Boxing Day (Tuesday)

I have to start with a 'rant' - about fireworks...

Should they be banned? I think so except for properly arranged displays on designated dates e.g. Bonfire night, Christmas night, New Year's night, etc. And organisers should hold an officially recognized safety certificate.

The reason I say this is because of the disturbances that they impose on young children, pets (dogs in particular), and other animals.

Last night we suffered dozens of fireworks being let off, in a garden just yards from our bedroom window. Lottie kept barking at them even though she's blind. She barked and barked incessantly whilst running around the flat.

Last night, while all this was going on, I began the 'Week 4' section of my OpenLearn course 'Understanding autism'. I'd been reasonably successful with weeks 1 - 3, the lowest score being 62%. I think that I'd been lulled into a false sense of security.

When it came to the assessment, in none of the sections I completed did I score anything? However, I this week considered clues to autism in early childhood, highlighting subtle differences from typical development that parents tend to notice. 

After introducing the diagnostic criteria and diagnostic process, the focus moved to parents’ and individuals’ experiences of diagnosis, considering both the positives and the negatives.

Finally, the week considered the likelihood that girls are being underdiagnosed because their behaviour does not match autism stereotypes and the challenges of diagnosis in cross-cultural settings.

As I reached further difficulty, I realised that as I'm going to be writing from a 'general audience' point of view, I think that I should be directing my questions towards, and using the replies from my subject Bodie and organisations such as the 'National Autistic Society', etc. when it comes to it.

I was being asked questions such as "Describe the dsm-5 set of diagnostic criteria outlines social communication difficulties and restrictions." This and all the other questions are too much for me.

I have clearly bit off more than I can chew.

PM

I didn't do much this afternoon. I watched some 80's hits which took me back to my early years together with Simon.

21:30 and I'm not really interested with anything on television, so I've come online to update this blog and catch up with emails, WhatsApp messages and MSN Messenger.

This week I plan on 'writing up' the recording of my interview with Wayne May, and writing the article.

That's all for tonight.