebabs cooked in Cajun spices cooked by my Uncle John. 

                The next day I went to Sandy Beach with my mom, Dave, Uncle Andy, Aunt Marge, Uncle Kurt and Aunt Barb and their children Kyley and Hunter, who I played with on the beach. When I got back, I found in my Lonely Planet West Africa book a festival in the Gambia that commemorates the countries slave heritage with music workshops, parades, and performances, a way I felt was good for Buddhists like me (assuming they, or I, have the money) to bear witness to people’s suffering. Later we all had salmon together while I got a new bottle cap from my drink and from Uncle Kurt and Uncle Rich. Then we all went and got ice cream together while I realized I might like to do a book of quotes from famous people with autism. 

                The next day I climbed Mt. Washington four an exhausting four hours with Mom, Dave, Uncle Kurt, Uncle John, Aunt Nini, Uncle Andy, Aunt Marge, and Uncle Rich. I saw two or three different kinds of birds, one of which I got a picture of, and a unique frog, which I also got a picture of. At the top I bought some Wonka gobstoppers, of mints. Then I saw a couple kiss and thought it was a nice thing to see. After that I got a bracelet made from parachute cord. I also made some paper airplanes from hot dog trays, which I realized I could give to Kyley and Hunter. On our way to dinner, I realized I may have enough time in my life to take several trips to a lot of the different African countries and spend a week or so absorbing some of the various places like Ouagadougou, Dakar, the Adrar, and elsewhere. We ate dinner at a pizza place where I saw a girl hug a guy and remembered what it felt like to be hugged by a girl like that, which I hadn’t felt for a long time, and decided I would experience that joy once more. I was also cut short from working on my travel plans to West Africa because of the moths everywhere, during which I spilled my beer in the dark after turning off all the lights planning to go to my room.

                The next morning, I started scooping up the bugs for the windowsills. Then I went with Mom and Dave to meet Uncle Andy, Aunt Marge, Uncle Kurt, Aunt Barb, Kyley, Hunter, Uncle John, Aunt Nini, Nannie, Uncle Rich, and Aunt Dixie down at Sandy Beach where I played with Hunter and lounged in a tube with a beer from where I got a new bottle cap, and we stayed there until it started to rain. When we got back, I scooped up all the dead bugs. Then I went with Nannie, Aunt Nini, and Aunt Dixie to an antique shop. Afterwards we ate steak at Uncle Kurt and Aunt Barb’s house where Aunt Nini gave me a new bottle cap, I made two bracelets for Kyley, and played with Kyley and Hunter.

                The next morning read until I paddle- boated into the center of the lake, joined halfway by Mom and met the rest of the family including Mom’s cousin Andy and his son, Morgan. We all had dinner later at the Wolfsboro Inn, before going out to ice cream. When I got back to the house I talked to Tyler, who told me how he had gone on a date with an actress friend of his.

                “Well, that’s good,” I said. 

  “But I want to find a girl who shares my pain,” he said.

                “Do you mean has special needs?” I asked.

                “Yes!” he said.

                “Tyler, that doesn’t matter too much. A girl could be good for you regardless of whether or not she has special needs.”

                But I knew exactly how Tyler felt. We would find a girl who was a true supporter of disabled people like ourselves, who could understand our struggles. Having the most beautiful or popular girl could not possibly replace having a girl who supported me through the struggle.

             I read some more of my Lonely Planet book when I heard my mom, sitting at her computer say, “Ben, guess what?”

                “What?”

                “Your friend, Ian Sneid: he’s going to UCM next year!”

                My heart leapt. 

                “That’s great!”

                The next day I went with my mom into town where I went to the Country Book Seller and got Buddhist Boot Camp and Lonely Planet Guides to China and Germany (the former because I accidentally tore a page in it). Then I got a chocolate and caramel covered cookie in a candy store next to the bookstore. On our way back home, my mom said she thought it was a good idea for me to do my autism books and told me that the Autism Asperger Publishing Company is in the Kansas City area. 

                When I got back, I read a lot more of Buddhist Boot Camp. We went over to Aunt Nini’s and Uncle John’s house where I read it some more, found another Snapple cap, got a new bottle cap, and realized that even if we spent more on autistic people by providing them services, the fact is statistically we commit less crime so in ways, we will always spend less on autistic people. That night it rained so the Wolfsboro Fourth of July parade was postponed until the next day. 

                The next day my mom, Dave, Uncle Kurt, Aunt Barb, Kyley, and Hunter saw the fourth of July parade before going to the airport and making our way home, with Kyley giving me a small friendship bracelet before we left. At the first airport I looked on my Facebook on my phone and found out I had been invited to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network Kansas City chapter’s July meeting at the Plaza Library on the 21^st, and thought I ought to go. On the ride back, in which Jamie drove us home, I talked to Tyler, who called earlier that day. When I got home, I called Hen House and found out I was scheduled for the next Friday from 4-7. 

Questions and Answers

On the day after we got back from Colorado, I pulled some weeds and the mowed the lawn.  Then I went to Starbuck’s and read (reread) where I left off in Water Touching Stone.  I also e-mailed Elizabeth to ask her if she could give me a ride to the Camp Encourage panel in Lawrence.  Dave’s brother-in-law Kent came to see us who he was staying with while in town for his Skills USA, and we all had dinner.  I was also asked over Facebook by Elise Johnson Chaplain from Horizon to answer some questions on Buddhism for a class she’s teaching for her MSW, which was due on Friday, which I gladly agreed to do.  I also got a call from Jack inviting me to see Shakespeare in the Park on Saturday, which I agreed to do.  In a week we would also be going to New Hampshire to see my mom’s family, and I would get up on Friday to catch a plane at 4:50.

                The next day I got an e-mail from Elizabeth saying she was rather swamped but telling me that she could come pick me up on Wednesday morning and take me to camp to volunteer with her at camp that day, then to stay at an apartment of a friend of hers, where we would sleep on couches, go to camp and volunteer the next morning before the panel, and afterwards go to her Bible study in Lawrence before going back to the apartment, and going home the next morning.  I of course agreed and e-mailed Mrs. Johnson to tell her I would need the questions by today or tomorrow to do them in time.  The next morning I pulled several acorn trees and later I went to Starbuck’s.  Later I answered the questions on Buddhism for Mrs. Chaplain and e-mailed them to her.  I also talked to Tyler.

                The next morning Elizabeth picked me up and told me one of her favorite shows Switched at Birth took place in Mission Hills.  I went with Elizabeth to pick up her friend Angela, who I met and found to be very nice, as Elizabeth said.  We went to Camp Encourage, where I helped a few kids from one group of campers make stress balls, and then another group with making slime.  Then I switched to helping the next group of kids make stress balls and then slime.  During that time I got to meet Kelly, who was in charge of the camp as well as a young blonde counselor Cassidy.  After the last group of kids had left, Elizabeth, Angela, and I cleaned up the mess.  Afterwards we all ate dinner together and then we went to the LLC Room where we sat in a circle, accompanied by two interactive musicians and kids played with maracas, tambourines, and percussion instruments and we sang Red by Taylor Swift, Baby by Justin Bieber, God Bless My Underwear, and Baby Shark.  Afterwards I had smores with several campers where I saw Matt who worked with Sean and I at the JCCC Autism Spectrum Support Group and who I got caught up on my recent activity.  Afterwards, a small camper, no more than ten years old, came to me “Do you have autism?”

              “Yes.”  I said.

“What do you do about your autism?”

“Well I’ve had help when I was younger and it helps me live my life.”

“Do you still have autism?”

             “Yes.”  I said.

“What will happen when I grow up?”

“Well, when I was younger I found the right supports and that helped me navigate in my life.”

“Are you ever gonna get married?”

“I hope so.”  I said.

He asked me these questions some again, and I gave him the same answer.  Then told me that when he grew up he wanted to teach kids with severe autism, and as Angela and I cleaned up the instruments and a counselor beckoned him to leave, he said, “Nice to meet you.”  Elizabeth and I then dropped Angela off back at her house and then we got a bite to eat at Shake and Steak where I insisted on paying for her meal to reimburse her for her gas money, and after making my case several times, she accepted that.  We got back and we saw Switched at Birth.

The next day we got breakfast and then helped set up the tie-dye work station, where I helped one kid make a tie-dye t-shirt, then dyed one for another kid who was allergic to dye, and then helped the next two groups.  Later Elizabeth and I got together outside the LLC room before the panel and found a young man sitting on one of the couches.

“Hi, I’m Nathan.”  He said.

                Elizabeth and I introduced ourselves and then at 2:30 we went in and I anxiously readied myself for the panel.  Finally, the first group, accompanied by Kelly and a young dark-haired neurotypical girl came in.  After being asked, “how do I define autism,” I was asked, “What has been the biggest challenge in your life?”

                I said, “Even though I have the social skills to have successful interaction with people, whenever I meet people, friends, romantic interests, I often wonder if they will be mature enough to understand what I’ve been through, what I’ve had to do, and how I’ve had to grow up at an early age because of my life with autism.”

                At this Kelly was in tears and the young counselor teared up as well.  As the next group came in, I told them about how people in my life have not always been able to truly understand myself as an autistic person or my struggle and I said, “One girl, who once* had a romantic interest in me seemed to try and show she was just like me by saying on Twitter how she loved getting movies on Netflix.  I’m thinking ‘that’s not an autistic thing!’  You can’t even get your stereotypes right!”

                Everyone laughed.

                The next group came in and I told them, “Sometimes I would like a girl while not knowing how she felt about me, and therapists would say, ‘you just don’t understand non-verbal social cues,’ and that was a real oversimplification of it.  Several kids nodded in agreement and said, “I know just what you mean,” and, “I’ve had the same thing happen to me.”  Afterwards one girl at the camp said to me, “Thank you!”

The next group came in and I told them how when I was in school, despite being segregated in a special classroom, I felt that there was no help for me in school until my last days of sixth grade.  Afterwards, a woman approached me, saying she was a special education teacher, and asked how I felt there could have been more help for me.  I told her it would have been good if my school had better methods for behavioral correction, more ways for me to be a part of my school, and had helped me as I had bullies.

                After the last panel, the kid I had met last night came up to me and asked for my contacts so I could talk to him outside of camp, and I gave him my home and cell number and e-mail address.  Elizabeth and I went to dinner and a young kid greeted me from behind.  When he was out of earshot, Elizabeth whispered to me, “I think you’ve got a new admirer.”

                As Elizabeth and I were about to go to her Bible study, I said goodbye to Kelly and she thanked me for coming, saying I was so inspiring to the kids and would love for me to come back as a board member of the camp or a counselor to help see that things were going right.  I thanked Erin for letting us use her apartment and said goodbye to her.  I said goodbye to Cassidy and went up to the young kid who I talked to the last night and said goodbye to him and wished him luck on and gave him and vote of confidence for teaching children with severe autism.  Elizabeth and I then went to her Bible study and I met several friends of hers including Joey, Lydia, and Bethany.  We discussed a book called the story of Bethany, and it was quite illuminating.  Joey eventually said, “People are saying that we can’t help the people who are coming to this country because of limited resources and that it’s a political issue.  I think, no, it’s a Jesus issue.  I feel if Jesus was alive today, he would have fed these people.

                Afterwards we walked down to a Mexican restaurant, during which I learned Joey was graduating KU with a degree in Latin American studies, and later planned to work in Mexico.  At the restaurant, where I ordered a beer and a churro, after I found out they were out of fried ice cream, I told Joey about Lonely Planet, how it’s authors research hotels, sights, and restaurants there, and how he might enjoy that if he’s going down to Mexico, as many of its authors do that in junction with other work, such as one author who did a chapter on Mauritania while down there to research the accidental shooting of the president.  He liked that idea and as we were about to walk back to the church, he gave me his phone to send me a friend request through his Facebook page.  As we got to Elizabeth’s car, I suggested we come there other nights and she thought that was a good idea.  We got back to the apartment and watched more Switched at Birth before falling asleep.  We stopped by the McDonald’s drive-through and I paid for the two of us again to reimburse her for her gas money.  Afterwards I went to work and the next day Jack, his dad and I went to Shakespeare in the Park, where I got a Shakespeare Festival 2014 A Winter’s Tale button for my donation.  We sat in lawn chairs, enjoying beers, wings, ribs, baguette, and cheese, and for three tickets, one dollar per ticket, I enjoyed a fried Snicker’s bar, while we watched A Winter’s Tale.  Afterwards Jack’s dad asked me if I wanted to see this bench in the park erected in honor of Jack’s mom and I told him certainly.  We saw it before he drove me home and I got what little sleep I could before I would wake up for the airport the next morning.

*Stay tuned.  A link will soon be available to a transcript of my interview on my other blog www.autistdharma.com. 

Autistic Pride Day in Leadville

On the morning before our trip to Colorado, I did not sleep at all for some reason (that just happens sometimes I guess), but I realized that if a chapter of the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network is opening up in Kansas City, then it will be very close to the autistic social network/mutual aid society I started at JCCC and a similar organization that a friend of mine from high school started at Penn Valley, as well as Elizabeth’s group at KU (I thought), so they may be able to work together for their own mutual benefit.  I also remembered how Tyler said he thinks of me whenever he’s stressed as it makes him feel better.  We headed off to Colorado afterwards, and while we drove, I worked on my travel plans to Turkey.  I also got a new bottle cap for my collection from a drink at the gas station.  I also drove a little bit on the highway with some caffeine, during which time my mom taught me cruise control, and both she and Dave thought I drove really well.  

Next Wednesday would be Autistic Pride Day so I worked on a post for that holiday that was inspired by a post I had seen on Facebook called Thoughts from a Female Aspie.  We went to Whole Food’s where I got another bottle cap for my collection from a drink I got there.  Finally we made it to our home, which looked very different, and I could even see a stone patio and found several pebbles for my collection.  I saw that our bathroom had been almost finished.  I also got another new bottle cap for my collection from our drinks here.  Then Dave gave me new cell-phone charger.  After that I helped get my bed made. 

The next day Dave offered to pay me to pull the weeds from our patio after I finished meditating.  I also did fairly well with making eggs after some good pieces of bacon that Dave made.  He always makes good bacon.  Later I went to the recycling center with my mom and Dave, where I found two new bottle caps, one crown and one not, and then I helped them at the dump.  My mom and I got coffee and I got a lemon bar after that.  Then we went to pay the woman who remodeled our house, Sandra, and I went with my mom and Dave to help give her a feeling of appreciation by seeing more of the family whose house she helped remodel.  Indeed her neighborhood was very nice and clean, although the houses were by no means big.  Dave and I went to the taco truck outside Safe Way afterwards where I found several bottle caps lying around, including a new one for my collection and several for my wall fish.  I also got a new bottle cap from my drink they got me at Safe Way.  I drove back home so my mom and Dave could show me the way into town, which turned out to be a pretty easy drive.  I also met Elizabeth’s friend Kelly through e-mail inviting me to speak at the panel for autistic adults to the kids at her camp, Camp Encourage, after hearing of me from Elizabeth, and I accepted. 

                I got back and worked on my mandala made from plastic bags and realized how the words I make transcending sections of the mandala would give the piece a feeling of unity, just like my Drawing I teacher said intersecting shadow lines do in drawing, and how I will also have interesting and diverse pictures on there from all the different bags.  Then I worked on pulling the weeds until it started to rain and I went back inside and worked on my plastic bag mandala.  I also wrote in my bottle cap collecting journal.  I pulled more weeds until it was impossible to uproot any more of them and Dave thanked me for doing that.  Then I read about all the ruins along the Lycian Way and realized there seems to be all sorts of things right up my alley to do in all the different parts of Turkey.  I also realized that perhaps I may have had an influence on the Kansas Legislature’s willingness to pass a bill requiring some autism coverage with my testimony at the Kansas Legislature, which Elizabeth also attended.  After a dinner of pork chops and apple sauce that had some pieces of broken glass in It from the container breaking at Whole Foods, I worked on a belt made from plarn for my granddad for Father’s Day, and during that time I also realized that my blogging and other work may have prompted people to push for things such as the anti-bullying legislation, and they may have also prompted insurance companies to fear a broader autism coverage bill to be pass and prompted them to push for their current bill. 

                The next morning I cooked some bacon and eggs.  Later I took a walk around the train tracks and creek with my mom and Dave, where I found several more pebbles, some molten rock, including some to give to Jack and Tyler as gifts, and several bb shells, saw several beaver dams, and enjoyed being around Wally.  Afterwards I read thirty-six pages of The Divine Madman, where I sort of realized that Drukpa Kunley’s sexual exploits and promiscuity may have been a way to teach the girls how illusory romantic satisfaction, and I worked on a Father’s Day present for my granddad.  I helped Mom and Dave move some furniture after that.  Then I called Granddad, who agreed with how I might have influenced several moves that have helped autism, and Dad to wish them a happy Father’s Day.  After a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, where I did try and somewhat like zucchini, I finished and posted both my Ben’s Blog posts for today.  After that I talked to Tyler for a bit.

                The next day I cooked some eggs, and then read some more of The Divine Madman, which actually helped my better grasp the Tibetan language, which still has a long way to go, and I got an appreciation for how Buddhism is good in all trials as all trials are indeed impermanent.  I later went down to the National Forest and Turquoise Lake with my mom, Dave, and the dogs where I took several photos and we picked up several recyclables.  I got back and finished a belt made from plastic bags.  Then I worked on my wood drawing for my granddad, which I was so satisfied with I would be sure to take a picture of to have a sort of copy for myself.  On the way to dinner I did see that the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network had successfully gotten the Autism CARES Act to include changing the agency which looks at issues of adults with autism.  I went to the Grill with my mom and Dave, where I had some delicious steak and chicken tacos.  We got back and watched Ron White’s A Little Unprofessional on Netflix after that, in which he seemed to have gone downhill from when I had seen him before. 

                The next day Later I went into town with my mom and got some tacos at the taco truck, which I learned you can ask for with just meat and they will remember it, and I found a new bottle cap lying around as well as several ones that would be good for my Rainbow Fish wall fish, and got a new one from my drink I got there.  My mom and I went into town and I got a guitar-shaped mints tin, a hazelnut truffle, and a box of edible flowers, which I didn’t realize what it was, but realized my mom might like it and decided to give it to her as a Mother’s Day present.  Then I got three more Native American post cards to frame as wall art with my other post cards and they all have a theme of warriorship.  I gave Mom the gardening kit and she loved it.  Then I drove to the liquor store, which we remembered on the way home and got some new beer, and I realized my bottle cap collecting journal also functions well as a beverage tasting journal.  I drove back and when I got home I got another new bottle cap for my collection.  Afterwards I edited my Autistic Pride Day post.  Then I worked on my travel plans to Turkey.  After that I wrote in my dream journal for today, yesterday, and the day before that.  I had a great turkey sandwich with the sauce from the taco truck.

                The next day Then I assembled the other bunk bed for our room.  After that I worked on my travel plans to Turkey.  After that I went on a walk by our tracks with my mom and Dave into an old abandoned mine field outside our property and found several new pebbles, picked up some trash and recycling, saw another bird species, and I realized what it must be like to explore Turkey with all its hidden secrets and undiscovered ruins.  I also found some bone in the park and several clay pebbles on our property.  After that I worked on my Autistic Pride Day blog post, which I finished and posted after a dinner of pizza, with some frustration of uploading my pictures. 

                The next day I got a new bottle cap from my drink at the café my mom and I ate and much to her delight, she finished her bagel sandwich before me this time.  Afterwards I helped her move a trundle bed into our car and into our house.  On the way back to Minturn, we saw a deer carcass on the side of the road.  I also decided I wanted to use my career to help kick-start an Autistic Renaissance.  Then I got a buttered bagel and a Chai tea smoothie at a coffee shop in Minturn, before buying a CD called Turkish Groove (recommended by Lonely Planet) at Scarab.  On the way back to our house we saw an eagle and a coyote feasting on the deer carcass, which I realized must attract wildlife.  I got back to our house and Later I read about Cultural Studies and decided I might like to do something with that as well as filmmaking.  After a dinner of a turkey sandwich with sauce from the Mexican taco truck and brewing some hot tea, Graham and Lane, his girlfriend, arrived and I got to meet Lane, and it was nice to see them.

                The next day we got some tacos at the taco truck and found some more of my rainbow fish wall fish before went white-water rafting.  After that we went to Tennessee Pass where I learned Lane’s sister is a blogger with Asperger syndrome and I gave Lane the addresses to my blogs and my e-mail address to send me a link to her sister’s blog.

                The next day we drove home and I got another new bottle cap from my drink along the way I also got some tacos at the taco truck with my mom, Dave, Graham, and Lane, and found some more of my rainbow fish wall fish.  Then we went white-water rafting.  After that we went to Tennessee Pass where I learned Lane’s sister is a blogger with Asperger syndrome and I gave Lane the addresses to my blogs and my e-mail address to send me a link to her sister’s blog.

                The next day we drove home and I got a new bottle cap again from a drink at the gas station along with some spicy chips.  I also practiced some highway driving for about an hour and both my mom and Dave said I did really well.  When we got home I found out I worked from 4-10 the next Friday.