What’s Happening To Autistic People Right Now?

Pile I   -  Friedel Anderson , 2013.

German,  b. 1954  -  

Oil on canvas , 80 x 65 cm

me: i need that copic 72 set

me: i want those winsor and newton watercolours omg

me: holy shit if i don't get those brushes i will-

mind: bitch you draw like shit who are you kidding

Why is this so true?! I just look at someone and I’m like “Yep, you got the ‘tism my broski...”

allistic people are like "omg i had no idea you were autistic" meanwhile other autistics can sniff each other out a mile away

autistic person entering a public building: (touches ground) one of my people was here.....

Mahmoud Darwish, Life To The Last Drop

Paupers Prince Part 2

Click here for previous/future chapters if you're on a laptop/browser~

Or follow #paupersprince for updates on app :3 I will make webcomics readable on Tumblr somehow lol

A little autistic lord has a melt down- but maybe one kind kid can help, where unempathic adults have failed.

I hate that chronic illnesses come with other chronic illnesses it’s like a buy one get one deal from hell

sure there’s a ramp, but is it steep? is there a curb at the top? is the ground uneven? do i need a key for the elevator? are the aisles and doorways wide enough? do i have room to turn? is there furniture and clutter in my way? is the carpet difficult to wheel on? can i open the doors myself?

accessibility to wheelchairs is more than just a ramp.

(Tw for ableism and lack of autonomy)

I want to talk about the issues with touching somebody's AAC device, and how it feels when people do that to me.

I've spoken about this a bit before, but I have more thoughts on it now that I feel like expressing.

People touch my device a lot, and they very rarely have permission. Whether its because they want to prevent me from moving too far away so they'll grab my devices strap, or they press random buttons, or pull it toward them, or push in my puffy stickers, or to search through my private folder, or something else, people tend to touch my AAC device without my consent. It has gotten to the point that my lockscreen has to say "My communication device functions as a body part, do not touch it without my direct consent." And I have a label on the back of the case that says "COMMUNICATION DEVICE PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH!".

When people do these things it feels extremely invasive, like someone touching your mouth or putting their hands in your throat. Its gross, uncomfortable, scary and weird.

It is also super important to note that a lot of nonspeaking people have sensory issues. You have lotion on your hands? The lotion rubbing off may have just ruined that persons device until cleaned. Also, bacteria is very much a thing.

I have to wipe down my device with sanitary wipes a lot, because I set it on all sorts of surfaces, and lots of people touch it. People who probably have dirty hands.

I personally don't, but some people attach chewies to their AAC device, or bite on the case. That makes the sanitary issues even more intense.

I also stim using tangles a lot, and I also have a ton of anxiety around children touching me or my things. Last school year, a kid at my school touched one of my tangles despite me telling him not to, and then I was unable to use that one for at least a month. My point of bringing that up is just, please don't touch peoples things without permission, especially disability aids.

Things I Wish I Knew Going into College

Listen up mother fuckers. Here’s the truth about college. No sugar coating, none of that cutesy shit. Here’s what I wish I knew before I stepped foot on campus.

When people say communal bathrooms aren’t that bad what they actually mean is people will leave their dirty underwear in the showers, used tampons, clean their dishes in the bathroom sink, and leave their explosive diarrhea everywhere. If you really don’t think you need shower shoes, think again.

If you know you are not strong in a particular subject, PLEAAASE seek help. Find a tutor or really good friends that are willing to help you because when you get a D in math because you didn’t seek help even though you knew you fucking sucked at math you’ll regret it because that stupid ass shit tanked your GPA.

You will have professors and TAs (teaching assistants) that give absolutely no fucks about actually teaching. If this ends up being the case, use your resources, learn to teach yourself, Quizlet is your friend.

People might seem so nice in the first week, but I promise you, when welcome week is over and there’s no more free food, they won’t ever look your way again. The ones who stick with you after that, cherish them.

The grind is real. Don’t expect to do the minimum and pass my friend. Because you will fail. I promise you. Sometimes you gotta stay up until 3AM because you’ve got two papers due, a speech to write, and math homework that you didn’t realize was actually due at 11:59pm the previous night. So if you’re going to college just to say you went to college, leave immediately.

With that said, you might realize that college isn’t even for you. And that’s okay. Just remember the thousands of dollars you’ve spent and make your decisions accordingly. But know that college is not the only way to be successful or make money.  There are lots of sugar daddies out there.

You might change your major 2392897 times. It’s honestly whatever. You’ll figure it out and it will be fine.

I know you’ve already heard this one but I swear it’s fucking true. You will not want to drag your dead body out of bed to go to a fucking 8am class. I don’t care if you’re a morning person. Just don’t do it. Trust me. Trust anybody who says this. 

Free stuff is the best stuff.

Sometimes you just need to sit down and have a glass of wine. Or see a therapist. Whichever works for you.

You don’t have to drink or do drugs, but you might feel pressured to. Do whatever you want but make sure you are always safe, smart, and with people you can trust and know will take care of you after you’ve had that 12th drink and can’t even stand up straight.

No one really cares what you wear, how you look or what you do because we’re all too busy trying to figure out how to do 20 hours of homework, 6 hours of studying AND fit in 8 hours of sleep. 

Sometimes lectures are so pointless that you could teach yourself in 30 mins rather than sit for 2 hrs in a lecture. I’m not saying skip lectures, but I am saying that the more time you have, the more sleep you can get.

You’re funny af if you actually think you’re gonna get a full 8hrs of sleep. Try again.

College is your chance to reinvent yourself. Be very careful who you choose to become. Just don’t be that person who corrects the professor or types really fucking loud on their macbook during every fucking lecture.

Listen, you can really do whatever you want to do. You wanna be hoe? Do it. You wanna party Thursday through Saturday? Do it. Weed Wednesday? Go for it. But you sure as hell better show your ass to class and watch that GPA.

Nobody likes a snitch. Mind ya business.

Don’t let anybody make you feel like you do not deserve to be there. Because they will try you and you can still get a ticket for fighting. Except this time you’ll be charged for assault. 

Don’t wear your favorite shoes to a party. Don’t wear open toes shoes to a party. The floors of a frat house or a house party are filthy. Don’t bring a purse, always use the buddy system, watch out for creeps cause they be out there.

Nobody cares who you were in high school, no one wants to know your ACT score or whether you were valedictorian. Shut up. Y’all got into the same damn college. No one cares.

If you’re going to bullshit something, do it well.

Do the readings because when your ass gets called on during discussion because your TA wants to know what you think about Mondrian’s take on contemporary art and you don’t know, you gonna look stupid as hell.

You might have a really cool roommate, or you might have a roommate that has sex with her boyfriend on your bed. There’s no in-between.

Bring A LOT of storage for your dorm.

If you see students napping in weird places, crying in the bathroom, or smoking weed on their dorm roof-top, it be like that sometimes.

Find a really good place to study. DO NOT study in your room because you associate your room with sleep so that’s what you’ll want to do instead of study If you study in your room.

Freshman 15 ain’t real.

SAFE SEX. THESE HOES DIRTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

College sucks sometimes, but put your mental health first. Sometimes you gotta skip class to take care of yourself and that is perfectly okay. You do not have to justify yourself or your decisions to anyone.

Good luck. I hope you survive. But if you don’t, like I said, there are always sugar daddies out there. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk y’all. 

"War and Peace", Leo Tolstoy (translated by Constance Garnett)