Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong and, as always… Shine On!!!

Dear Readers, this video might seem a bit odd to Neurotypicals, but this video shows you exactly how exhausting and grating it can be to mask. It's a topic that's relevant to fellow Spectrumites and I've actually posted on the subject that I've posted here: I know that this will also be a short post, but again, I felt as if the video above spoke more than I could. My point still stands that, to paraphrase Forrest Gump, “Masking is tough.” That being said, fellow Spectrumite, just know that you’re not alone, you just need to find your tribe, family, friends or a combination of both, most of all, just know that you matter, period. Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong and, as always…. Shine On!!

Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong and, as always… Shine On!!!

Please note, this video is on The Autistic SuperChannel and is my opinion. Secondly, Dear Readers, the next two videos aren’t mine, but I use them to celebrate the occasion.

In this picture, Dear Readers, is yours truly on the left, while on the right is His Eminence Cardinal Timothy Dolan, of the Archdiocese of New York! This picture was taken after a Mass earlier today at St. Mary of the Snow!! Most of you, Dear Readers, know that I’m a Roman Catholic, so this picture is a big deal. I’ve only met Cardinal Dolan once before this, but I was more of a wallflower then. Granted, I still am a wallflower of sorts, but I think that comes with my autism, specifically my social anxiety.

Analysis: A new project will train librarians to equip people with the knowledge and skills to navigate a media saturated age Tech companies often describe their platforms as communities. This self-serving rhetoric makes them sound like quaint, self-governed entities when they are, of course, corporations that exploit their users for commercial gain. Online platforms are awash with scams, hatred, and conspiracy theories. If these spaces are communities, they are toxic ones—shaped not by collective values, but by algorithms that prioritise 'engagement'. Public libraries are a refuge from this chaos.

Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong and, as always… Shine On!!

I want to plug a wonderful organization that cares about fellow Spectrumites during Autism Acceptance Month, an organization that I’m very proud to be a part of: The Global and Regional Autism Syndrome Partnership, or GRASP. I’ve mentioned them before on The Autistic SuperBlog before, but I want you all to know, Dear Readers, why I support them as I do. For me, there’s a personal reason. Several years ago, I was on a Board of Directors for an Autism Society that since closed up shop. Needless to say that I was the last person off the sinking ship.

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a game show fan, especially you, my readers, knows that I might be belated, but I want to be among those to wish a Happy Birthday to the Worlds Greatest Master of Ceremonies or WGMC, Bob Barker, who turned 96 years old on December 12th. When it comes to game shows, the hallowed Goodson-Todman creation known as The Price is Right stands above and beyond the best of the best. All other game shows and hosts all can look to TPiR for the renaissance to the genre.

As an artist, whatever their craft might be, is nothing without learning from, or listening to, people who inspire them to be better people, that help them to aspire to what they see as greatness, it's always important to seek out masters to those things that we see as Without support, without drive, without determination, your dreams can seem like an uphill struggle without someone to show you that you can do better. I've been very fortunate to find a community that I can learn from in Upstate New York. …

This past March, Dear Readers, as you all know, I was invited to the Soirée for Autism for the Autism Society of The Greater Hudson Region thanks to a wonderful friend, Janine. The post, which you can read here: ) )was a wonderful event, but also had people like myself and my best friend Jas speak on autism acceptance. Not awareness, not needing to just because, but acceptance. Accepting a Spectrumite’s strengths and flaws, their quirks and the things that make them the great people they are. Things like accepting yourself, knowing that your struggles matter is truly a game changer.

Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong and, as always… Shine On!!

Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong, know that you matter and, as always… Shine On!!!!

Until next post, Dear Readers, please stay safe, stay strong, stay being you and, as always… Shine On!!!

There’s been a hashtag, Dear Readers, that makes me so happy and humbled on social media recently. Wait, fulfilled on social media, that sounds like a paradox, right? Please, just hear me out. I wear a lot of hats, self-advocate, maintenance person at my job, autistic person and so many other things, all of which are wonderful. With that said, I feel so happy, so warm, so proud when people know me as a poet. I’ve been an artist, a poet for so long that I get really proud of what I’ve done since then, published my first book (with a second one in the works) multiple poems included in…

I know I mentioned the weight of my mask before, but I think it's time for us to consider the positives of being on the Spectrum. But first, thanks to Blogging Astrid, whose post about masking is: perhaps she could explain what masking means to the Spectrumite community better than I could, simply put: Masking...is pretending to be something you’re not. This can be done either consciously or uncnsciously. Many autistic adults have learned to mask so well it’s almost second nature. We’re also encouraged to mask on a daily basis when people judge us about being autistic.

I know it's only a couple of days away, but today is as good a time as ever to consider what to do when it come to Giving Tuesday. It seems apropos to talk about it here because we all have had help in our lives, I'm sure. I've added these once before, but I've added one more to the list because I believe in these places and the mission that they work for, please  consider checking out and supporting the following places: The Autism Society of America: of the best places to go for autism research, especially as it comes to support for newcomers and newly diagnosed.