Hello Everyone.
It was a pleasure to sign on and receive some very nice responses, so I thought I should introduce myself.
I‘m 69, Australian, into arts and technology, gardening, cooking and … lots of stuff.
‘Lots of stuff’ because I’m in the category of neurodivergent.
Relatively recently I was diagnosed with autism, as well as the ADHD I was already aware of.
Forgive me if that’s TMI in an introduction thread, but I decided it makes sense to clarify that at the outset.
Which brings me to why I’ve signed on here.
Discovering I was autistic in my mid sixties was a shock.
It explained a lot, but it also completely pulled the rug out from under my feet.
Being ADHD, my meds are supervised by a psyche who I have a short consultation with periodically.
Eventually the subject of autism came up.
His opinion is that I am definitely autistic.
That explains why I know all my numbers- credit card, drivers license, soc sec number etc etc.
I don’t need a contact list of details either, I remember whatever I need to know.
My IQ and my ability to role-play masked my autism.
Its a big subject, and one I’d like to discuss at some point with others on the spectrum.
I have been integrating that for the last few years.
Absolutely everything became questionable - my own narrative primarily.
Engaging in discussion and debate about all and everything is probably a good idea right now.
I seem to have survived the shock.
I’m nothing if not resilient.
So that’s that.
My life revolves around music.
I became a passionate guitar player beginning just prior to the pandemic.
Over the last five years I have practiced for easily ten thousand hours.
I had played intermittently, but without my new level of consistency and discipline, for many years prior to that.
This year I began building a music system which I have been refining in my head for decades.
I have a background in designing and programming microcontroller systems.
I live alone, and seem to have isolated myself from the world in recent years, which has its good points and bad points.
I get on very well with animals and young children.
I‘ve been in isolation for about five years now.
As far as my views on religion and spiritual matters are concerned, I would hesitate to define that even to myself.
Suffice to say I’m not out to prove myself right or anybody else wrong about such things.
My spiritual practice, such as it is, is to discipline the excesses of my ego, and engage in kindness and support to others who need it, and to remember that I will die.
Once again, thanks and appreciation to those members who made me feel welcome.
I look forward to some good exchanges.
