Got a child, teen or adult on the autism spectrum who has had a birthday party where you bought everything, sent out invites, even waited hopefully for people to arrive, but nobody showed up? Here’s some alternatives: Read the rest of this entry »

I was diagnosed with Autism in 1965 (aged 2). I grew up with autonomic issues, none of them formally diagnosed until they were pushed over the line following two general anaesthetics and chemo in 2011-2012. Read the rest of this entry »

We recently ousted a die hard monarchist PM who reinstated knights and dames, who swooned over British royalty, head patted Indigenous children in photo opportunities, paid lip service to multiculturalism, posed continually in his budgie smugglers and life saver cap, mooned over the Anzac myth, and effused continually of ‘our way of life’ whilst working constantly on building Xenophobia and our ‘right to bigotry’. But what does it mean to ‘be Australian?’ According to whom? And which type of Australian are you? Read the rest of this entry »

Whether it is resentment, self pity, self hatred, envy, controlling, fixation, shame, sadness, fear, outrage, self consciousness, regret, grief, anxiety, self righteousness, grandiosity and bravado, you CAN give yourself permission to LET IT GO Read the rest of this entry »

My little brother Johnny Duel adored me the way my paternal grandparents had… which I knew because they would all light up when they saw me, this was how I knew I brought joy to these people Read the rest of this entry »

In a recent article on the Autism Vaccine Myth, I read a clear summary of what evidence to date has so far found about the causes of autism. And the result is that some of these causes are due to inherited and spontaneous mutations not previously seen in the parents or siblings, some of which do not manifest until early development. Read the rest of this entry »

I have two brothers and my younger brother had a completely different relationship to my autism, seeing it as a wonderful part of his unusual sister. We reflect what is given us and I reflected back the equality and worth he afforded me. But, whilst I’m estranged from my older brother, likely always will be, at least I have been honored by the words he dared to share of who he once was. I have no contact with my older brother, Shane. We had different carers, different worlds, different histories, different neurologies. But in 1997 he wrote an autobiographical piece about his first 6 years and it will always remind me of the foundations of this older brother and who he could have been. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are straight and think Gay Marriage is going to affect you, you’re right… Read the rest of this entry »

First published in 2009, Baloombawop, is an illustrated 51 page off the wall hilarious adventure story by Donna Williams told in Dr Seuss/Roald Dahl/ Lewis Carroll like rhyme from start to finish. It was written and performed as a children’s rock musical by Donna and The Aspinauts throughout 2009 and captivated both special needs and mainstream alike including ‘kids at heart’. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve got plenty of bogan rellies… Read the rest of this entry »