started disgustingly early as I had a training session yesterday morning on Autistic Spectrum Disorders. Fortunately it was just down the road in Halifax, so I only had to fall out of bed at 8.20. First part of the session was very average, whole load of stuff on the difficulties pupils (not ppl apparently, pupils) with ASD have in forming friendships. Given that social interaction and communication are two of the three areas of impairment in ASD, this didn’t come precisely as news to me, and the lecturer didn’t actually given any hints on how to deal with any of it, just going through names of techniques rather than how to employ them.
Was beginning to wish I hadn’t crawled out of bed at all, but after coffee the second part of the session changed my mind completely. We were listening to an abbreviated form of a talk by Dr John Biddulph and Fiona Biddulph that focuses around a timeline of their life, with signposts to his autism and then goes on to discuss their relationship together. I was trying to find a link because I’m sure when I googled yesterday I found it as a paid training course that lasts a day, but can I find it today? I’ve found some biographies anyway. It was utterly fascinating – they are both very good speakers, and to gain insight into the life of an autistic person (and I’d like to point out at this stage that that is how John preferred to use the terminology – he said he wasn’t a person with autism any more than he was a person with maleness – so autistic person it is from here on out, though I’m having to correct myself every other sentence!) and how his thought processes work was well worth the early morning and £5 entrance fee. I’ve also added a few more recommended books to my wishlist, including Loving Mr Spock: A Different Kind of Love
. Really wish I’d bought his CD there though, as it’s £8.99 to have it posted out. Might buy the downloads and burn them myself 🙂
Ailsa and I chatted with him at the end – he’d noticed us on the registration form and we wanted to talk about how Montessori may well be a good education style for someone with an Autistic Spectrum condition (again, he didn’t like the term disorder) as it allows them to focus on the interest of the time without causing stress by wanting to move them on to something else, as well as being completely individual and not group oriented. Ailsa also wished him a Happy Birthday having noticed from the timeline that he was 53 yesterday 😀 We’ll be pondering afresh how that applies within our setting and I may well blog further over the next days or weeks.
So, after my morning out I came home for a large lunch, then ran out to do present shopping. Also stopped in Gap to look at their sale goods, can anyone explain how I can be a size 8 on the bottom half and over a 14 on the top? No? Didn’t think so. I know I’ve toned up a little recently (I think it’s the stairs and the fact that I rarely sit down these days) but I think I may need to actually work on the area where there should be a waistline. Drooling over the idea of a wii and wii fit, although I’m not convinced it would be nearly as effective as finding my callanetics book and working that into my daily routine.
Day finished late as we went to the wedding reception of an ex colleague – he’d sent out an invite to everyone in support before I left and I’d mailed with him to check the details. Turns out he’s left now too (that’s three java analysts and a call taker in the space of two months, what a recruitment and training nightmare they must be having right now 🙁 ) which could explain why no one else turned up. According to his wife he was made up that I’d come out, and I overheard him describing me as his ex boss. Which isn’t quite how I tag myself, but given I recruited, trained and managed him is fair I suppose!
Kids had a lovely time running around the empty dance floor and scoffing buffet food right up til the point that the disco proper came on and the volume suddenly elevated. At that point Small had his hands over his ears and was whimpering so we beat a hasty retreat. It was nearly 10 pm by that stage anyway, so we hardly left early!
Late night doesn’t appear to have sparked late morning for anyone but me – Tim’s out shopping just now and the kids are playing with Thunderbirds Soundtech Tracy Island
, recently received from a friend whose son didn’t quite get into it. It may be difficult to peel them away to go out, but we’ve another party to attend 🙂
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