Monday, January 13, 2014

The Personal & Physical Traits of Aspergers Part 6: Idiosyncratic Attachment to Inanimate Objects

This is a story I like to tell that illustrates this trait very well.  Back when I was eleven years old, Andover Youth Services had a trip scheduled for Good Times in Somerville, MA, just outside of Boston and not too far from home. I had been there before with my family, sans mom, and we had a blast. They had every kind of game imaginable including bowling and laser tag. So with that in mind I signed up for it. As the bus pulled in to the parking lot anticipation was almost at its height. The mad dash off the bus and through the doors had it reach boiling point. I recall seeing a sign and truck outside as I ran in that Mortal Kombat 4 would be making its stop on a world premier, or something like that. The fact the game was there was quickly overshadowed by a veritable candy-land of games. After that things went hazy for a while as we all set about to play our favorite games, after getting quarters from the many available change machines, of course. After about an hour or so the excitement had died down a little and I was out of change. I went yet again to go get quarters but this time the machine gave me something I will never forget.

After inserting my money a whole bunch of quarters came flowing out. One of them made a peculiar sound for some reason so I thumbed through to see which one had done so. It didn't take me long to figure out which one it was; this coin looked different but I had no idea why, at least at the time. There was something about the color of it, a sort of whitish hue that I had never seen or ever possibly noticed before in all of the other quarters I had ever held before. I checked the date on the coin and it read 1964. I then made a decision that very few children would even consider, let alone do; I put the coin in my back pocket where it would remain until I got home. After that I resumed playing every game I could until the money ran out. I then went in the newly forming line and was one of the first ten kids to play MK4. The new features of that game quickly had the attention of my young mind.

Once I got home I took the coin out of my pocket and showed it to my mother to ask her about it. She told me that it was a silver quarter and that she had found a few of them at the bank when she was working there back in the day. So I had my answer; it was a silver coin from long ago that other people had looked over for over thirty years before it had reached an eleven year old boy who knew there was something 'curious' about it. From then on I was on the search for silver coins although they came few and far between. Every silver coin I see captures my attention and I can remember going to my favorite coin shop and wading through tons of the stuff, a smiling never leaving my face as I did so. To this day I carry three silver coins in my pants pocket at nearly all times, one of which is a 1964 quarter. When I think back even further I realize that I really admired the gold and silver crayons which were included in those monster packs quite a few of us had in school, although I never really used them because they weren't practical in everyday coloring. I think I revered them too much to even do so. That may have been where it started and then the coin put me over the edge. The next thing to capture my eye was my mom's jewelry, which she always had a good deal of.  The feel and sound of the gold and the noise it made when it jingled always captured my attention, not to mention the sparkle of the diamonds she wore all the time.

At around thirteen I began metal detecting so I could find my own silver coins as well as jewelry on my own. I have spent many hours 'hunting' old yards, parks, and of course the beach where the majority of my gold has been found. The hobby has given me a lot of great memories and eaten up a lot of my time over the years. More than anything, though, it was a way to continue to constantly fulfill my need of silver and gold, along with the various other objects I found. But going back to the subject of diamonds there is
actually one she still does wear  that I remember from my youth; a stunning 1.29 ct round center stone that was re-cut from 1.50 cts due to a chip in around the girdle. I've looked up prices, which is very easy for me to do (for those not yet in the loop as to my profession), and it is an $8,000-10,000 stone. Beside it sits two smaller 42.5 point stones (roughly 2/5 ct each) in a solid platinum setting, which I made entirely by hand from one "bar" of platinum (see the pictures below). When her and I were going over what setting the stones would go into the other options were very pricey, averaging $1,500-2,500. I took the initiative to make the setting myself and getting the main stone re-cut, buying the side stones and making the setting were a way that I paid some back rent to my mother, and she is very happy with the ring. So my obsession with precious metals paid off and became my career, who knew. Obviously we all want to do something we are passionate about but not many people are ever able to do what they truly love. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones.

Every time I hold a piece of silver, gold or platinum in my hand I always admire it as if it were even more valuable than it really is. I am not sure that if I was born back when silver and gold was actually money I would have felt this way but even with repeated exposure to them I still get excited each time I handle a piece. I love to flip the three coins I carry around with me just to hear the sound they make. I can and have looked at these items for hours sometimes and I never really knew that was a possible trait of AS before reading about it. Truthfully, I just thought I was a weirdo.

Questions or comments? Let me know.




2 comments:

  1. That's pretty awesome! My favorite is silver because I love the soft feel to it. I have a silver bracelet and never leave the house without it. The soft feel of a hunk of flawless silver is relaxing to me. I also like 7 karat gold, it has a whitish washed out glow, giving it a sort of a velvety texture as you look at it.

    But the thing I love the most is the Tabernacle in the Bible. I stumbled upon a website (see below).The golden boards, the silver sockets beneath them with golden furniture within the massive structure. Beautiful! Beautiful! Beautiful! The last 3 pictures of the website are my favorites. I'm sure that's what the tabernacle looked like.

    Awesome!!

    http://thedeserttabernacle.blogspot.com/2012/07/high-priest-inside-holy-of-holies-of.html

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'very always wondered why I screamed like a living thing had been shot in front of me when I dropped my brand new phone and the screen cracked. Is there something about our brains that makes Aspies care about or notice inanimate objects before living things? Another peculiar thing I've noticed is that when I'm riding in a car I notice houses and other buildings before I notice peopen walking by.

    ReplyDelete