Thank-You

Hello all,
I realize this is rather an odd sort of post, but due to how busy I'm getting with school, and other commitments, I am going to have to end this blog. At least for now. I want to thank you all so much for reading over the past year and hopefully I will continue this again some point soon.
Farewell and love you all :)
Sean

Once Upon a Mattress

Hey Everyone!

So what a week it has been. First off, school's been going well, I'm kind of on and off at understanding my math class, one day I'll understand the material completely, but then the next day I'm like "huh?". I can only hope that I will be able to understand it and pass this course...

Writing is going quite well, as is Creative Writing, and I definitely enjoy it, though I suppose from previous posts you can probably tell that I am not a horrible writer :). So I suppose that's probably one of my more favorite courses.

My two Psychology courses are also quite fascinating. My Prejudice course is simply enjoyable; we actually spent two hours in debate about different quotes that just made the class so much fun. While Psychology of Creativity is just interesting because it's all about the psychology of what goes into creative minds.

Now as for my social life, well let me just say possibly one of the best things I could ever ask for at school has happened. This week I auditioned for Once Upon a Mattress, a musical rendition of The Princess and the Pea, and sang "What I Did for Love" for my musical part, and then had to do a dance part and several readings of different scenes. I just got the call yesterday that they had decided to give me the part of Prince Dauntless, one of the leads in the play. I was ecstatic. I mean after 1 year where there was no play in Grade 8, five years where I never got cast in any plays no matter how much I tried in high school, and then three years of being cast in minor parts with maybe 3 lines or so, to being one of the leads in the play I'm just so thrilled.

Anywho, that's all tonight everyone!

Sean

New Study! Autism in Some Boys Linked to Missing DNA

Hey Everyone!

Interesting news story of a recent study done in Toronto on Autism.

Here's the story:

TORONTO - Researchers are a step closer to understanding why autism spectrum disorder affects four times as many boys as girls.

A study led by a team of Toronto scientists has discovered that males who carry specific genetic alterations on their X-chromosome have an elevated risk for developing autism spectrum disorder, or ASD.

“The male gender bias in autism has intrigued us for years and now we have an indicator that starts to explain why this may be,” said co-principal investigator Stephen Scherer, director of the Centre for Applied Genomics at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children.

The researchers, whose work is published this week in the journal Science Translational Medicine, found that about one per cent of boys with ASD had mutations related to the PTCHD1 gene on the X-chromosome.

"Hearing that it's in one per cent doesn't get a lot of people excited," conceded Scherer. "But it gets geneticists really excited because there's a lot of genes involved (in ASD)."

Boys inherit one X-chromosome from their mother and one Y-chromosome from their father, explained Scherer. "If a boy's X-chromosome is missing the PTCHD1 gene or other nearby DNA sequences, they will be at high risk of developing ASD or intellectual disability.

"Girls are different in that, even if they are missing one PTCHD1 gene, by nature they always carry a second X-chromosome, shielding them from ASD. While these women are protected, autism could appear in future generations of boys in their families."

Autism spectrum disorder affects an estimated one in every 165 children. The neurological disorder ranges in severity, but often includes problems communicating and interacting with others, unusual patterns of behaviour and intellectual disability.

An estimated 190,000 Canadians have ASD, which is on the rise worldwide, says Autism Society Canada.

The isolation of genetic alterations on the X-chromosome within a percentage of individuals with autism follows a number of recent genetic discoveries by Scherer and others that are moving science slowly but surely towards a better understanding of the causes of this baffling disorder.

To conduct this study, researchers analyzed the gene sequences of 2,000 individuals with ASD, along with others with an intellectual disability, and compared the results to DNA sequencing from thousands of healthy control subjects.

While the PTCHD1 mutation occurred in one per cent of males with ASD, it was not present in the DNA of thousands of healthy male controls — and sisters of males carrying the same mutation seemed unaffected by autism symptoms.

"The deletions and other mutations seem to be related only to disease in the boys," said co-principal researcher John Vincent. "They have sisters who have the same mutation but are healthy."

Vincent, head of the molecular neuropsychiatry and development lab at Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, isn't surprised to find another gene on the X-chromosome involved in autism.

"It's another one in the list and I think it will be one of the most common ones, so parents will be able to have their children tested," he said. "Particularly if they have a son affected, it will be important for them to know if it's caused by a mutation at or around PTCHD1."

"And if it is, they'll know that future (male) children would be at risk."

"There are lots of women in the population," added Scherer, "who are carrying this (genetic variation) that are predisposed to having boys with autism."

The scientists believe the PTCHD1 gene plays a role in a neurobiological pathway that delivers information to cells during brain development, and this specific mutation could disrupt crucial processes and contribute to the onset of autism, said Vincent.

Having a test for the altered DNA would mean children could be diagnosed at a younger age, allowing behavioural therapies to be started sooner, he said. "So the earlier you can catch it, the more effective the therapies can be."

Calling the discovery "incredibly important," Suzanne Lanthier of Autism Speaks said the research provides solid evidence about what's behind ASD prevalence rates being skewed towards males.

"This is the first time we're seeing some hard science findings to start to explain why boys are more affected than girls," said Lanthier, executive director of the research fundraising organization and mother of an 11-year-old boy with ASD.

Asked if such genetic links to autism put an end to the contentious notion that childhood vaccines — in particular, the measles-mumps-rubella inoculation — may trigger autism, Lanthier responded that ASD is manifested in many ways "and it doesn't lay to rest potential environmental causes."

"And what the research is pointing to more and more is that there are some genetic underpinnings and in some cases environmental triggers that set off what we know genetically."

"It certainly doesn't mean that we should stop doing research on environmental causes. By no means."

Interesting? I think so. Whether or not it's the reason behind me having autism? Who knows. But none the less, I think it's an interesting story for anyone who knows an autistic boy or man, and even moreso if that boy or man is your son, nephew, uncle, etc.

I hope you guys like the story and I'll talk to you soon!

Sean

Oh and PS, my first Semester of fourth year is going quite well minus Math which I don't really understand why I need it as I really don't see any of my possible future careers will need me to know math...unless it's just the logical aspect of math that it teaches you that I'm suppose to be learning. :P

Welcome Back

So I realize that I haven't posted in two months, and frankly I do need to apologize for such a thing. It's just been such a whirlwind of a summer that I haven't had time to think, much less time to write. I suppose this is probably a bad thing what with having two writing courses starting next week, so being unable to write this summer has perhaps inhibited my writing skills, but here's hoping it hasn't.

So this summer has possibly been one of the funnest and most enjoyable summers I've ever had. Going to Florida with my best friend was an adventure, especially since our friends down there got her and I into all four Disney Parks for free. So we got to experience everything, including Animal Kingdom which I had never been to before, and had such an amazing time it was just wonderful. I think the scariest ride I went on while there was Mission: Space at Epcot. The reason being that Lauren and I decided to go on the Advanced track and as it's about going into space, we actually got to experience G-Forces, and when you feel like you have a five hundred pound person on your chest and you can barely lift your arms at all, not exactly enjoyable :P, but it was quite an experience and it let me know I'm never going to want to become an astronaut.

I also finally got a chance to head to the new Harry Potter theme park at Universal, and what trip it was. The castle itself is unbelievably beautiful, butterbeer is so very sweet, and the stores are just wonderful. I'll include a photo if I can.

The rest of my summer was uneventful but still enjoyable due to being able to just relax and enjoy my summer.

That's all folks! Talk to you all soon!
Sean

Love Yourself, Then Someone Else

Hey everyone. So to start off this is not a post meant to offend anyone. Please do not take it directed at you because it isn't. This is just me ranting about how I feel.

Basically I am first off, finally happy being single. The best thing I am able to tell myself is the fact that by being single, it will let ME pursue whatever I want out of life, in my case, to be an actor in the industry (movie/tv industry, not theatre not that anything's wrong with it as even it gives me experience with acting) but basically like I was saying...the best part about being single is the fact that it means I get to be my own person and no one is there necessarily grounding me to one place. Well aside from my mother, but she's just looking out for me like any mother would their child.

The thing I'm annoyed about however is my friend base where I live...not the city I go to school in 30 minutes away, but in my actual city/hometown. Everywhere I look people are getting engaged, or married. Not a day goes by that I don't get ANOTHER event invite on Facebook to the stag N do or BBQ or w/e for another one of my friends who is engaged. This just pisses me off because seriously most of these people are my age, or younger than me, or no older than 25. And while love is great and all, I'm happy for them in some ways, but to me I just can't help but think "YOU ARE GETTING MARRIED WHEN YOU'RE ONLY 22, ARE YOU CRAZY?" Like I said, while I believe love is great and all, there's a time for it, and that time is AFTER you've developed a stable job or profession for yourself, after you've done what I like to call "settled" your life. Where you're truly at the point where it doesn't matter if you get a partner or not, because you're at that point where you're ready to enter the next step of your life.

To me getting married under 25 is just TOO young. I mean look at the past, and I mean the far past, before the 70s, when people were getting married at 18. It was all fine and dandy for them because the boy would work and the girl would be able to stay at home with kids. But now, now it's just gotten to the point where we're returning to that stage, but unlike back then, the world has changed and so has the economy. In most cases (unless you're a doctor or high paying job), both people need to be able to have jobs to support their home. And how does one do that? To me it's quite simple, go to school, or trade school or some form of post-secondary education, get a degree, maybe do a Master's or something, and get into a Profession. THEN you can get married. But here in my city, it's like people are hopping on the marriage train just a short time after they have graduated from high school. I mean sure, maybe there are some people who are able to get their postgrad quite a short time after graduating and are making a good living for themselves, and that's great, but that's still a minority of people. The majority are still generally in school around this time, and frankly starting a family at this time is just too soon. What if you end up having a kid? Then what happens? Your post grad could be flushed down the tube, or you barely ever see the kid. In this city specifically, my worry is that the people getting married young are going to wind up where? Flipping burgers at McDonald's for the rest of their days just to scrape by. Where will I be? I'll be in Hollywood, making a name for myself and then having a family when I meet the right person. (Laugh if you want, I have all the confidence I need in myself to get here.)

Anyway, that was my rant. So to those of you who are single, especially if you're around my age, be happy you're single. You don't need someone to make you happy, and what's more, being single will allow you to be you, to make your life what you want it, and to not have to worry so much about supporting a family or anything like that. Yes, if someone presents themself to me, yeah I might wind up dating them, but don't think you'll see me going into a marriage anytime soon. Love may "make the world go round" but the fact is, the first thing you need to do is love yourself, then be able to support yourself, before you can EVER think about being able to love someone else. And also remember these wise words from RuPaul: "If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love someone else?"

Love to all of you
Sean

PS. Autism-wise, nothing really big has been happening. I'm going to Florida again soon so my usual slight worry about flying is creeping up on me but otherwise nothing :) This summer really has been one of the best of my life so far :D

'Eclipse' Fails to Eclipse the Movies

Hey Everyone!

So nothing to report in the last week autism wise surprisingly. I feel the running and early nights and everything have really been helping me immensely and I feel my maturity has improved too. I'm finally developing into what I've wanted to be.

As for the title of my post, it's quite simple, I saw Eclipse, and it was horrid. So here's my review:

Going into 'The Twilight Saga: Eclipse', I had high hopes that this film would blow the first two out of the water. The dreary acting, the Jacob-Bella-Edward love triangle, and the fact a rock could act with more emotion than Kristen Stewart, didn't give me much hope and sadly I was not disappointed that once again I was delivered with another sequel that deserved to stay as a book.

I'll accept that Kristen Stewart perhaps was able to get a few acting lessons in as she for once displayed some form of emotion. Unfortunately the back and forth action of Bella choosing Jacob, then Edward, then Jacob, then Edward again did unfortunately consume the majority of the movie, to the point where I saw people falling asleep in the theatre which is quite interesting to point out that this movie was so dull people actually were falling asleep because of it....

The only two good things that came from the film were that of Nikki Reed's scene in which she told the history of her character, Rosalie Hale, and how she was transformed to a vampire. This scene was well acted and Nikki was able to bring the character to life which perhaps partially saved the film. The true savior of the film however was that of the battle between the Cullen Clan and the Werewolves against the Newborn Vampires that Victoria had created. This probably was the best part simply because it was the only action sequence in the whole film and was exciting to look at.

All in all, Eclipse was a relatively dry film that I wish had never crossed my eyes. In the case of the books, they should never have been made into films. You can't make a film that has poor writing, and you definitely can't make a film that is about 95% talking about a vampire-human-werewolf love fest constantly. Sad thing is, it will probably make over a hundred million at the box office.

That's my thought anyways...what's yours?

Sean

Ch-Ch-Changes

Hey Everyone!

So sorry about not having posted in quite some time (the previous stereotype post was actually posted on the 22nd on Open Salon, so it's been nearly three days since I last made an actual blog post. Things have been changing I guess and I just find it either a bit more difficult to write or too busy to do so. Now don't worry, I'll continue writing until the "due date" I set in January, but it might just be more spaced out rather than everyday. I hope you all will continue reading however, despite the changes.

The one thing I want to tell you all because I think it is a great thing regarding my autism. But according to my parents, they've noticed that with going to bed early and running, I've apparently matured and aren't all over the place anymore. I guess just getting exercise as well as early to bed has allowed my brain to begin re-wiring itself in some ways. I could be wrong but I think it's a very good thing.

That's all for today though. Talk to you all soon!
Sean

Stereotypes: What Would We Do Without Them?

I've noticed that stereotypes are everywhere these days, and whether you like it or not, most of them are going to stay for a while.

Some of us love stereotypes because it allows us to group people into descriptions to make up the entirety of that population. Generally these people who enjoy grouping are bullies, but sometimes even we do it. How many of you have at one point or another thought Muslims were terrorists? Hopefully not many of you, but perhaps there are many of you, and it's because of what the media has given to us as a portrayal. However, I myself have friends who are muslim and they are some of the nicest people I know. What about gay people? Are they all limp-wristed, flamboyant people? No. They are a variety from actors, to football players, to parents. What about in school, how we categorize people into groups? Just because someone isn't a certain race, religion, sexual orientation, or gender, doesn't mean they aren't stereotyped. In high school and university alone we stereotype people as the "dumb jock" or the "brainy nerd" or the "loners", etc. We even do it in our Facebooks, even if we claim it as "fun".

So why do we do it? Why do we feel the need to stereotype people and automatically assume they're one thing? It's quite simply my friends, it's called the media. Every day we are given a view of a person or group of people who act a certain way and as a result that makes us believe that if these people are acting this way, then anyone who has that label: "Gay", "Black", "Muslim", "Nerd", "Loner", "Jock" is the same way. But let me tell you something, I've met a lot of jocks who are in fact quite smart, "Nerds" who actually have failed more than one test, and gay people who are just like the rest of us.

So before you stereotype someone, here's something to think about, what are you being stereotyped as?

Sean :)

Toy Story 3, The Princess Diaries, and Other Stuff

Hey Everyone!

So yesterday was a great day. Got to see Toy Story 3, which my review will follow me just expressing that my autism seems to be in low key this weekend as I feel nothing really happened. I was able to keep myself from rambling on about Rogers Video coupons I bought even though I thought I was about to continue, I wound up not continuing on and instead saying to myself I'd just tell what I needed to tell my parents tomorrow (tomorrow being today :P).

Now Toy Story 3, what a movie is all I can really say. I grew up with these films, being 7 when the first film came out, and 11 when Toy Story 2 was released, so as you can probably expect, I was anticipating something that would really make me happy in finishing the series (unless they wind up making more Toy Stories with new toys which I pray to God they don't otherwise there goes the entire Toy Story franchise). The good news is it definitely did not disappoint. Tim Allen and Tom Hanks were in top form as Buzz and Woody, and the other characters were just as hilarious as I remember them. But sadly, and this is a spoiler here, some of the characters we had in the first film who were minor but none the less, still part of the gang had been given away or sold, including Bo Peep who I believe was Woody's love interest.

With the start of the film, we're treated to another one of Andy's fantasies of Buzz, Woody and Jessie against the evil Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head, and Dr. Porkchop. This is then followed by a cute montage through the lens of a video camera of Andy and his sister Molly growing up. The toys are now unfortunately collecting dust in a toy chest, but Woody and the toys try to get Andy to play with them by using the phone and hiding Andy's cell phone in the chest. Andy unfortunately doesn't take and leaves the room. Sarge and his two army-men abandon the toys knowing that when the next yard sale comes, they'd be the first to go. One thing leads to another however and the toys are eventually put in the car to head to the daycare. What the toys don't seem to realize however is that this was never meant to happen and Andy was originally putting them in storage but they wound up almost thrown in the trash and thus decide to leave Andy. Woody on the other hand tries to tell them what really happened but the toys refuse to listen since Woody was going to be going to college with Andy anyway, so to him it wasn't a big deal.

The toys eventually try to get to know the new toys at Sunnyside Daycare and having seen many of the kids caring and playing with the toys gently, they were excited to finally be played with again. Unfortunately due to some trickery, the old toys at the daycare put Andy's toys into the "Caterpillar Room" which is full of toddlers ages 1-2 and this of course means that the toys are thrashed and beaten up by the kids, leaving them bruised when the kids finally leave. Only through Buzz investigating does he find out the truth of Sunnyside but before he can reveal the secret to his friends, he's captured and reprogrammed. Then Sunnyside just goes from bad to worse for Andy's toys as Buzz cages them all and has them follow a strict timeline.

Woody on the other hand was taken home accidentally by the daycare owner's daughter Bonnie. It's here where Woody winds up finally being played with and while he enjoys it, he still wants to get back to Andy. It is only through him saying his friends are at Sunnyside does he find out the dangers of the place and goes back to rescue them.

Thanks to Woody, the toys are able to escape through a garbage shoot but are stopped by Lotso the bear who winds up taking them with him into the garbage dump. While they're betrayed by Lotso and they fall into the incinerator, before they're incinerated, the three aliens from Pizza Planet whom Mr. Potato Head saved, winds up saving them using "the claw" to take them out before being fried.

The toys are eventually able to make it back to Andy just before he leaves, and they are then taken to Bonnie once more. Andy introduces each of them, and winds up playing with them and Bonnie one last time. It's at this point where I wound up crying because after growing up with the series, I couldn't help but feel sad after all of what has happened over the past fifteen years. The movie ends with Andy finally driving away, but not without first looking back at Woody and Buzz and saying to himself "Thanks guys.". This probably got me the most of all, but it was such a heartwarming film. And the dance scene at the end was also quite fun to watch just to lift your spirits after such a sad and touching ending.

So that's my review about Toy Story 3. I apologize if I spoiled it for people, but that's just how I review movies I suppose. :) Hope you enjoyed that.

As for the Princess Diaries topic, I love this series, and I just really wanted to quote something from the final book of the series that really put life in perspective.

"As you get older, you lose things, things you don't necessarily want to lose. Some things as simple as . . . well, your baby teeth when you're a little kid, as they make way for your adult teeth.

But as you age, you lose other, even more important things, like friends - hopefully only bad friends who maybe weren't as good for you as you once thought. With luck, you'll be able to hang on to your true friends, the ones who were always there for you . . . even when you thought they weren't.

Because friends like that are more precious than all the tiaras in the world.

I've also learned that there are things you want to lose . . . like that hat you throw into the air on graduation day. I mean, why would you want to hold on to it? High school sucks. People who say those were the best four years of your life - these people are liars. . . . Who wants the best years of their lives to be in high school? High school is something everybody should be ready to lose."

Just to interject here with my own thoughts, I have to say I agree. High school was probably the most horrible part of my life seeing as how I was still unaware of my autism and while I seemed fine amongst the popular kids, namely because I didn't hang around with them too much, it was my "friends" in my group that I hung around with who all but abandoned me because they thought I was too weird or I had pissed them off with my ramblings or interceding on their personal space or conversations. But as Mia says above, hopefully you'll only lose bad friends, and frankly in this case it's all to true because the ones I've kept are still great people, whereas the ones I lost turned out to be nice on the outside but completely rotten on the inside :).

Continuing on:

"And then there are the things you thought you wanted to lose, but didn't . . . and now you're glad you didn't."

So to me that's pretty good words from Meg Cabot, the writer of this book. And frankly it really gives an interesting outlook to life. So hopefully you all take it into consideration yourselves, as I know I have.

Finally the last thing I need to talk about is the teacher of the student I've been tutoring. He got his essay back that I helped him in the grammar and sentence structure, and now the teacher is refusing to give him a good mark which she said it's at about a 90% or higher level essay, because she thinks it's not his work >_>. Apparently she doesn't realize that at times editing grammar can make a paper look slightly different, or that perhaps some students are better at different things. They might be better at essays when their answers to study questions might not be as well written. It just ticks me off that she's doubting his work and not giving him a mark for it. Hopefully it all gets sorted out, but I just had to post a bit about that because of how frustrating it is.

Anyway...talk to you all soon!

Sean

HELLO WEEKEND!

Hey Everyone!

So it's finally the weekend, which makes me quite happy. Especially since tomorrow (Saturday) I get to see Toy Story 3 :D I'm definitely looking forward to it and I definitely will be giving you all a review of the movie once I see it. Autism-wise not much has happened in the last two days. I think I kind of came off a bit abrasive to my Mom when talking about my courses and how one of my courses I might be unable to take due to the teacher being out of the office.

On a lighter note, I was actually just accepted into the Creative Writing course at King's for the upcoming year which is AWESOME! Though hopefully the writing samples I gave on this blog helped possibly prove that I'm suppose to be in that course. But anyway, I think that's all for today and yesterday.

I'll talk to you all later!
Sean

School Blues -_-

Hey Everyone!

Sorry for the absence the past two days, been busy with things and since I kept falling asleep so early, I've kind of been forgetting to post. Just to recap; Monday I had to meet with an academic counselor in London after hanging out with Lauren, but unbelievably I waited an hour and a half just to meet with a counselor for about 10 minutes. It was so unbelievably ridiculous that despite me getting to the Academic Dean's office on time to sign up for a meeting, it still took an hour and a half! When I finally got that done I had to e-mail this Professor to try and get permission to register for her course but I get an e-mail from her telling me she's out of the office. So now not only will I possibly be unable to get into the course because she doesn't return till July 1 and the course selections start June 24, and there's only 20 seats available in the course, BUT I also don't know if there's a course I can take as a replacement should I be unable to get into the course! It's just stressing me out more than it probably should but I can't help but be stressed...this is my final full year of my Undergrad in Psychology...so I want to get as many credits as I possibly can before next April so that I only have a few left to take come September 2011.

As for Tuesday, that was a relatively dull day as it was my day off from work. Hell's Kitchen was about the only good thing about it that wasn't boring :P.

And today, Wednesday, I was worried I wouldn't be able to meet my friend to get a key to his place as I have to stay in London come the 26th and 27th because of Budget Weekend for the KUCSC. So obviously I needed to have a place to stay for that night but luckily my friend came through.

Autism-wise, I was rambling again too much about the course selection things and couldn't think to just stop and let it go, but you can hopefully understand my reasoning behind it.

Anyway, that's all for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday :P
Sean

Working Out, and a Thank-You to Everyone!

Well, that didn't work out the way I planned it :P. I hope you all had a good day today though. I have to say mine was sadly, quite dull. Apart from the normal working with Chris, and playing with my nephew, the only eventful thing that happened (if you can call it eventful) was me starting the next part of my work out.

I've actually been running three times a week and have been following this plan about how to go from a couch potato, to running 5K. Basically you start off by having a five minute brisk walk, and then start alternating between 60 seconds of jogging, followed by 90 seconds of walking and you basically repeat this for twenty minutes. Now of course, that's only the first week. The second week you up the time so you're doing 90 seconds of jogging and the same of walking. Third week you do 90 seconds again but cut the walking back to only 60 seconds. And basically the plan is to try and get you running for a total of 30 minutes with no walking breaks in between. I do hope I actually can stick to it because one of my big things is that I generally drop a work out after a certain point simply because I lose any enjoyment from it, and it's just a case of pain and annoyance. But 'm hoping I'll stick to it for the summer and hopefully will be able to tone some muscle that I desperately need :P.

Autism-wise, I think the only thing that really happened was I started rambling to my mom about something or other today. She had to tell me I was rambling before I even realized it, which I'll admit I feel a bit silly for but what can you do?

Anyway that's all for tonight/yesterday night, also just a little interesting tidbit. I calculated up all the views I've had of this blog on OS, and I've reached over 13,000 views! And combined with the 2,675 views on this Blogspot version of the blog, my blog has reached over 15,000 views! It's kind of a wow moment for me, and I really want to say thank-you to everyone who's been reading my blog. Those of you who have been faithful readers, reading many of my blogs I thank you! And to those of you who have just started, I thank you as well!

Have a great night/day/whenever you read this post :P

Sean

Gran's Birthday

Hey Everyone!

Pretty uneventful day for the most part except that I had a great time celebrating my grandmother's 92nd birthday. Hard to believe she's already 92, and me, I'm just 22 :P. Anyway autism-wise, nothing really happened at all except that I became apparently un-coachable because of my driving which I still don't understand. I see people driving with cell phones still, I see them texting, I see them driving with headphones or eating. Me? Two hands on the wheel, watching out, and just because I came up to an intersection even a LITTLE bit fast, and I emphasize because I was still in the process of slowing down and it would of all been fine none the less unless the brakes were cut :P, my Mom calls me uncoachable. No one likes backseat drivers, let's face it...and while I appreciate my Mom's help, it just frustrated me a bit that my driving was being criticized again despite her saying I drove quite well on my way back from Elgin Manor yesterday. And that's also my autism, not being able to let it go....

Sorry for the rant, and I'll talk to you all tomorrow.
Sean

Time for a Little Rant

Hey Everyone!

No news in autism, except rambling to my mom after my first workout of the year :D. Oh and there was also a news report on the television stating that people with autism have their own unique genetic footprint, completely different from the unique footprints non-autistic people have which is quite interesting. I didn't catch the whole story sadly, but it's an interesting thing to hear about.

As for my rant, well it's quite simple...it's about us, the people and our government. Or should I say, what's happening in the United States, which while it doesn't really effect me, it still unnerves me. So basically, from the start either each year or every 2 or 4 years, etc, we go to the polls and vote on the people we want to represent us in our governments right? However, as things progress in said governments, sometimes our representatives, senators, governors, Presidents/Prime Ministers, etc vote for things we don't want and as a result, we get all upset and start putting petitions together to allow us to get an amendment to vote on these things ourselves. What I don't really understand though is this: If we voted for these people to represent us in our government so that we don't have to go to these proceedings weekly, then why are we complaining? We voted for these people to make decisions for ALL of us, and now just because some people are all pissed off with how OUR representatives voted, we decide "Oh let's now go and vote ourselves". So from this I have to ask you a question, if we want to vote on things ourselves....then WHY IN THE HELL DID WE EVEN VOTE FOR OUR REPS, OUR SENATORS, OUR GOVERNORS, OR OUR PRESIDENTS/PRIME MINISTERS?! It just makes no sense to me why we elected them and then when one little issue comes up that we don't like; gay marriage, abortion, marijuana legalization, etc, let's just go "we vote!" Well I'm sorry, YOU voted for these people to represent us in every decision, just because you don't like how that person voted, don't start getting in a pissed off mood. He or she's representing more than just you alone, he or she is representing EVERYONE in their county, district, their state/province, their country. So before you complain about one thing out of a thousand things they voted on, think about it, if you didn't have them voting for you, you'd all be the ones making all these decisions. (And I'm talking the frivolous decisions too like what road changes to make, you know, the really really boring stuff).

Just thought you should think about it.
Sean :)

Journey: Glee Season 1 Finale (SPOILERS!)

The Glee Season 1 Finale, all I can really say is just WOW. It was one of those blissful moments in life where you can't help but be glued to something, and feel so much emotion. And yes, I do realize I'm talking about a tv show. But I suppose it's because I've put my heart into Glee, that it's almost become my own Bible, that caused the emotion I felt in this episode. Prior to the finale, I couldn't help but feel both happy and sad; happy that it was the finale because I knew it would be amazing (that and I've been listening to the songs from the finale over and over since Friday), and sad because I realized it was ending and I wouldn't be able to see it again until September. 'But Sean, that's only three months away', you might say, but 3 months may go fast but it will still be sad that I won't be able to turn on the television on Tuesdays and see all the characters I've come to love.

The finale truly was amazing, with happiness, tears, and a bit of anticipated shock. The Glee Club, feeling unsure of themselves upon finding out Sue (Jane Lynch) is one of the judges at Regionals, have come to Will's (Matt Morrison) house to reminisce about the good times they've had in Glee Club. While the meeting was originally to choose the Regionals songs, they instead wind up in the depression and both Tina and Rachel are on the verge of crying. It isn't until as Will drives along the road that he hears Don't Stop Believing by Journey and remembers the beginning of Glee Club.

Rachel (Lea Michele) and Finn (Cory Monteith) meet on the stairwell and Finn tries to convince her that they need to still go to Regionals no matter if they lose or not, resulting in Rachel kissing Finn. They return to the choir room and are about to tell this to Will when he reminds them first of the journey they've gone through over the past year. He then tells them that they're going to Regionals and it doesn't matter if they win or lose, because winning doesn't matter, it's the journey they've been on that matters, and that they'll go to Regionals with a Journey medley.

Upon arriving at Regionals, the judges, which include Olivia Newton-John and Josh Groban, are introduced and another Glee club known as Aural Intensity perform a medley of Groban and Newton-John songs, causing New Directions to become worried once more. Thanks to a pep talk from Will and Rachel however, the club goes to the stage and performs a medley of Faithfully, Any Way You Want It/Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin', and Don't Stop Believing.

Following the amazing performance which gave me goosebumps, they return backstage where Quinn (Dianna Agron) runs into her mother, who tells her she kicked Quinn's father out of the house for having an affair. Her mother tells her how proud she is of Quinn and asks her to come home, when Quinn tells her that her water just broke.

When we return to the show, Vocal Adrenaline are performing Bohemian Rhapsody. It's quite a chilling performance though because they blend it with Quinn in labour at the hospital, even going so far as to have Quinn yelling "Mama" "Let me go", and "No, no, no, no" in time with the song. It was quite an amusing way of doing the scene.

Rachel and Shelby (Idina Menzel), the Vocal Adrenaline coach and Rachel's mother, meet once more in VA's dressing room. Rachel tells Shelby that Vocal Adrenaline in no way will have won and asks her to come to McKinley to co-direct with Will. Shelby declines however, stating she wants to start a life because she never got to and lost her chance to have a family with Rachel now that she's grown up. Shelby asks Rachel where the rest of the Glee club is, and Rachel responds that they're at the hospital and Quinn had a baby girl.

The show returns to see the Glee Clubs waiting for the announcement, while backstage Sue and the judges talk about who should win. While Sue originally comes in wanting New Directions to lose, she winds up changing her mind when the other judges (Newton-John and Rod Remington, the local newscaster) start bashing the kids and also her. However, when on stage she announces that Vocal Adrenaline won, with Aural Intensity as runners-up, meaning that New Directions didn't even place much to my shock yet at the same time I somewhat anticipated it what with there being two more seasons already in the works.

Following the loss, Will comes upon Emma (Jayma Mays) yelling at Principal Figgins over having given the Glee club space already to another group, as the deal was if Glee club lost Regionals, the club would be shut down. Emma then yells at Will saying how unfair it is, and Will asks if she's doing it for the kids which she responds she is, but Will rebuffs saying it's also for them, and then kisses her, telling her their relationship isn't over. Rachel appears and asks Will to come to the auditorium where the entire club tells him that even if the practices are over, Glee club will never be over because Will is Glee Club and tells him how much he meant to each of them. While it is a bit of a sappy moment, it still is touching however as they sing Lulu's "To Sir, With Love". It ends with Sue being seen watching at the doorway, tearing up.

Will is then seen packing up the Glee choir room when Sue arrives to what can only be predicted as gloating over Glee club's end. It is a surprise however when Sue tells Will that she couldn't live without taunting Will and so Glee club got one more year thanks to Sue blackmailing Figgins once again. Will thanks Sue, telling her she really does have a heart, to which she retorts that if Will doesn't let go she's going to vomit all over Will.

Will then gathers the Glee Club and tells them they got another year which causes the club to erupt in cheers. Will then sings "Over the Rainbow" with Puck (Mark Salling) accompanying. We watch as the Glee club members start holding hands, and having fun as usual. We also are given a treat to see Shelby with Quinn's new baby, Beth, having adopted her. The song then ends, as does the episode.

That's basically the episode for you, I don't know if it was a Hollywood type review but I still had to write about it. Autism-wise nothing happened today, so I hope you enjoyed this change from the norm :)

Night everyone!
Sean

School of Rock

Hey Everyone!

Sorry for missing Sunday, just didn't have a lot to tell, so I figured I'd just forget about it. Today was relatively normal, worked with Chris and watched Lemony Snicket's, and tutored Matt in English once again. The thing I was very happy to hear from my mom is that they talked with Matt's mother who said that his teacher said he's improving a lot, so I'm really glad I'm helping.

Autism-wise, I guess the only thing that happened was while talking to friends on Facebook, one of them stopped responding after I said something and I thought for a short time maybe I had annoyed them. Turns out I hadn't, but often when I think that, I start saying a lot of things, apologizing if I offended them which in most cases I haven't. It might not be autism, this, but even if it's not, it's one of my quirks that I don't really like because it could make me look crazy to them....go figure.

Anyway, that's all tonight!
Sean

Why is it, People Are Such Money-Mongers?

Hey Everyone!

I hope everyone's been doing well, I apologize for not saying anything yesterday but Lauren came for the night and I just didn't really have much time to post. I had a lovely time with her though, dinner, Sex and the City 2, and a relaxing time at home. I believe the only time an autism-related thing happened was when I was apologizing frequently to Lauren because I thought I might offend her with something I Was saying, luckily as usual I had nothing to worry about.

As for the title of my post, it has to do with something interesting I discovered about the fair world, and by fair I mean carnivals; they're money-gougers. Now yes, we can get into talking about the games that you spend tons of money on to win stuffed animals, I'm talking just getting tickets to go on the rides. When we went to the fair yesterday, one ticket, ONE, cost $1.75. I'm sorry but with that price, and with the rides at this fair being 3-5 tickets for one 2-minute ride, it's just ridiculous. I'm not shoveling out $5.25-$8.75 to go on ONE ride especially when the rides aren't like Canada's Wonderland or Disney World or anything like that...we're talking silly rides like a kiddy roller-coaster and such.

That's frankly all I can say about that, what do you guys think?
Sean

Glee: Journey to Regionals Soundtrack!

Click this link to be able to listen to the soundtrack before it's released!

Glee: Journey to Regionals

Am I Too Fixed?

Hey Everyone!

So the thing I've been wondering today is about why I don't necessarily get the things I'd like in school. VP Operations, a big role in the school play, etc. I can't help but wonder, is it possible I'm too fixed in my ways that cause in how I present myself? Is it possible that because sometimes, I don't want to change my mind, or adapt to new situations, as a result I don't get the things I should get. VP Operations, a bigger part in the play, they weren't cases of me not getting them because I wasn't good enough, it was simply because people saw the way I was approaching things and doing things and as a result, felt I wasn't the right fit for the job. If I was different, then maybe I would have had a bigger role or been elected Vice-President Operations, both of which I would of done a great job at I'm sure, but because I can be fixed on things too much, I didn't get them.

I'd like people's thoughts on what you think, but that's my two cents for tonight.

Sean

My Apologies

Hey Everyone,

I have to say sorry to my readers for slacking off so much within the last week. I really don't mean to get slack with my writing but it's just been time consuming at times. But here I am once more and I hope everyone's been doing quite well.

Today was rather normal, my grandfather came over for the first time in a month since we just weren't able to have him over because it's been quite busy here. I also had tutoring time with my neighbour again and he's doing much better at his sentence structure. We continued on by playing Super Mario Galaxy 2, which was fun but I think the autism thing that came up was the fact that I got a little antsy about him playing my game because I can't help but worry about someone messing up my games. I realize this is silly or could just be me being selfish, but I just have this feeling it really is autism because it gets in the way of sociability...

Anyway that was about it today. Glee was hilarious, especially with Matt Morrison singing a "love song" to Jane Lynch. I just cracked up the entire song because of how hilariously corny, especially her line after the song, "I was bored". :P

That's it for tonight!
Sean

Disorganization and Procrastination, Got to Love It

Hey Everyone!

So it's been a dull couple of days hence the few posts. I had some tutoring to do, working with Chris, and just having a relatively dull weekend. I think the one thing that ticked me off was that I was going to see Prince of Persia with Chris but then last minute just as I picked him up he tells me he doesn't want to see it because it looks "too scary". The thing that's annoying is that he's 21 and I don't see how an action movie like the Prince is scary but I suppose for Chris, his mind is like a 4 year old's not 21..

What else to talk about? My summer's going quite well, I'm enjoying it a great deal. My autism has appeared to be at an all time low for quirks. Though it wasn't that way originally. Since I'm so use to structure, having gotten into summer it took me a while for me to finally get into a sort of structure. Apparently otherwise I act very "off" and very hyper at the same time. I might have talked about this before, but I don't think I did...

Anyway, that's all for today's post. This is counting as Friday to Sunday's posts, I hope you don't mind I just figure I covered basically everything regarding this weekend. So talk to you all Monday!
Sean

Are We Secretly Being Graded?

Hey Everyone!

So quick summary of the day: got up, had to turn on the stupid pump for the pool but it means our pool will hopefully be open sooner than later, worked with Chris which wasn't bad since we watched the rest of Monsters Vs Aliens which is such a good film :p and then just went back home. Autism-wise, I think the only part that happened was when I saw two friends of mine at the mall (went there too :P). The thing was, they looked different so I was so unsure about whether I should say hi because what if it wasn't them? Then I'd feel soooo awkward. This probably isn't autism :P but I just have to say maybe it is?

Question for you all though on a general scale. Do you find that in this world, we're all secretly being graded? And I don't mean in school, I mean in public, in our friendships, our relationships, everything? I feel as though no matter what we're doing, even if just enjoying a movie with our friends, we're secretly being graded on how we act, what we do, and who we are. But I suppose that's how life is really; we're constantly being judged and placed next to a standard of how people are suppose to be, and if you are against that standard, you're generally shunned for it and separated from "the herd" if you will. This especially applies in more conservative areas, because everyone in those areas want you to follow their rules so if you try and go against it, or are different, you get kicked to the curb.

This I find is very true because throughout high school, I found that many people seemed that they liked me, but as the years went by, more and more people I found were becoming two faced. For example, students council president, I felt I had strong support and a lot of people in the school liked me, but then at the end when I lost, I found out I lost hard because I only got such a small amount of votes. Basically it just made me go "huh" because so many people had said they'd vote for me because of what I believed was best for the school, and then they turned around and voted for the other candidates. Why? It's plain and simple, the fact is because my autism resulted in me often acting weird with friends or getting in their personal spaces or talking more than I should on topics, as a result people just saw me as weird and therefore would treat me one way to my face but wind up actually being total idiots behind my back. What's more, at one point some idiot of a girl who had pretended to be my friend, created a group called "We Hate Sean" and it basically became a group of about 30 people, though more like 20 since ten were trying to defend me, who would bash me and talk about weird things I did. Such as the fact in music class, I was trying to help this one girl with her solo because I like to try and help people as much as I can, and on the site she goes and says something like "oh he tried to help me with my solo when he can't even sing", yet funny enough it was me getting the 80s and 90s on solos and her getting the 60s...(I apologize if that sounds as though I'm being petty, I'm just saying that I gave her my time when I could have practiced my solo to help her, and she goes around and slams me behind my back. The one good thing about this group was it helped show me who were my true friends, and who were petty fake people who frankly deserved no friends except those who were on that group. I really should have reported it to the Principal since it was cyber-bullying, but I felt I was strong enough to deal with it on my own, which I was slowly becoming more confident in myself. But when I look back, I almost wish I had reported it because then some of the people who had joined who are like 80+ well-respected students would have wound up expelled and it would have shown so many who they really were. But like I said, I'm not that type of person, and I just couldn't do that so I dealt with it on my own by reporting it to Facebook for it's removal and it was removed.

But like I said, it seems we're always being graded as to whether we fit the norm, or fit outside of it. This is another reason why I feel I belong in Toronto or New York or Hollywood, because unlike a place like St. Thomas or London, etc. it's a place that accepts those who perhaps are theatrical, or a bit over the top sometimes. So that's my rant for today. I hope you all enjoyed it and I appreciate you reading :D

Love always,
Sean

I'm a Freak Baby

Hey Everyone!

So good day today minus one downside. I had a relaxing beginning to the afternoon, just watching some television and also getting my Project Runway Season 4 DVD :P. Then it was the lovely time of running errands. Going to the bank, then going to EB Games to pick up Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands and Super Mario Galaxy 2. Then it was off to Superstore for grocery shopping however they didn't have the jam or crackers I wanted which meant it was off to metro (it has no capital M) to get those items plus a couple of other things. I then finally headed over to get my dog Scout from the kennel but then realized I still needed to get him food so once I picked up Scout I got the food and headed home.

I mowed the lawn today which also was a dumb idea doing it in 27 degrees Celsius weather. I swear I nearly passed out because of my stupidity. Luckily the mower decided to stop itself so I was done for the day.

The rest of the night was watching tv, including the AMAZING Gaga Glee episode. I just loved it to DEATH!

Autism-wise, I suppose the only thing that happened was when talking to my mother on the phone about the lawn and such, I didn't know when to cut it short so I almost started rambling till my mom said she had to go.

That's basically it!
Sean

I Am BACK

Hey Everyone!

So I'm finally home from Florida and it was such an awesome time! Yesterday was definitely an...interesting day though because my nephew Mason was cranky most of the way home except during the flight which he thankfully was very calm. Anyway, none the less, it was a good trip though I felt so freaking exhausted and got to bed early last night...though 3AM really isn't "early".

Autism-wise, I think the only thing that happened yesterday was I was worried I was talking Tam's (my sister-in-law) ear off when we were driving home so I wound up apologizing more than once which of course was kind of silly :P.

That's all for talking about yesterday. I'll post again later today about how my day went today.

Later!
Sean

Shrek: Forever After

Hey Everyone!

So to begin with, wow it's been an amazing vacation but I can't wait to be home. Autism-wise I'll say the things I've noticed most were 1. worrying overly about my sister who is older than me having been at the resort bar longer than she had said so of course I feel like I need to check on her which is just silly. The other thing also being times where I'm just like talking about stuff more than I really need to. This could be autistic, this might not be, none the less.

Florida's been amazing though, minus several headaches I've been having. River Island which is a mini water area with lazy river and two water slides, as well as a large inflatable water slide and mini golf, was so much fun as it always is, and West Village which was the main area that existed before it expanded was fun as usual.

Seeing Shrek: Forever After was a lot of fun. It was a great way to conclude the Shrek series with Shrek learning a valuable lesson (just like every other heartwarming tale -_-). But ti was still a good film minus it following along the usual storyline for heart-warmers....

That's all for today! I'm looking forward to returning home where we're suppose to get like 90 degree weather (25-30 Celsius for Canadians like me) when I return home which is wonderful though unlike in Florida where it's a nice heat, in my area it's going to be more a very humid heat which kind of sucks but it's better than 60 (10-15 degree) weather...

Anyway, that's all for today my friends like I said!
Sean

FLORIDA!

Hey Everyone!

So I apologize for being so late in my posts. I hope you will forgive me :p. I may not post often this week being in Florida and all. Monday and Tuesday were periods of exhaustion because of all the traveling and at the same time, when it comes to my autism, I was so paranoid and nervous about flying, that basically as a result I was just upset in my stomach and couldn't eat anything. It just really was unfortunate because then when I got to where my parents were staying, I ate just soooo much and probably put on fifty pounds :P.

Florida is beautiful as always, with temperatures in the high 80s/low 90s. The resort we're staying is absolutely beautiful (we've stayed here before) and it's just an awesome time. I really hope the rest of my trip goes great, and I also hope that come time to return, it will be a safe return and I won't feel so ill again...

That's all for today. Hope you won't mind breaks this week just because of being in Florida...
Sean

Our Reliance on Technology...Why Do We Need It So Much?

Hey Everyone!

So normal day today. Work, tutoring, and just enjoying life. I think the only autistic thing that actually happened today was the case that when talking to the boy I tutor, I may have not known when to shut up :P

As for what I want to talk about, I do have to say the other thing I've noticed about my autism is that I almost freak out when I lose internet which I think is kind of ridiculous on my part. Like I get to the point where I'm just praying that the internet comes back on, connecting and reconnecting the modem and router just to try and get it back instead of just being patient and waiting for Rogers (the company I'm with) to fix it. So why is that? Why is it that we've come to rely so much on technology? It seems as though as a population we can no longer survive without having technology. What happened to a good book? Or going and performing music or going to an old fashioned concert without the need for amplifiers and such? Frankly it's quite ridiculous that now we've even reached the point in life where roommates in the same room as each other will use Instant Messaging to talk to each other.

That's just my opinion, and as you can see I am one of these very people and freak if I lose it. Now whether that's because of my autism or another reason, I don't know, but I do know it really is kind of sad.

That's all tonight folks!
Sean

Cheating: The New Definition of Monogamy

Hey Everyone!

So it was a sort of crummy/good day. I say crummy because I only got five hours of sleep last night. But I say good because it still was an enjoyable day, very relaxing once work was done and over with. I basically just played video games all night :P it was just so much fun. Autistic-wise, I think the only thing that happened was the over-stimulation by technology which is why when at Lauren's it took me so long to get to bed.

Now the title of my blog.

I have to ask everyone, what is it these days that has cheating on the rise. How many people do I know who had the sad pleasure of finding out their partners had cheated on them. So the reason I'm asking everyone is because to me it's a case of "Is cheating the new monogamy?" There was even a recent study about this one website that actually HELPS married people cheat, and interesting to find out, married women made up 75% of the people on the website! I'm sorry but is that ridiculous, have we really reached the level that cheating is the new definition of monogamy? Does everyone have to cheat to have a relationship?

Then there's the case of open relationships which basically just takes cheating to the next level, and basically makes cheating legal in a relationship. Frankly I have to ask, what happened to the whole true meaning of monogamy? Two people, bound together for life because of love. Apparently that's deceased now, and cheating is the new way to feel alive. I disagree, but who knows, maybe I'm just one of those old fashioned guys who actually believes in true love and monogamy.

Anyway,
That's all for tonight!
Sean

Letters to Juliet

Hey Everyone!

Day went quite well, I headed to London because I was hanging out with Lauren today. We had dinner at Jack Astor's which is always fun, and fattening :P. Then we went and saw Letters to Juliet, which was a beautiful movie. While yes, it was the usual romantic comedy, at the same time there were some very touching moments. Amanda Seyfried did a wonderful job as Sophie, yes she had the same name as her Mamma Mia character, whom wrote to a woman Claire who had written a letter to Juliet fifty years prior to the present time. I would go more into it like I have before but I don't want to spoil it for any of you romance-goers.

I'll post some more later, but autism-wise all that happened was that I kept worrying I was saying the wrong things to Lauren but of course I wasn't. Just my being paranoid :p

Talk some more later tonight!
Sean

Ahh the Future

Hey Everyone!

So my day was another dull one. I had to work with Chris and already going to say that it was more of Chris's constant asking when we were leaving. But I'd say the only other thing that happened autistic wise was I was doing a minor amount of grocery shopping, just picking up some minor items, and I talked to the cashier mentioning that at a different variety store a jumbo sized container was cheaper than the small container. I think I should of just figured, why did I need to bring this up, but I guess it was one of those lovely occasions where you can't help but bring up something completely random and make an awkward situation. It might not be autism, but none the less, it was AWKWARD. :P

Another thing I need to say is regarding how some things I really hate about in the world. For example, I tried getting a job at this one store that has a specific area of focus, video games, and being that I'm a video game fanatic, you'd figure it'd be easy for me to get a job there. Instead I walk in to find this one girl from my high school is now working there, someone who last I checked has never been interested in video games. Plus when I walked in, she looked at me as though I was dirt on the bottom of her shoe and she treated me the same way too. It irritated me so much I can't even get it off my mind because it is so ridiculous.

Now, the title of my blog, the future. Frankly I've been doing some soul searching and I've come to realize that I really have no idea what the heck I want to do with my life. Well...I do, I want to be an actor more than anything. Even though it's been a while since I did dance, but I still know how to dance, I can sing (I didn't do poorly on my vocal classes, I actually did smashing, so I must have some voice), and I know I can act because I don't take it to the point of perfection. However, as you also know, I'm in a Psychology program as a back up. But the fact is, I'm not happy. I only am ever happy when I'm acting, and while some directors may not always make it amazing, I still love it. I've been acting for years, and I just know that it's what is for me, but sadly it's also very difficult to get into...especially in Hollywood where I really want to go, to help entertain millions. To me it's about bringing joy to people who see movies, and it's what I'd love to get into... This is just me thinking about it and expressing my love of it...

Anyway that's all tonight,
Thanks for reading my friends,
Sean

Bullying Kills

Hey Everyone!

My day was a relatively normal. I had work with Chris as usual, in which we watched Brother Bear. I'd say the only thing that really happened was that I had to work on keeping myself once again from snapping at Chris. Odd thing that did happen was for some reason, Chris slapped himself in the face out of the blue. Not hard, but he still slapped himself which just confused me as to why he'd slap himself.

The thing I have to talk about today is Bullying, because recently a 13-year old from my city died because of bullying. Bullying is one of the worst things going on these days, but frankly it's one of the worst things that has been happening for centuries. Bullying can be found throughout every time period, from Napoleon Bonaparte, to the bullies who caused this boy's life to end. While I cannot really speculate what happened or how this boy's life ended because that would just be rude and irresponsible and probably even hurtful to the family, the fact is he was bullied and the school board won't even admit it despite apparent proof being everywhere.

Bullying is constantly happening, everyone bullies, or at least most do. Whether it's among races, sexual orientations, religions, it doesn't matter, bullying happens and we seriously need to figure out a way to stop this. But even if we're saying something bad about someone and they don't hear it, that's still bullying. It's just so beyond ridiculous that we can't just be nice to one another but the fact is, because we're all unique, people have to attack those who are different from them because it makes them feel powerful and in control.

That's what I think, but what about you?

Talk to you all soon!
Sean

What to Do...

Hey Everyone!

So what happened to me today? Absolutely NOTHING. I had a hair cut and that was basically it. I didn't have tutoring, and I didn't have work so as you can guess it was a pretty dull day. My only autistic thing that happened was me being unable to sleep last night due to the being alone thing. Obviously I'll be okay tonight since I'm not alone now that my parents are home again, but still it really annoys me. (Please Note: I was okay for sleeping for much of the past couple nights, but last night I just was not so hot. Don't know why, just wasn't).

ANYWHO, tonight on Glee it was such a fantastic episode. The Glee-clubbers had to choose a song that best represented them, who they felt they were and who their voice was. Rachel Berry was unfortunately losing her voice and it culminated when she tried singing her piece for the assignment, Miley Cyrus' The Climb. However, instead of a beautiful piece from Lea Michele as always, it was extremely off key, parts were barely singing, it was clear though that Lea can really act well at pretending to sing poorly, otherwise it would not have sounded as "not perfect" as it sounded. Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) performed a stunning rendition of "Jessie's Song" by Rick Springfield, due to his continuing affection for Rachel and wanting for her to pick him over Jessie (Jonathan Groff).

The other side of this episode was a focus around Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer) feeling rejected by his father who is taking Finn to sporting events and not inviting him. Feeling dejected, his tries to change his flamboyant self, into a more butch version going so far as to dress in flannel and overalls like his father, sings "Pink Houses" by John Mellencamp for his Glee assignment, and even tries to pretend dating Brittany (Heather Morris) and goes so far as to make out with her. It isn't until his father tells him about another sporting event he's taking Finn to, that Kurt finally tells him off and then goes off to the stage and sings "Rose's Turn" replacing Rose with his own name, from Gypsy: A Musical Fable, that his father walks in telling him that it was an amazing performance and he could get into that sort of genre (show tunes). Kurt and his father reconcile, with his father telling him he still loves him, and the two leave.

Rachel eventually regains her voice and ends off the show singing "One" by U2 at first with a friend of Finn's, Sean, who had been paralyzed in a football game but at the same time realized even though he could no longer do football, he still had other talents. It was through this that Rachel was able to regain her confidence and realize even if she lost her voice, it wasn't the only thing that defined her. The scene then shifted over to the Glee Club performing the song, and then ending the show by returning to the two singing.

There was also a brief storyline about Puck (Mark Salling) trying to regain his bully reputation at the school, and he tries to win over Mercedes who has become popular by becoming a cheerleader. He sings to her "The Lady is a Tramp" by Sammy Davis Jr. and is able to win her over. This however results in a duet between Mercedes and Puck's former girlfriend Santana (Naya Rivera) sing "The Boy Is Mine" by Brandy and Monica. Upon realizing that Puck had been using her popularity to become a bully again, Mercedes resigns from the Cheerios and breaks up with Puck.

Personally I loved the episode because it helped communicate the message of having confidence in yourself and just being who you are and not letting one thing define you.

Anyway, I hope you liked my review of the episode. I hope the writing wasn't too horrible.
Sean

Too Little To Say

Hey Everyone!

So I apologize in advance because I have basically nothing to talk about today. I had a quiet day of playing video games, working with Chris, and tutoring. The autism thing that happened today is the same thing that's been happening the past three days with Chris. Simply a slight irritation that he had to keep asking me about when we were leaving.

That's pretty much all tonight!

Sorry everyone...
Sean

Why Do We Want to Feel Needed?

Hey Everyone!

So quick update on the day. I worked as always with Chris. No tutoring today as we got all of it finished on Friday. I think autism-wise the only thing that really happened was the whole Chris thing I explained yesterday. Make sure to read yesterday's post as I'm not going to explain it again.

As for what I want to talk about well it's pretty simple. It's this whole fact that so many of us (the population) dating and everything, it's been making me think, why do we date? Is it a case of wanting to be needed? Or is it love? I've been thinking a lot and I don't know, I've been finding that we all have this need to feel needed. Why is it that so many of us feel we need someone not necessarily to be happy, but just for the whole companionship and such. I may know these days I don't need a relationship to be happy, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't like one just for the benefits of a relationship. Someone to love, someone who loves you, someone to hang with, someone to treat, someone who treats you, and someone who knows you so completely. Why is this? Why do we need this sort of thing?

I think the reasoning behind this is sort of what my friend said to me. "You know how tough it is to raise your hand in class if you're the only one who doesn't "get" something, or if you have an opposing viewpoint? But as long as you have that one other person who feels the same way, it makes it SO much easier? It's the same sort of idea. We're getting confirmation that we're on the right track. And that makes things easier."

I suppose he's right, but for now all I can pose is a question for you. Why do you think we always have to be in a relationship? Why can't we just be single and be so content that we never worry? Like George Clooney for instance? He's a bachelor and seems just completely content with it. So tell me, what do you think?

That's all tonight!
Sean

REALLY?

Hey Everyone!

Boring day today, comprised of work, and watching a lot of tv. :P

Now as for autism, well I think the only thing that happened was I got rather irritated (by this I mean not yelling, but just getting a bit more stern in my words) at Chris again because he kept asking what time we were leaving, for every minute or second that passed. I'd almost think that he has Alzheimer's now too because he's forgetting what I said, only five seconds after I say it. But it's clear that I'm just not telling him a specific way that allows him to understand. But I mean I tell him what time we're leaving. I tell him how many minutes till we leave. I tell him I'll tell him WHEN it's time to go. But no matter what I tell him, or how I tell him, he completely forgets that I just told him a minute ago and asks me again.

I suppose I understand him though, it really is just a case of impatience, but more importantly with Chris, it's a case that only certain things keep him focused. As a result, when he gets bored of what we're doing, he wants to go home, so he will constantly ask when we're leaving. It's simple as that. So as a result I keep telling him because I can't take him home yet.

Anyway that's all tonight!
Sean

Warning: Iron Man Ahead! (SPOILERS)

Hey Everyone!

So tonight I saw Iron Man 2, and it was one heck of a great movie.

Iron Man 2 was an action-packed film that improved on some of the flaws that Iron Man had. Unlike in Iron Man, in which was complete back story and a little action towards the ending, Iron Man 2 started practically from the beginning with action. Whether it was Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) landing in front of cheering fans with Iron Man cheerleaders in tow. We find out that Stark is actually dying because the chest piece he has is both keeping him alive and slowly killing him at the same time.

Later in Monaco, Stark encounters Whip Lash (Rourke) who cuts his car in half, then nearly kills him. This revelation that the technology is now possible to be made by anyone causes him to rethink his life, but at the same time act completely drunk at his own party. Eventually his best friend Rhodie (Cheadle) dons another suit to take on his friend to try and calm him down.

It's only through intervention by his best friend, followed by the arrival of S.H.I.E.L.D director Nick Fury (Jackson) and Natasha Romanoff (Johansson) does he finally start to realize who is he, and also thanks to his father, is able to solve the problem he had to do with his dying. Finally, armed with a new suit, new chest piece, and new will, he is able to face off against Whip Lash and his newly built army of drones that were built with the Iron Man technology. He also has to fight his friend Rhodie once more in an upgraded Iron Man costume, now labeled War Machine, but this time he is being controlled by Whip Lash through computer use.

Eventually Rhodie is freed from the control thanks to Romanoff's skill at computers, which is precluded by a kick-ass scene of Romanoff kicking give-or-take seven to ten guards with acrobatics and fighting moves. Rhodie and Stark finally take on the drones with an intense scene of fighting, bullets flying, and energy blasts until eventually they face off against Whip Lash and take him down by firing energy blasts at each other which explodes in Whip Lash's face.

They are honored as heroes, and the movie ends with Stark talking with Fury about something called The Avengers Initiative, followed by agreeing to Romanoff's assessment of him as a narcissist.

After the credits, the audience was also greeted with a nice little preview of Agent Coulson (Gregg) in New Mexico, finding a large hole being dug. The camera then ends the scene closing in on a metal hammer (which must assume that Thor is going to appear in the next film).

Anyway that's my review. I apologize for the choppiness of it and the total spoiler of the movie. Sorry!

Night everyone! And I'm sorry I didn't talk about autism stuff, but there really was nothing to talk about in this case.

Sean

What Do You Want From Me?

Hey Everyone!

So another day, another story. It really wasn't extremely busy, it was the usual work and tutoring. Autism-wise I think the only thing that happened was my whole being alone soon at home. I know I'll be safe, but for some reason I can't make that stick in my head to allow me to get sleep and everything...I feel as though as soon I as go to bed, someone will break in...when the last person who broke in was a friend (long story, won't go into it).

Anyway other than that, I'm seeing Iron Man 2 today which definitely is making me excited. I will definitely give everyone a review of it when I get back home.

As for the title of my blog? Well it's Adam Lambert's What Do You Want From Me. Which you can watch below or click it twice to head to it on YouTube.

That's all tonight!
Sean

I Have a Love/Hate Relationship with Thunderstorms...

Hey Everyone!

So the reason for my title is quite simple. Thunderstorms. Today we had a lovely storm which basically was a love/hate relationship for me. On one side, I absolutely love seeing the lightning bolts and hearing the rain is almost therapeutic for me. At the same time, it goes back to Grade 7 when I had this absolute phobia of tornadoes and if a storm even had a chance of occurring, I'd for some reason think that a tornado would happen even if it was just a dark cloud that just signified rain. I just couldn't get it through my head that just because it's a bit of cloud cover, that doesn't mean a tornado is going to happen.

I have a feeling this is something to do with my autism, and not just some form of phobia. But anyway, that's that. As for my day, it was a pretty dull. Work, tutoring, and I bought my ticket for Iron Man 2 (I already bought it, but I had to take the pre-order form in to get the actual ticket.)

Anyway, that's all for tonight!
Sean

How...Annoying

Hey Everyone!

So interesting stuff to tell today. It's something my mother recently realized I guess and something I suppose I've known for quite a while but I guess talking today more or less just brought it forward a bit more. Basically according to her, when I ramble and talk about things more and more and never stop, it can be very annoying. Which I already knew. But my Mom believes that in my brain, I'm just not cluing in that with this factor, it makes me seem unintelligent or a know-it-all or just makes people not really trust what I say. I'm not sure really how this works...but whatever.

Anyway, in case you can't tell, this basically was what happened autism-wise. I prattled on and on about something that happened in Glee today and as a result my mother came up with this above sort of paragraph (paraphrased by me as I can't completely remember exactly what she said).

Anyway that's all for tonight!
Sean

Sleep is Bliss

Hey Everyone!

Okay so I apologize for having posted the coming soon message, I just had been so exhausted for some reason yesterday that I had to get sleep and couldn't really write or think.

Anyway, what happened yesterday? It was a relatively busy day, banking to deposit some checks, Rogers Video to get a video game and return some, and then work with Chris. Now what do I need to talk about today? Nothing really, I just have nothing to talk about. Sad isn't it? But hopefully tomorrow, I'll have a more substantial post :p. (By tomorrow I mean later tonight lol).

Autism-wise, the only thing that happened was lingering on talking about Iron Man 2 the video game. My parents had to tell me to drop it in order to stop me from talking about it.

Talk to you all later!
Sean

Headaches Suck

Hey Everyone!

So short post today because I've got a headache and really just want to sleep. I had a regular day, work, tutoring, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers & Sisters. It was just a pretty quick day, and that's basically all there is to it.

Autism-wise the only thing that happened was a lack of sleep because I had been home alone. It's funny it happened since I actually did pretty well prior to last night. It's just because my mind can't just accept the fact no one is going to break in, seeing as how the only people who broke in once before was someone I considered my friend. So that's basically all tonight.

Sean

Time Flies

Hey Everyone!

So wow is all I can say these days. It seems like just yesterday I finished my third year, and now it's already the first day of May. How is this possible? Why is it time goes by sooooo fast? Maybe it might be because I sleep till around 3PM each day and therefore all that's left is a bit of the evening, and the night. But none the less, I find it almost ridiculous how fast time is going by. But I digress, the good thing about time going by fast is it means it'll be fourth year before I know it, which apparently is the year that just goes by so fast it's the end, ie. graduation, before you can say 'good-bye'.

Anyway, I don't know if other people feel about this but anyway, all that's left to say is that the day went relatively normal. Work, Tutoring, etc. I also played some video games and watched The Proposal which is such a good movie. Autism-wise I think the only thing I had going on was just getting aggravated over not being able to leave my neighbour's when I wanted to. Once I was done tutoring, Matt's father just asked me several thing about my work with Chris, and I was just thinking in my head 'I want to go home now...please let me go....' But he was just curious about it so I guess I can't blame him for asking questions.

Anyway, that's it for tonight!
Sean