I don't know anything so I can't talk about much

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Is this because I have AS, or is it something different? I can't seem to pick up adult knowledge. I don't know how things work unless I've experienced it myself, whereas other people who I know seem to pick these things up even if they haven't dealt with it before (well, especially by my age anyway). So when my friend is gabbling on about some bill she's got to pay, it's going through one ear and out the other - whereas other friends she talks to tend to listen and know how to help by suggesting all these complicated things what just sends my mind into one big tangle of confusion. It's making me feel very dumb.

Lucky for me I understand the intentions of other people, so all I can talk about is other people, which kind of makes me look bitchy, but that's practically all I know. Oh, I also know about buses, but that's only because I get the buses all the time and I have a bit of a thing over some of the bus-drivers, but otherwise I don't really know anything. I can't go shopping because I don't know what should be cheap for what item and what should be more expensive, et cetera. I just get the first thing I see. Why don't I know any of these things? I don't even know facts either. All I know about is people, simply because all I get distracted to is people and noise what people make. I don't seem to know anything else. I'm obsessed with the weather, but I couldn't tell you what the weather is for tomorrow because I just forget.

Have I got Mental Retardation? Or is not knowing about these things common in Aspies, since NTs seem to know these sorts of things, like bills, wages, prices, anything else to do with money, and other things like fashion, perfumes, make-up, hairdyes, et cetera?

Your IQ is 75 right? So no you don't have it but you are borderline ret*d or semi ret*d.

Well that explains why I'm the biggest Autism-hater on WP. It's because I lack social skills and have a low IQ. How is one supposed to enjoy life if I have neither of those things? Most people either have one or the other or both.

I think others' egos just make them pretend they know stuff.. I think you are just being a realist. Other than that I am sure you can easilly get the basic facts straight.

I know people with IQs north of 130 who struggle to pay bills and go shopping.

Intelligence isn't how much knowledge you have. I think you will develop greater life skills, just maybe not at the same pace as others. I'm quite intelligent and it took me a bit longer than other people to become independent.

You are too hard on yourself.

I can relate to not knowing how to do something until I've actually done it myself. But yeah, stop being so hard on yourself.

Yeah, I'd say don't be hard on yourself. IQ, if you ask me, means almost nothing. It's supposed to be related to potential, and not actual intelligence.

You can write a clear concise post which seems more than someone with an IQ of 75 could do. I would say that score was bogus. Remember that an IQ is an average of verbal and performance scores and if you score a great deal more on one than the other it averages out. When my son was tested in preschool before his diagnosis, his performance score was way above average and is his verbal was below average (he was virtually non verbal at the time) and so his IQ came out as a solid 100. This is the kid that in middle school all his teachers are raving about how smart he is. His grades are excellent with minimal effort on his part. Anyway, I think your situation is mostly a lack of experience. Like puddingmouse said, many with higher IQ's struggle too. I am 54 and I don't have a clue about how to buy a car or a house or many other "adult" things. Your NT friend's are talking about acquisitions rather than about ideas. Do they like to talk about world events?