The innovational, celebrational, oreo eating, DJ Wilde!

[DJWilde]

First off, let me just say that the possibility I'm related to Oscar has never been confirmed. That out of the way, I'll get on with it.

I'm David (DJ) Wilde, artist, author, and advocate. I enjoy my artwork, sandbox video games, dog golf, my kids, other gaming, hanging out with family and friends, and a torrent of other random things. I do have a twisted sense of humor, but a rocky life made me earn it, so I wear it like a badge of honor.

I like fantasy adventures the most. I've read the Hobbit 14 times and a long list of other books. At age 42, I'd say I've done more than my fair share of reading, not that I'll stop anytime soon. I'm also an old comic book junkie. Sadly, I don't have as much time to read as I used to, but I still enjoy it.

How did I find booktalk? Google! I do hope that his is an active forum. I haven't had much luck in that route in a while.

Let's see, questions you're bound to have from the above:

Advocate? Yes, I'm an advocate for autism education. I have Asperger's syndrome, MS, and a Traumatic Brain/Nerve Injury. My 11 year old son has Asperger's and child onset Bipolar. I now do my creative work to inspire others (especially youth) in what you can do despite having a medical condition. I make superheroes. You don't get much more inspiring than that. I do speak to local places about autism and what it's like to grow up with it.

Dog golf? First, MS and my knees don't get along. There's always a 50/50 chance that when I kneel down for anything, my knees will rebel on the getting back up part. We have a rescued dog who is addicted to tennis balls. So, to fill her addiction to fetch, I use a golf club to launch the ball out. She retrieves it and we all have a good time. We call it Dog golf.

In comics, I'm a Marvel guy, but I do like a lot of DC titles too.

So, there I am. Glad to find the place and look forward to sharing with you.

[Rajesh]

Welcome to BT!!!

[DJWilde]

Thank you, Rajesh

[Chris OConnor]

Hi David,

What exactly are "sandbox video games?" Never heard of them. Do you actually play in a virtual sandbox? If so...I want one!

I'm also a fantasy genre lover but I've not completed The Hobbit even once yet. Do I still qualify as a fantasy nut if I can't claim to have read The Hobbit?

It sounds like life has not be gentle on you. Asperger's and MS and a brain injury...this is more than anyone should ever have to face. Several people in my family have varying degrees of autism but my knowledge of autism is limited to what I learned in "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time."

I now do my creative work to inspire others (especially youth) in what you can do despite having a medical condition. I make superheroes. You don't get much more inspiring than that. I do speak to local places about autism and what it's like to grow up with it.

This is really wonderful.

We have a rescued dog who is addicted to tennis balls. So, to fill her addiction to fetch, I use a golf club to launch the ball out. She retrieves it and we all have a good time. We call it Dog golf.

This sounds like a really good time.

Fantastic intro. I do hope you stick around. I can tell just from your intro that you'll be a welcome addition to the community.

Welcome to BookTalk.org.

[DWill]

Hi DJ Wilde. Do you ever get the comment from something you've written, such as your intro, that you don't seem like somebody with Asperger's? I was just wondering about that, since you sound very socially adept. You don't need to feel that you have to talk about that if it's too personal. I work in the mental health field and have some acquaintance with Asperger's. I hear that in DSM-V (officially released tomorrow), there is no label of Asperger's, just different degrees on the autism spectrum. If that is true, I wonder how people with "Asperger's" feel about that. Has the term served as a kind of identity for them?

[Brooks127]

Nice to meet you. I did historical research for a graphic novel. Finally got to use that degree I earned. LOL

[DJWilde]

Hi David,

What exactly are "sandbox video games?" Never heard of them. Do you actually play in a virtual sandbox? If so...I want one!

That's a term for a video game that allows you to roam and explore without being tied down to the storyline of the game. It's also called "free roam".

I'm also a fantasy genre lover but I've not completed The Hobbit even once yet. Do I still qualify as a fantasy nut if I can't claim to have read The Hobbit?

LOL, I don't think that can be held against you

It sounds like life has not be gentle on you. Asperger's and MS and a brain injury...this is more than anyone should ever have to face. Several people in my family have varying degrees of autism but my knowledge of autism is limited to what I learned in "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time."

No, it hasn't. Much of life growing up was baptism by fire and random directions. I found out about my Asperger's 8 years ago when my son was diagnosed. And yes, degrees vary heavily.

Fantastic intro. I do hope you stick around. I can tell just from your intro that you'll be a welcome addition to the community.

Welcome to BookTalk.org.

Thank you for the awesome vote of confidence and compliment. I'll be checking in back and forth as much as I can. About to go on a road trip to see my daughters. One of them is graduating!

[DJWilde]

Hi DJ Wilde. Do you ever get the comment from something you've written, such as your intro, that you don't seem like somebody with Asperger's? I was just wondering about that, since you sound very socially adept. You don't need to feel that you have to talk about that if it's too personal. I work in the mental health field and have some acquaintance with Asperger's. I hear that in DSM-V (officially released tomorrow), there is no label of Asperger's, just different degrees on the autism spectrum. If that is true, I wonder how people with "Asperger's" feel about that. Has the term served as a kind of identity for them?

Asperger's is especially good at hiding itself depending on the skills and affected level of the person you are dealing with. My writing has always been a strong forte with me. I can express myself in ways here that I would stumble at in person. I assure you, two very different experiences. And I don't mind talking about it at all. That's what autism education is all about. I do struggle and I do have the complimentary sensory disorder that messes me up on some bad days. I have tremors and other issues from the MS that don't help, but I get through them.

Ah, the DSM! Not everyone is agreeing with them. Doctors in my area are still accepting Asperger's as a term of description for high functioning autism. They lumped it all together thinking it would be easier to just classify autism as "autism" and be done with it. The National Institute for Mental Health (NIMH) has announced they will no longer use the DSM in it's new form because they don't agree with it. I've met others who say their doctors are less than impressed as well. So what they are doing with the DSM may involved more fighting than anything right now. I'm sure there are quite a few patients who will be caught in the crossfire. What I tell people that I advise, is to have a good rapport with their doctors. The doctors know what codes to use to get through the insurance companies (yep, they'll throw a bone to get things done) and are the best representative for assistance.

Identity? You bet it has. Autism is the most controversial medical condition of the age. So much, that there are complete communities with differing belief systems on autism. So much that many of these communities don't like each other and will use their own brand of near racial slurs on each other. How's that for identity in a medical condition? The most adversarial groups are the anti-cure and pro-cure groups. The anti-cure believe a cure is going to be forced on them and that they will lose their identities. They are heavily against Autism Speaks, saying "Autism Speaks does not speak for me". It's best not to anger them. The situation can be as adversarial as any differences of religion or politics. It can get very angry. The pro-cure (angrily called "curbies" by anti-cure) are parents who want to see their children able to talk and dress themselves.

I really do make it look easy, but that's because I've been through a lot in life and my writing is what I'm acclimated to.

[DWill]

Hi DJ Wilde. Do you ever get the comment from something you've written, such as your intro, that you don't seem like somebody with Asperger's? I was just wondering about that, since you sound very socially adept. You don't need to feel that you have to talk about that if it's too personal. I work in the mental health field and have some acquaintance with Asperger's. I hear that in DSM-V (officially released tomorrow), there is no label of Asperger's, just different degrees on the autism spectrum. If that is true, I wonder how people with "Asperger's" feel about that. Has the term served as a kind of identity for them?

Asperger's is especially good at hiding itself depending on the skills and affected level of the person you are dealing with. My writing has always been a strong forte with me. I can express myself in ways here that I would stumble at in person. I assure you, two very different experiences. And I don't mind talking about it at all. That's what autism education is all about. I do struggle and I do have the complimentary sensory disorder that messes me up on some bad days. I have tremors and other issues from the MS that don't help, but I get through them.

Ah, the DSM! Not everyone is agreeing with them. Doctors in my area are still accepting Asperger's as a term of description for high functioning autism. They lumped it all together thinking it would be easier to just classify autism as "autism" and be done with it. The National Institute for Mental Health (NIMH) has announced they will no longer use the DSM in it's new form because they don't agree with it. I've met others who say their doctors are less than impressed as well. So what they are doing with the DSM may involved more fighting than anything right now. I'm sure there are quite a few patients who will be caught in the crossfire. What I tell people that I advise, is to have a good rapport with their doctors. The doctors know what codes to use to get through the insurance companies (yep, they'll throw a bone to get things done) and are the best representative for assistance.

Identity? You bet it has. Autism is the most controversial medical condition of the age. So much, that there are complete communities with differing belief systems on autism. So much that many of these communities don't like each other and will use their own brand of near racial slurs on each other. How's that for identity in a medical condition? The most adversarial groups are the anti-cure and pro-cure groups. The anti-cure believe a cure is going to be forced on them and that they will lose their identities. They are heavily against Autism Speaks, saying "Autism Speaks does not speak for me". It's best not to anger them. The situation can be as adversarial as any differences of religion or politics. It can get very angry. The pro-cure (angrily called "curbies" by anti-cure) are parents who want to see their children able to talk and dress themselves.

I really do make it look easy, but that's because I've been through a lot in life and my writing is what I'm acclimated to.

That was a wonderful response. I had no idea that such political divisions existed within the autism community. What you wrote reminded me of the battles over deaf culture.

I'm interested to read the recent book, Saving Normal, by Allen Frances. Frances worked on DSM-IV but is a critic of the new revision.

[Chris OConnor]

I suppose Massively multiplayer online role-playing games would be "sandbox" games. For years I played Everquest I and II and then World of Warcraft. I miss them but my schedule doesn't allow for them these days.