Category Archives: autism

Thanks Folks

Saturday, the Autism Center of Tulsa held their third Annual 5K and Fun Run. It is their major fund raiser of the year and also an opportunity for the Autism community of Tulsa to get together and have a party. So you have the kids, their parents, siblings, grandparents, friends, and therapists show up. Each kid forms a team. Here is SuperPizzaBoy with his team sign.

At 8:00 am the 5K was held. It had about 500 or so runners. I ran it and it about killed me. Two hours later the fun run was held. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were not 2000 people were in it. The line stretched back from the starting line a long ways.
Action Shot of SPB, Sweetie, and one of SPB’s Speech Therapists during the run.


At the finish with Mom.

SPB and family friend Jacob sprinting at the end.

The end, with the old man.

Me, Sweetie and SPB would like to express our thanks to those who helped support SPB in this effort.

SPB’s grandmother Nana.

My Sister, SPB’s Aunt Ellen and her husband Irvin. She is probably going to sue me for publishing this picture from a recent trip to see her daughter in Australia. Ellen is one of the nicest people I know and an animal lover from way back and a great Aunt to SPB. She is married to Irvin, a former Army helicopter pilot and a great Brother in Law. Ellen is better looking than he is though and I don’t have a recent picture of him.


My cousin Merri Ann in Idaho. She is a real sweetheart and has a great family.

The girls of Today in Idabel Oklahoma. They are also sweethearts. I don’t care what anybody says. They provided a pledge to the Autism Society of Tulsa and some encouraging words to SPB.
Note I showed SPB all the kind comments that people made, he really like them. Others with encouraging words are:
Kathy of the Oklahoma Booklady.
Anyway, Thanks everybody, I’ll probably be hitting up everybody again next year!

Sign up Here

I have a great deal for you. It won’t cost you anything, nothing at all. Just by leaving a comment for this post, you can help a great organization with a fund raiser. Just read a little bit further and leave a comment and then you are done.


Here is the deal. The Autism Center of Tulsa is having their annual 5K and Fun Run Saturday morning at Hunter Park here in Tulsa. You can click on the link above to find out more but they provide a ton of resources to help Autistic children and their families cope with the disease. This includes sponsoring seminars and other training, family fun nights. They have a resource center with all sorts of information. They don’t do therapy, they provide information, support, and services.

OK, I’m done, here is my deal. SuperPizzaBoy as well as Sweetie and I are running the Fun Run, and I’m also running the 5K:

Please leave a comment for SuperPizzaBoy encouraging him to complete the Fun Run. No strings attached. Just leave a comment and you are done!

I’m not quite done. We have had some very generous donors who contributed to Logan’s team. If you would like to join them go ahead and click on the widget on the right. If not, just leave a comment. I would appreciate it very much.

One last thing, if you or somebody you know live in Northeast Oklahoma and have a child with autism and need help or information please tell them about the Autism Center of Tulsa. The contact information is on the web site. They can help.

Yogi is Grumpy at the City of Tulsa.

My blogging friend Baloney is miffed and I’m pissed and getting quite grumpy. The problem you see is that Tulsa Parks is considering dropping the DDA Day Camp for Special Needs Kids this summer. Last year was SuperPizzaBoy’s first year in the camp and he had a lot of fun. The kids went swimming, bowling, and all sorts of other things.

The city provided trained people to make sure that all the kids participated and were safe.

The link to the Tulsa World article on the matter is here.

I don’t blame the Tulsa Parks people at all. SPB and I have met some of those folks through our geocaching hobby and they all have a heart for what they do and generally go above and beyond the call of duty. They are very hard working people.

The City is using doublespeak to describe the situation. “… the primary reason for discontinuing the camp was to include special needs children in other programs.” Excuse me folks, any children present? That is a bunch of bullcorn!! I’m sorry. I find it a very cynical use of language to justify the action. I resent it a lot.

According to the City spokesman, this is the only summer day camp that has been cut from the schedule. They do however “hope” that the kids will be able to participate in the other camps this summer. Gee, I hope so also.

Now we are taxpayers and we know that city tax receipts are down and everybody has to tighten their belt but why is the DDA camp the only camp cut? And the only alternative is “hope.”

We have a little disconnect here. Many special needs kids cannot be left to their own devices. Either they stay internal and don’t participate, or they drift off from the group, or they get frustrated and mad and act out towards the staff or fellow kids, or they get picked on, bullied, and attacked by the other kids. Many parents, have tried just dropping their kids off at some program and hope for the best. This doesn’t work too well generally for anybody involved.

For example, I have seen our son, SPB, punched in the gut and hit in the face by other children at our son’s Sunday School class here in Tulsa. That is one reason Sweetie and I taught in our son’s class. So we can keep an eye on him. The church stepped up and provided adult “Buddy’s” for special needs children to the benefit of all concerned.

Anyways if you live in Tulsa and would like to help please call the Mayor’s Action Line at 596-2100. I talked to them a little bit ago and they do a very good job of registering your comments and are very pleasant, professional, and courteous.

Also contact your City Councilor. They have email. They will answer your emails, if your courteous. You can find who your councilor is and their email addresses here.

Natural Gas, Nuclear Energy, Nick’s Law and What Else?

I had a whirlwind day last Thursday.

First I drove from Tulsa down to Oklahoma City for a meeting of Natural Gas and Energy Association of Oklahoma. They had the meeting at the Oklahoma History Center near the State Capital.

You could really tell that the price of natural gas is down. Not many people showed up. March prices for Oklahoma gas could be down in the $2.70 per million btu range. That is about 1/3 of last summer’s prices, and its winter. Doesn’t look good for the rest of the year. Also, the speaker was going to talk about Nuclear Energy in Oklahoma. To a bunch of gas folks?

Some people have told me that energy companies rig the prices. I tell them that the energy companies are pretty piss poor at it.

The Speaker was State Represenative Scott Martin of Norman. He is sponsoring a bill to facilitate nuclear power plants in Oklahoma. I think it is a good idea. That is for another post.

I kept thinking Scott Martin, Scott Martin . . . Seemed like he was involved in the Nick’s Law controversy going on in Oklahoma. He is a Republican . . . Some Republicans’ have suggested that Oklahoman’s with autism and their families maybe need to move to some other state. That kind of bothers me. Maybe the politicians need to move instead.

Anyway I got home and googled Rep Martin and was very pleasantly surprised. According to this Rep Martin was one of only four Republicans who stood up to their leadership to try and bring Nick’s law to the floor last year. So, I think that he is a good guy. I wished I had talked to him, but he had to go to a hearing, busy, buys, busy.

Speaking as a Republican, I have been wondering for some time now what they bring to the table, I mean, if you are not a big contributor looking for special favors in return for contributions. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not about to turn Democrat on anybody. But still I’m wondering.

I had other things to do so I didn’t go through the Oklahoma History Center. I have done it before and I really recommend seeing it if you hadn’t before.

I did go through the grounds though. Lots of oil and gas stuff there.

Drilling rigs of various vintages. Look at the sky, you wonder why I didn’t want to stay inside?

A pumpjack, an older model. For pumping oil.

There was a geocache on the grounds. I’m sorry to report that I didn’t find it.

Now, a boring blast from the past. I used to live close to the Capital in my pre-Sweetie days in an old neighborhood. So I went over there to take a look.

I loved this house. I signed a 1 year lease and left before the lease was up. Everything that wasn’t nailed down was disappearing. I even caught a fine young coed from that great Methodist school, Oklahoma City University, stealing bricks from the back yard. She said she didn’t realize that they belonged to anybody. She offered to put them back where she got them. Boy, that was nice of her.

I then left the city and headed west, to western Oklahoma. To check on some projects I helped put together commercially. In particular a couple of compressor stations.

Here is what one looks like. Isn’t it a beauty? Ok, time to quit.

Ready, Set, Run 2009

The Autism Center of Tulsa (“ACT”), formerly the Tulsa Autism Foundation, is having their annual 5K Race and Fun Run on May 9, 2009 at Hunter Park in Tulsa. It will be a certified 5K race and a very fun Fun Run. A good time will be had by all. The Yogi Family will be out in force including SuperPizzaBoy, who as some of you know has Asperger’s Syndrome, a type of Autism.

To quote from the ACT web site:

“The Autism Center of Tulsa was founded in 2005 with the mission of meeting the needs of individuals and families affected by autism and related neurological disorders to improve quality of life. The Autism Center of Tulsa provides programming that supports its mission in a variety of ways, including community awareness and outreach, early screening and intervention, safety, parent and professional information and training as well as family support and on-site resources.”

The Yogi family has benefited from the various ACT programs such as the Family Fun Nights, educational seminars for parents. They also have a resource center. They provide lots of support but they do not advocate any particular treatment approaches thinking that is best left to the parents and doctors of the children involved.

If your family has somebody diagnosed with Autism or if you know somebody else affected by the disorder please check out the web site and call them. They are very helpful.

As part of this race the Yogi family formed a team, “Logan’s SuperPizzaPeople,” to help out with the fund raising. To help SuperPizzaBoy get motivated to raise money we’ve thrown him in jail and we are not letting him out until he comes up with a $1000. I know that some people may think that is a little harsh but SPB doesn’t really mind except we we are not letting him play video games.

You might check out the link. There is picture of him in jail. If you don’t feel led to give, he would appreciate any supportive comments that you may have. If you do feel led to give I would appreciate it very much, not only for the money which will go to good uses but also to reduce the noise level in the house. We messed up and put his cell way too close to the house and he is yelling really loud. I can hardly hear myself think!

“Asperger’s from the Inside Out” by Michael John Carley

“Asperger’s from the Inside Out” is written by Michael John Carley, who is the Executive Director of GRASP, (The Global and Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership). The book is meant to be a guide to life for people with Asperger’s Syndrome (“AS”) with emphasis for those who were diagnosed with AS when as adults.

Carley is well qualified to write the book. He was diagnosed with AS as an adult and part of the GRASP mission is to set up support groups all over the country for adults with AS.
I read the book not because I have AS but because I’m the father of a son with AS and I thought that it might help give me a heads up on what to expect with him as he continues on his journey.

Carley, I think, is realistic about these kids can expect. Life for them may be difficult but there is an excellent chance they can adapt and live product, even happy, lives. They may suffer lots of rejection and reversals on the way.

It is asking a lot of a book to be a guide for life for somebody with a disability and I’m not sure this book is it. I think the story of AS changes quickly and I’m not sure that books are the best way to learn. That said, I rate the this book as a 3 stars out of 4 for helping this Dad understand what my son may be in for as he continues to grow up.

Playing Pranks

Our 10 year old son, SuperPizzaBoy never fails to amaze me. He is one very complex little dude who I don’t ever think that I’ll figure out but enjoy just listening to and learning from him. He has Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism, that makes the process that much more interesting.

We found out something about him a few weeks ago after Sunday School. Our church has volunteers, called “Buddy’s” who help the kids with special needs during Sunday School so the parents don’t have to worry so much about their children and can more fully participate in the life of the church. The Buddys rotate so they don’t get burned out either. It is a wonderful program.

After Sunday School one day I was chatting with one of the buddys about SPB and he mentioned that PizzaBoy had been in a little bit of trouble basically trying to sneak in places that he wasn’t supposed to be. Sweetie and I were a little concerned because usually we hear about good he is. I asked him about what was going on and after some discussion he said that he just wanted to play a prank because he felt mischevious. So we talked about that and later I talked with Sweetie. We basically agreed that we look for places he could play a prank but it had to be where nobody was hurt, nor property damaged, nor add undue work to anybody.

We had an opportunity today. We went on a shopping expedition today and at about the third store I noticed him kind of sneaking around. I asked him what he was doing and he said that he was going to play a prank by putting a bunch of clothes on the floor. I said, nope, won’t work. That will get the clothes dirty. So he started moving clothes between racks. I figured what the hey, many clothes are switched by regular shoppers so I said that is an ok prank.

He had a high old time doing that. After about five minutes I pulled the camera out and got him in video mode. I noticed afterward that my reflection is in the mirror on the right side of the image.

The kid cracks me up. His prank did genuinely seem to make him happy. I apologize to the employees of Kohls for them having to straighten his mess out.

Book Review “Look Me in the Eyes” by John Elder Robison

“Look Me in the Eye” is a memoir written by John Elder Robison, a very talented and determined man who was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome when he was 40 years old. Robison overcame indifferent if not hostile parents, no help from the school system, and a lack of education to eventually become an audio and special effects specialist for the rock band KISS and then later work for Milton Bradley developing video games and then eventually forming his own sucessful business restoring and repairing classic cars. He married twice and has child of his own.

The book is very heartening to this Dad of a 10 year old boy with Aspergers. Robison is a good writer, if kind of flat (like maybe he has Asperger’s) and he has some hair rasing adventures to tell. One of the more fascinating things he talks about is how he thinks and how his method of thinking has changed over time as he became more social.

The book is very encouraging and I recommend it highly to those who have a child with Aspergers or is otherwise interested in the subject

A-Maize-ing Day Off

I took a half day off last Friday. SuperPizzaBoy had Fall Break and we wanted to do something fun. It was a wonderful warm, dry, Fall Day so we wanted to do something fun outside. We decided we would go to the Corn Maize at 321st east and 61 street, way out east of Broken Arrow in the middle of nowhere.

We had a blast. We went through the maize twice (that is how they spell it, I know it is not standard). SPB had to be enticed, threatened, lied to, whatever, to do it a second time.

SuperPizzaBoy and Sweetie in the Corn

Sweetie and Yogi at the Maize

The big attraction for a child with autism at the Maize is the corn crib. It is a big wooden box filled with corn kernal. It is usually full of kids. SPB absolutely loves it. It has to do with sensory issues, another thing about Autism that I find fascinating. I don’t understand it but how things feel, taste, smell, sound, and look profoundly affect these kids. They either react positively or negatively to the stimulation. The effect can be dramatic. SPB loves the corn crib. The stimulation on his skin puts him in a state of relaxation and he gets all smiles. I think it feels great also. So does Sweetie.

Sweetie and SPB in the corn crib.

And then, a special treat for Dad. The other two let me go find a couple of geocaches. The first was called “Bluegill Crossing”. It is at the very east end of 71st street where it runs into the Verdigris River. There is a huge lock and dam there, part of the Kerr McLellan waterway that makes the Tulsa Port of Catoosa the most inland seaport in the United States.

Sweetie and SPB stayed in the truck while I found it. I got scratched and bug bit while finding it. It hadn’t been found since June. I loved it.

The second cache was a cemetery cache, “Oak Grove Cemetery” in the community of New Tulsa. SPB didn’t think that New Tulsa was as nice as old Tulsa. As my one or two readers know, I love cemetery caches. This didn’t disappoint. Lots of very young people are buried here.

Then, on to Bixby for some Freshberry. Except that SPB didn’t have any berries in his freshberry. That’s part of the sensory thing I wrote about earlier. In fact he wouldn’t sit at our table he move on down a ways


An amaizing day off.

Motor Planning and the Nintendo Wii

This is what I wanted to name yesterday’s post but with my early onset Alzheimer’s I couldn’t think of the term until Baloney posted. Aha.

Anyway, as I was talking yesterday, kids with Asperger’s can benefit from physical and occupational therapy. Many of these kids have weak core muscles and so exercises are prescribed. SuperPizzaBoy hates doing exercises. We had a Nintendo Wii and now we have the WiiFit. So now, to a certain extent, SPB isn’t exercising, he is playing videogames.

He has a ball and his Dad loves it. Of course my Wii fit age came in 8 years younger than his actual age.

I know, I know, it just further reinforces the notion that we are supposed to entertain the kids. I really don’t care right now.