CAN WE DO THESE AT CONS
SECONDED.
if youre not autistic or suffer from an actual disorder, dont use these. its not cute.er… you know a lot of autistic people go to conventions, right? And people with social anxiety disorders and panic disorders? Shit if I could get away with using this at work I would.
[Image is a poster explaining briefly the origin and meaning of green, yellow, and red interaction signal badges, referred to above as Color Communication Badges.]
Hello there, justsjwthings.
I would like to introduce myself. I refer to myself as Sam Thomas, though my legal name and how a lot of people know me is Matthew. I am officially diagnosed autistic.
Over one week in June 2013 (last summer), I was in Washington, DC for an autism conference called the Autism Campus Inclusion (ACI) summer leadership program run by the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network for autistic college students.
If you have any question as to the truth of this, I would like to direct your attention to this YouTube video that ASAN produced promoting the above-mentioned conference. I appear as the first person in the video and you can find more images of my face on my blog.
At this conference, not only did we use these communication badges pictured above, but we actually had the opportunity to meet Jim Sinclair, the inventor of these badges.
During the part of the conference in which Jim Sinclair gave us a history of Autism Network International (ANI)—which they were a co-founder of—they talked to us about the establishment of this particular piece of assistive technology. Basically, it was a simple idea that seemed to fit a need and quickly became very popular among many autistic spaces for it’s practicality and ease of use.
The conference it originated from is called Autreat and is held annually by ANI. This is an autism conference that accepts Autistics and Cousins (ACs)—that is, anyone diagnosed or otherwise self-identifying with any disorder autistic or similar that may share a number of autistic traits.
There was a need. The need was met. This is how we can safely assume most technology either emerges or becomes popular.
We also talked about something called Universal Design and the Curb-Cutter Effect. The Curb-Cutter Effect is when something to fit a specific need is found to create convenience in a broader area than intended. Curb cuts allowing for wheelchair accessibility to sidewalks proved to also be convenient to anyone who may have trouble with steps or even simply a mother with a baby stroller or maybe a child with a wagon. This is a desirable outcome with disability rights advocacy as creating convenience for non-disabled people often makes the assistive technology easier to advocate for.
In this sense, these colored communication badges could serve that Curb-Cutter effect. Not only would this be perfectly acceptable for non-disabled people to use for convenience, but would also help to increase their effectiveness and convenience for those of us who need them. Here are a few examples:
- Increased popularity makes the colored communication badges more easily recognizable to the general public, making them as effective outside the above-mentioned autism conferences as inside.
- Increase in demand would create increase in supply and availability, likely making these available to pretty much anyone and even being included with, say, the name tags you are required to wear at most cons.
- In addition to these helping people recognize the communication state of the wearer, the wearer will be able to recognize whom they can feel more comfortable to approach.
- Increased popularity would make these badges more acceptable for public use and less alienating to those who would wear them frequently.
This is not something that we are completely incapable of surviving without; this is something that was convenient and made our lives a lot easier. If that can be easily shared with the general public, then what purpose does it serve not to share it?
Thank you for reading.
Communication badges for everyone!
(via littlestartopaz)
Rest stops on highways are liminal spaces where the veil is thin and nobody can tell me differently
Explain
The explanation is that liminal spaces are in between places that bridge Here with There, so in fairy tales we often have the Fairy Ring, the Forest Clearing, the Sudden Misty Foggy Forest, the Bridge, the River, graveyards, in some cases
We also have a ton of american urban mythology around famous roadways and sites off the sides of roads
Archetypes like these occur to mark the places in the world where the veil goes thin and humans can have extra-worldly experiences, out of the ordinary way of living
So why wouldn’t transient spaces like rest stops where everyone is just passing through from one place to the next, never stopping for too long, not be a liminal space where spirits frequent, too
Especially since nobody would know if they were real or not
Ok but this speaks to me
I always feel like something isn’t quite right at rest stops
I once slept though three gas stations on a road trip, and the second the car started to slow to turn into a rest stop, I was basically wide awake.
My mom and I were on I-90 in a blizzard once and pulled off at the first exit we could find. Turns out that if we’d gone even a mile further, we would have happened on a 49-and-counting car pileup, and that 90 was closed for MILES. How we found an unblocked ramp was a matter of great debate, but where this gets weirder still is that at the bottom of the ramp was a closed truck stop and an open church full of teenagers–they went for youth group, the blizzard started, and they were stuck until the snow stopped. They fed us leftovers from their potluck dinner, prayed with us for safe travel, and when the snow let up they saw us on our way.
Three days later–Sunday–we were traveling back and decided to stop at that church to thank them. We found it thanks to the truck stop, but this time it was the truck stop that was open and the church that was closed. Neither of us remembered it looking so decrepit on the trip down, and granted we saw it first at night in a snowstorm, but you’d think we’d have noticed the boarded-up windows. So we asked in at the truck stop.
The church had been abandoned for ten years. And yet I still had one of their youth group programs under my sun visor, very clearly labeled for the previous week.
To this day I’m sure we crossed dimensions somewhere on I-90, and that’s how we stayed safe. You could tell me it’s because the truck stop was a liminal space and I’d 100% believe you.
I don’t mind when this post goes around again because sometimes I get stories like this
@littlestartopaz have this
(via littlestartopaz)
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I’m The Professor wielding my sonic laptop and my catchphrase is “okay”
I’m the Geophysicist and I have a sonic cell phone and my catch phrase is “just don’t forget to put it back when you’re done.” Which I like.
I’m the Sales Rep (my parents have boring careers) with a sonic iPhone and my catchphrase is “thank you”.
Uh. I’m the Substitute Teacher with a sonic gel-wrist-rest-thing-for-keyboards and my catchphrase is “Yes’m!”.
Look, we can’t ALL be badass.
I’m The Teacher, I have a Sonic Smartphone, and my catchphrase is “Check is in the mail.”
I’m the Safety programmer, I have a sonic steering wheel, and my catchphrase is “We eat anything!”
I am The Technician, armed with a sonic tea cup. My catchphrase is: “I have also laughed at dinosaur parkour.”
I am the Principle Engineer, armed with a sonic …rsa-token key fob. (ok, I can work with this) and my catchphrase is “Accurate.”
I am The Broker, I am armed with a sonic iPad, and my catchphrase is “Fucking traffic”.
I am The Aerospace Science Instructor, I am armed with my sonic blanket and my catchphrase is “What kind of pizza do you want?”
I am the Hairdresser armed with my sonic Harriet and my catchphrase is “Are you ok Harri?”
I am The Retiree, with sonic headphones, and my catchphrase is ‘okay thanks.’
Apparently I’m the Reverend, with a sonic pen, and my catchphrase is ‘I’m going to fill that in later.”
“Why do bras cost 50 bucks?”
They don’t, the bras YOU want cost 50 bucks.
“Why does make up cost 50 bucks?”
It doesn’t, the make up YOU want costs 50 bucks.
It’s fine to want things, but don’t act like you’re a victim because you want high quality stuff without having to pay higher prices for it lol.
it cant just be me who finds it rather jarring and unnerving that a 34 year old man and self-described “libertarian” wrote this post and yet it still gained some kind of traction
what bras aren’t overpriced though like by all means let me know
bras that you entitled “feminists” want: shiny, $50, money that could go to third world kids who need water
bra made of papier-mâché and elmer’s school glue: does the job just fine, basically $0.00, checkermate feministsok but why do cis dudes always do this lmao… why do cis dudes constantly feel the need to argue with women about how much it costs to be a woman. has it occurred to a single one of them that how the fuck would they know? jfc
Those $50 bras pay for comfort, support, and help avoid problems in the future because they’re properly taking care of your body. A bra made of “paper mache and Elmer’s glue” would ruin a girl’s back. Also the bigger size, the more expensive. ALSO if I’m going to wear this stupid contraption because you tell me it’s wrong to let them hang out or not be supported at all, you’d better be dam sure it’s gonna look as cute as what i show you on a day to day basis.
Could bras be cheaper without underwire, side ribbing, push up inserts, lace, glitter, etc? Yea, and they actually are. But when you’ve got B’s or higher, you start needing it more. But dam, don’t shame me when i don’t wear one and then yell at me when i complain it costs a lot AND THEN make cheaper versions less accessible!
Food for thought: if men had to wear a contraption to support your privates, would you want it made out of something comfortable, or paper-mache and glue that gets the job done? Chew on that before you come back and tell me to wear something that just “gets the job done.”
(via littlestartopaz)
reminder to:
- straighten your back
- go pee goddAMN IT STOP HOLDING IT
- go take your meds if you need to
- drink some water
- go get a snack if you havent eaten in a while
- maybe wander around the house/stretch a little if you’ve been sat at the computer a while (artists especially: sTRETCH THOSE WRISTS)
- reply to that text/message from earlier you’d forgotten about
- maybe send a nice lil message to someone having a bad day?
I just would like to thank everyone who ever reblogs this so that it somehow ends up back on my dash because I usually need the reminder (especially the drinking water one)
(via littlestartopaz)
(Source: themalfoymistress, via academicfeminist)
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