On the day I was interviewed for the position, I was at first concerned that someone might find out about my disability. You see, I have Asperger’s Syndrome, a mild form of autism which causes me to have deficits in the ability to read body language, to have trouble with changes in schedule, and the inability to distinguish sarcasm or joking from sincerity. All my life I’ve had to rigidly monitor my behavior so as to appear “normal”. I learned early on that acting in my own quirky way often earned me nothing but name-calling and shunning at worst, and at best, a raised eyebrow. This was definitely not the case here at Chileda.            
           
After only a short time, my office mate and supervisor Shari Demet made me feel right at home, allowing me to bring in CDs to play on the computer while we worked. She also took the time to ask me if any special accommodations were necessary in order for me to be able to function comfortably. All I asked was that I be made aware of any schedule changes in advance, as the unexpected tends to throw me off track and upsets me.
           
My work days at Chileda consisted of various duties, ranging from data entry to mailing letters to assembling packets for the runners of the LCC. The variety kept things interesting, while the repetitive nature of some of the tasks were a comfort to me.

Over time, I began to feel that I had become friends with Shari and also with Scott Mell, aka Mellsie, who had an office nearby. On breaks I would bring copies of my favorite magazine, Gothic Beauty, to share. We would talk about many different things, from the mundane to the philosophical.