Older Aspie, what skills did your parents teach you?

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It can be anything, social, practical, artistic..

My mother taught my siblings and I how to sew, wash clothes and sheets, and importantly, how to cook. Dad taught us how to change a tire, change the oil in a car, and jump start a battery. They were of the opinion that these six things will get you out of 90% of the difficulties you will find yourself in.

My AS mom bailed on us, and my NT dad always told me that I could find sympathy in the dictionary, right next to s@%t and syphilis. He taught me to stand up for myself. That's about it.

All that and more in my case...my Dad taught me how to replace wheel bearings, brakes...run phone line, cable, minor plumbing (drains, faucets), how to change a light fixture, replace an outlet, solder and generally fix things.

Survival skills he told me. lol Anyways...I'm grateful.

My dad taught me how to drive starting when I was young and he would let me drive the tractor and his work truck. ) He taught me how to do math. He taught me to like myself and not care what others thought. Basically, he taught me everything.

Principles. My father is a strong union man and was a shop steward. My mother believes strongly in family. Might be hard to believe, but in the west of Scotland there is (not so much now) a strong religious divide. My fathers family (catholic) didn't attend the wedding because he was marrying a protestant. My mums family came from protestant freemasonry and presbytarianism.
Lesson learned? Question everything.

A word from your sponsors: Doctor Cabarnet Sauvignon

Any lessons learned from the above parties involved, may have been purely observational, and in no way are said parties to be held responsible for any principle outcomes or outcomes that are erm .......principled.

My mum is quite creative, she knits. Quite amazing stuff and her "knittings?" are always in demand in the local community, especially when there is a newborn.
Dad is political and has a logical, questioning brain.

Honestly can't think of anyhing practical. Although I do remember hanging around the kitchen on Saturdays when mum done a lot of cooking. I was a chef for 13 years lol

My father taught me to ignore other people. He always said that most of them didn't even know what they were doing, so how could they know anything about what I was doing?

In a more immediate sense, he also taught me how to figure out how things go together (even a car's engine is really quite logical - basically, it makes electricity, compression, air, and fuel all happen at the same place at the same time. If it's not working, it's one of those, no matter what other fancy crap gets tossed on top. If the spark is getting to the plug, and the plug is within tolerance, check the compression; if that's working, look at the air filter; if that's not clogged, check your fuel line. It's one of them, though, guaranteed). He showed me how to hunt, and how to walk without making any noise; he taught me to string electrical fencing, and how to patrol for things leaning against the wire and shorting the fence's circuit; he took me fishing, and stopped when he saw me getting bored.

He also infected me with a weakness for puns and off-color smartass comments...

My mom taught me sarcasm. Which is apparently quite a feat, seeing as I'm an aspie. But man, you should hear the two of us fight...in high school, my dad actually made a "no sarcasm when fighting" rule. Not terribly effective, but he gets an "A" for effort.

I was going to say "nuthin'" but then I saw

personal grooming, polish on shoes etc.

Dad always (still does) say the secret to sucess is "1% inspiration 99% perspiration" (I think that's from Edison).

Protestant work ethic.

PS - trying to get Dr Shiraz to sponsor me - lol

My father taught me to rinse the dishes and the silverware, then run the dishpan full of hot water and put only a squirt of the dish detergent in when it was almost full. put the silverware along the left side and let soak, then do all the glasses and glass plates, lids, etc. Then put in the rinsed plates and saucers and wash them next. Then do the silverware, making sure there is nothing between the tines of the forks or in the cup of the spoon.

When rinsing, make sure no dishsoap residue remains, let the glasses air dry, line up the plates and saucers, cups into the dish drainer and put a clean bleached tea towel over the whole and then hand dry the glasses first and then the silverware with another clean tea towel. Hang the tea towel over the sink to dry, sweep the kitchen floor and then run the mop over it and then go do your homework!

Merle

__________________________
"non scholae sed vitae discimus"
(we learn not for school, but for life)

You had silverware?

Any tips on keeping on top of my dishes, much appreciated

get 2 dishwashers. Then you don't need cupboards for them. lol

BTW - we had silver too (and EPNS). But don't worry about that, son of a union organiser. The Antipodes is almost classless (yeah has no class too), and I married a scots lass. Her grandfather was a coal miner and her father ran away to sea (merchant navy) when he was 15 or 16 rather than go down the pit. He was a chef too.

My dad taught me to drive & maintain a motor car.
My mum taught me to bake cakes and bread pudding <yum! yum!>

I will still say I learned more (of an academic nature) in a single day out in the science museum with my Dad than my entire school education.

well, flat ware. On winter holidays mom broke out the wedding china and silver[/quote]



"clean as you go is the sign of a pro," is how I learned, Mescal when you cook, keep a dish pan going in the sink and just wash and rinse and put measuring cups and tasting spoons and what ever into the dish drainer. Dump out the dishwater when it starts to get translucent and losing it's bubble. Use hot water and pretend you like the bubbles and then swab out the sink when you are done and if you think about it, put a table spoon or so into the drains after you dump the final dishwater to keep the drains sweet.

make sure you have a good broom, one with an angled brush bottom and a dust pan that doesn't have a gap between the flat part and the floor ( usually a rubber flange edge) and sweep the kitchen floor and use a damp sponge mop to get the crusties off near the sink and where ever you have chopped stuff, mixed stuff and in front of the sink. That will at least start some good habits, and you can do well to preseverate with good habits.

the one think you have to remember is NEVER LEAVE IT UNTIL LATER.

There is no 'Later'


Merle

My mother introduced me to the library. Considering she was a career college librarian, this wasn't exactly going out of her way. She taught me NOTHING else. Oh wait - she taught me the meaning of hypocrisy when I was 15.

My Dad taught me that it's possible to be loved.

Merle, my mother taught us the same thing--do dishes as you cook, so that by the time dinner is over, all one has to wash are the plates, silver, and any serving dishes. This was soooo handy at holidays.

My folks also taught me to stick with it. That no matter what, things will get better, and that if you don't know it, you can learn it.

I can do my own house repairs, I take care of my truck, I can cook, and I can work hard. Yeah, that Protestant work ethic got to the West Coast as well.

My folks also taught me that I was equal to everyone else, and being Aspie, I understood that completely.

And the other thing my mother was determined to teach me: know how to take care of yourself, and to not depend on a man. Not because she was afraid of us girls getting stuck with a jackass and no way to get out of it (well, she was), but because she believed that things happen, and a woman is just as responsible for taking care of her man as he feels he is taking care of her.

Ayup.

My mum taught me how to iron, which is now ironic because I wear jeans and T-Shirts.