Our final traffic report.

MOOD:   PROCRASTINATINGLY DANGEROUS

As the days drift by like cars on a road, life at present has presented me with a crossroad of my own, one more aptly in the shape of a fork.  With the radio project now becoming a rather low key event, I want to move on as quickly as possible into the next phase of my life, and to a degree, another phase of thinking.  

I guess the last 15 years has not just been an experience of an Asperger's Syndrome person trying to reach out, but one that has washed every fiber of naivety away from my very existence - the clarity of life around me has never been clearer.  The upper point of this I guess is wisdom, knowing the true colours of my surroundings are no longer obscured by any fuzzy romantic thoughts.  

This very much bights to the very essence of my thinking; where everything, and I mean everything that passes through my head like mountains of mail through a mail centre is divided up into to major camps - the realistic and the romantic.  Is this a rapid evolution of my thinking or just a sharp reality check - honestly it could be a bit of both or more to the point I don't really know.  One thing is for certain, there is been a major mind shift in the way I'm starting to approach things.

One of these things that have become very evident over the last 12 months is how I'm communicating - just sticking to the flow, which brings us back to the first few words of my blog today; "like cars on a road".

If you drive, then you know they are a number of rules that one abides to, particularly when traveling on a multi-lane highway that has a set speed limit.  Let's just say it is 80 Kph or for our American friends 50 Mph.  As you guide your car through the traffic, you observe that everyone merges, exits, and changes lanes - it all seems to flow like a ballet.  You know there's a give and take behaviour - when a truck comes, everybody moves accordingly, and if you're blocking someone who wants to go faster, you move over, and so forth - you get the idea.  Though they are rules, as one can see, there is a give and take interaction in motion for the sake of keeping things flowing.

Now consider if the car in front of you is going to stick to the rules exactly, and stay at 80 Kph.  Imagine what the consequences of doing such a thing - the person is either going to crash into you when the traffic speeds up, or he is going to smash into somebody else when the other cars slow down.  So in short, you are BLOCKED behind this particular car.  

Now see how one needs to understand that in order to move along in an orderly fashion, that at times they'll need to go somewhat faster or slower when the circumstances arise.  It's not breaking the law, but understanding that such rules at times need to be flexible for the circumstances that they have been designed for.  In this case keeping the traffic flowing smoothly, not for bringing everything to a screeching halt.

So to end this off, let's have a final rundown of our traffic report.  It looks like we have one of these cars, currently located on the ground floor of 287 New South Head Road Edgecliff, just outside the train station.  He is strictly sticking by the rules, and his non-flexible "Act" is not winning any Oscars from my group of friends.  Now that we're skirting dangerously close to the forbidden ground of a neurotypical's world - that's where we'll stop, and trust that you can join the dots. 

Could we be saved from the El Nino monster?

MOOD:  VERY HOPEFUL

Back in March, the combination of satellite data and sea temperature maps were telling us that we were going to be in for another El Nino.  This is the weather phenomenon that basically screws up the world’s climate for a year and here in Australia gives us below average rainfall and higher then average temperatures.  In short we cop the worst end of it.  This generally happens over a 12 month period, proceeding from when an El Nino first forms around April of one year through to April of the next year when a typical event has formed, peaked, and subsided.

The main focus of studying such events is scanning the Pacific Ocean for water surface temperatures.  In a normal year, such temperatures are flat across the entire ocean with very little fluctuation from area to area.  In an El Nino year, waters around the Western Pacific cool by about 5 degrees, while waters on the Eastern Pacific will rise in temperature by around 5 Degrees.  This is caused by a current several hundred meters under the ocean surface.  At this stage we'll leave it there, as the rest is rather complicated.  But for the maps below this will basically explain things.

This satellite scan from the 21st of April shows an El Nino event rapidly forming.  Note the white area in the ocean west of Peru, and the blue and deep purple areas above Australia.

Now interestingly check the image below here, taken on the 5th of June.  Though the signs of an El Nino are still present, look at the intensity of the colours - this is what is looking hopeful.  The El Nino could be pulling back.  Note the purples above Australia are almost absent (mostly blue), and the white patch west of Peru is gone.    The recent weather in Sydney would also support such a trend.  April and May were very dry, while the first few weeks of June have been moderately wet.  Over the last two weeks, there has been a number of days where solid rain has fallen.   

For all of us who live in non-air-conditioned units or flats or whatever - this is of particular interest.  If one knows of when we have a stretch of 35 degree days in a row, then you'll know exactly where I'm coming from.  Hopefully it may completely revert, and instead we get a La Nina, which is cooler wetter weather.  This is especially so when one has Asperger's Syndrome, as they are much more susceptible to the heat. 

The Five Million Dollar Syndrome.

MOOD: INTRIGUED

Could this be my addition to the MacQuarie dictionary - I guess time will tell. :)

First, why five million?  Because it seems to be the average size of today's lotto or lottery win.

Now what in hell is the syndrome it self?  Well how many times has the story been told, that a family has won a huge lottery win.  Then relatives, cousins, or other family friends that haven't been in touch for many years suddenly either come door knocking, or ringing up pleading for a piece of the prize money.

You've heard the story before, or at least you know you've heard tales of such happenings, but anyway, this is what I call the five million dollar syndrome.

The primary phase of the syndrome is characterised by a relationship that has past the stage of maximum engagement / interaction, but where the two parties are still related in some kind of minimal contact.  This could be either by a family bond, or friends that have been in business together, play sport, traveled, and etc.  The key word here is "minimal" as in where neither of the parties has engaged in any form of activity for an extended period of time. 

The main phase of the syndrome kicks in where one part of the relationship has either found themselves with a windfall, such as a lottery win, a business that has boomed (making huge profits), or anything that involves much money.  For explaining this in an easier context, we'll call this part of the relationship the "Windfaller".

The other part of the relationship will then make contact out of the blue and either indirectly or upfront will plead to have a part of the money.  This person in this part of the relationship is called the "Pleader".

It is the pleader who has the five million dollar syndrome.  Note how the pleader doesn't have much interest anymore in the windfaller's life or well-being, until the windfaller finds themselves in possession of the money. 

For the most part, this is purely driven by greed, mainly on the part of the pleader whose interests or values regarding relationships are shallow and materialistic.  The pleader's values are based on how much they can draw or suck out of somebody or any kind of situation.  They are completely oblivious that relationships, whether they are family, friends, or business; are based on mutual respect and trust. 

But between the pleaders and the windfallers there is another very, very small minority, many on the Asperger Syndrome spectrum, but they are certainly not shallow and materialistic, or most importantly don't lack respect or trust.  I'll be explaining this in my next posting coming soon.