PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

That's actually a "Volkswagen in drag"...

Bentley has been owned by Volkswagen since 1998.

 

It is a supremely shitty day...

 

I’d still like to get a chance to drive one.

 

Same here...

 

@booted
@ChadsPride
@Gr8fl
@gulzeb
@Jamesboy2233
@MikeCB600F
@Plain Jane Taco

Since this is called "Charlie's Aspergers Thread", I figured I may as well discuss something Aspergers-related...

The topic of the night is the meltdown, basically a temper tantrum to the layperson. They were far more frequent when I was younger, as late as 5th grade, but the older I got the less intense they became. I almost never have them now, and to call them meltdowns would be incorrect in my opinion.

My most recent meltdown was about a week ago, when my mom and I stopped by my girlfriend's house to pick her up. My girlfriend's parents wanted to meet my mom, and we planned on drinking that night, so my mom was going to drive us into town and we were going to Uber home later on.

My iPhone (I think I have a 5S) decided to stop working properly just as we pulled into the driveway. Specifically, the touch-screen would not work at all. I restarted it three times, and this made the problem even worse because the phone wouldn't let me use the fignerprint ID to log in. Somehow, it would work just long enough for me to type in the passcode and then quit working again.

We spent like 10 minutes out in the car trying to get it to work so I could text my girlfriend that we were there, and then we just went up and knocked on the door. I was still in a bad mood, trying to get my phone to work. One of the things I have always disliked is three or more people greeting me at once when I walk in the door, whether family or friends. My girlfriend's whole family (parents, older sister, and younger brother, minus the other younger brother who is at college) is sitting on the couch in the family room and they all say "Hi Charlie!"

I was punching my phone and calling it a piece of shit, and then my mom and my girlfriend started telling me to calm down. Telling me to calm down in any tense situation always has the opposite effect on me. I actually threw up my right pointer finger and glared at my girlfriend, and I still feel really bad about this even though she's forgotten about it. My girlfriend's sister helped her download Uber on her phone, but I am rather proud and old-fashioned, and as such I felt it was my responsibility to pay for the Uber (plus I had like $16 in credits from a giftcard left). I exercised a bit of restraint, but still lost my temper and smacked the shit out of my phone. Another old-fashioned moral of mine is to never raise a hand to somebody unless it's in self-defense. My parents, other family members, and close friends all know that I am not a violent person. I'd been seeing this girl for about a week and a half at the time and her family did not know this. My girlfriend's dad was so worried that he kept barraging her with texts, telling her to call him for a ride home if I got "drunk and crazy." Ironically, it was my girlfriend who ended up getting hammered (despite having way less to drink than me). I was not supposed to know about these text messages, but she was drunk and her verbal filter was long gone. All my girlfriend's dad succeeded in doing was pissing off his daughter, which in turn made the remaining of the night not a lot of fun for me. I have since redeemed myself with my girlfriend's parents, but I have now had second thoughts about our relationship (not because of her drinking or the fact that she's a lightweight; this is a story for another time).

 

@booted
@ChadsPride
@Gr8fl
@gulzeb
@Jamesboy2233
@MikeCB600F
@Plain Jane Taco

Incidents like what took place at my girlfriend's house last Thursday are almost unheard of nowadays. I get into arguments with my parents from time to time, but at home behind closed doors. The closest I've come to having a full-blown meltdown in front of a perfect stranger is back in October 2015 when I screamed and cussed at that drunk old man who clobbered my beloved Tacoma with his Mercedes-Benz.

One time in 2003 or so, I was with my Grandma and her friend at an ice cream shop somewhere in New Hampshire (my Grandma has owned a lakehouse in Southern Maine for almost three decades and the NH border is just a few miles from her house. I forget what the hell happened to make me so angry (this was 14-15 years ago, remember), but I'm sure it was the most trivial of bullshit. Anyway, I had a total meltdown and started screaming at my Grandma. My Grandmother knew full well that I had AS and may have snapped back at me, but for the most part just stood idly by and waited for me to calm down. Unfortunately, we were in public, at an ice cream place in the middle of summer. My Grandmother knew I would never hit her or otherwise get violent, but I was getting right up in Grammy's face and none of the bystanders knew anything about me. They didn't know that I was a kid with Aspergers who would never harm anyone. They thought I was just some crazy guy. I was 14 or 15 and quite large by then...

Inevitably, I calmed down, apologized to Grammy, and sat down at a nearby table with her friend while she (Grammy) ordered the ice cream. Grammy told me a short time later that I hadn't seen it, but a man had taken up position directly behind me and was getting ready to grab me if he felt I was about to hit my Grandma. That never would have happened, then or now, but I can tell you right here and right now that if a strange man grabbed me from out of nowhere I probably would have decked him. I would not do that today, but back then I was just a kid and I would have defended myself. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if the guy I was too angry to notice had grabbed me. As well-meaning as it may have been on his part, I still would have reacted defensively. However, hearing Grammy tell me that really opened my eyes, and public outbursts (at least as extreme as that one) became nonexistent.

 

I would have done the same thing as that guy did and reacted accordingly if things escalated

 

You do understand why I would have reacted defensively, as a 14-year old?

 

This took skill that I didn't even know I had!

 

Sure. But as a stranger, I wouldn't have anyway of knowing your intentions. I would've been right there making sure things didn't escalate. If they did I would have had no choice but to intervene

 

Nowadays I'd be afraid of getting sued if I were in that guy's situation and intervened...

 

Sorry, you lay a hand on a woman, odds are your getting restrained. The world seems to be a soft place now, but i sure hope the majority of us feel this way.

 

Even raise a hand.
It may even come down to proximity and tone of voice.....
Id rather be sued than see something i cant unsee

 

You're definitely right. I FEEL THIS WAY!

I would never lay hands on a woman, but guys are different. I had no intention of laying hands on my grandma, but if some strange guy laid his hands on me he probably would have gotten a black eye or a bloody nose. Also keep in mind that I was a minor at the time...

I never hit women, but as far as I'm considered all bets are off when a guy gets physical with me.

 

@Plain Jane Taco

On another note, here's something that happened back in 1995-1996.

I was 5 to 7 years of age, and my cousin Sara would have been 3 or 4. This happened at the home of the same Grandmother mentioned in the previous post. Grammy lived in this huge condo from 1994 until 1999 (she bought another house in the same neighborhood in 2006 and still lives there). I'm not going to lie; I had no memory of this until Grammy told me, and I still only have the vaguest memory of it now. So, here's what happened...

My cousin was walking down the stairs, I was walking down the stairs behind her, and Grammy and my cousin's mom were directly behind us.

My cousin tripped or slipped and went flying down the stairs. Because I was directly behind her, she assumed I pushed her and began screaming at me. Luckily, Grammy and my aunt were behind me and saw the whole thing, otherwise I would have been screwed. For some reason, I apparently apologized to my cousin repeatedly even though Grammy kept telling me I'd done nothing whatsoever...

 

My son’s meltdowns have decreased. He has More meltdowns with my wife. She gives in to him a lot while I will not. Most of his meltdowns are in the car because he wants to go somewhere else.

Your girlfriend’s dad is worried that she will end up with a wife beater. Your phone is just an object. Just say ahh shit my phone F’ed up.

The incident with your grandma, the guy does not know you or her. He was probably watching to make sure you did not hit her.

 

You will learn coping mechanisms that will help you deal with these frustrations as you get older. I've definitely gotten better, but I still get frustrated on occasions.

 

Are you parents pissed?

 

But did you have fun?