My new book, Autism Dad 3: Life Skills & Life Lessons: Preparing Our Special-Needs Child For Adulthood, comes out March 27. Order it here! Teenagers with autism need life skills and job training. Life Skills & Life Lessons: Autism Dad 3 is a personal memoir told with humor and grace that looks at the unique challenges […]
Fighting A Losing Battle Against Roots, Wings, and Time
She’s going, and that’s all there is to it. My nine-year-old daughter got invited to spend a week with her cousins at their lake house in New Hampshire. It’s been in the planning stages for weeks, and she’s got everything worked out. She knows what outfits to pack, which shampoos to bring, and which stuffed […]
Modern Concerts Are Big On Spectacle, Short On Feel
Once upon a time, I loved going to rock concerts. It didn’t matter what the act was. Tickets were cheap in the 1980s: $15-$20; maybe $27.50 for fancy seats. One week in the mid-80s I saw REO Speedwagon on a Monday night, and KISS that Thursday. I was at an Ozzy Osbourne/Metallica show where the […]
Do you hear what I hear? Probably not
“I need you to bring this dirty laundry down to the basement,” my wife said. “Move the stuff that’s in the washer to the dryer, and bring up the clean clothes that are down on the folding table.” “Yeah, yeah,” I replied, grabbing the laundry basket and heading down. “And don’t forget to separate the […]
College safe zones degrade higher learning
Colleges and universities were once hotbeds of creative ideas and free expression. Students used to question abuse, question authority. Today, students request “safe zones” so they can protest “offensive” Halloween costumes, and insensitive emails. St. Louis University is one of several institutions of higher learning where designated safe spaces are a perceived necessity among minority […]
New Book! Autism Dad 2!
Homegrown Puppies or How We Fostered A Pregnant Stray Dog
Back in January 2013, my wife and I fostered a pregnant dog named Buttons. Buttons was on the “kill list” at a shelter in West Virginia, but some kindly animal rescuers transported her to the Bloomingdale Animal Shelter Society in Bloomingdale, NJ. We agreed to foster Buttons, and find homes for her and her puppies. […]
Revisiting Fatherhood Boot Camp This Father’s Day!
[This is one of my wife’s favorites. Originally published in March 2002, and revised for Father’s Day 2013] In honor of Father’s Day, June 16, I’d like to travel back to before I was Autism Dad, when I was just “a new dad.” The moment my son was born, I realized I held the most […]