That Stubborn Streak Isn't Always In Her best Interests

I used to accuse (nicely) my other 4 children of being just like their father; stubborn. Not at all like me, of course. HA
I know Kalisha has some of that too or she would never have learned to do many of the things she has. However, it is one thing to be hard-headed and another to not be able to see the results of that. If that all sounds like gibberish, I will give you an example.

The city bus system in our town offers half-price fares to people who qualify as special needs individuals. One requirement is they must go to the office and have their picture taken for an ID so they can show it to the bus driver if their half-fare is questioned.
Kalisha's ID expired a year ago, but I wasn't aware of it as she never told me she needed to have it renewed. Most of the drivers know her and never question her half-price status.

This morning, she needed to be at work at Parkview Field at 9:30, which meant she needed to catch the 9:00 bus at the end of our street. She took $3 (normal fare) with her. Soon she was coming back in the front door, madder than a wet hen.

"What happened?"

"Sammy wouldn't let me on with an expired ID."

"So now what are you going to do?"

My car was being fixed so I had no way to get her there.

Kalisha was worried she would lose her job if she was late and was trying to think of someone to call to take her. We called several people but they either weren't answering their phone or were busy. Finally, we did reach my cousin who agreed to come and get her. In the meantime, Kalisha called her supervisor and told her she would be 15 minutes late.

As we waited for Mary to pick her up, it occurred to me she could have paid the $3 regular fare and ridden the bus AND been on time.

"Kalisha, why didn't you just pay the regular fare and get on the darned bus?"

"Well, I wasn't going to pay that when I am supposed to pay half-fare."

"Don't you think it would have been better to do that and be on time than being in a panic about how you would get there and then inconveniencing Mary to take you?"

"Yeah, I guess so, but I just didn't want to pay the full fare."

Oy. The logic is lost somewhere and it becomes a 'cut your nose off to spite your face' kind of situation.

I explained that sometimes being stubborn about things is a very good thing but some times you have to think of the end circumstances.

We went to get a new ID when she came home.

Maybe I'm Not Autistic

Kalisha has been making huge strides in many areas of her life in the past six months. She has met several challenges and overcome some extremely difficult things that were not in her 'comfort zone.'

She decided she really wanted a job. It isn't necessarily for the paycheck, but more for the ability to say she has a job. Once again, she wants to be like other people in her circle of friends and acquaintances.

She discussed it with me and her BC (behavioral consultant). Both of us urged her to wait until next year and to continue with her volunteer jobs for 2014. She chafed at that advice. She was certain she could be a great employee and never complain, or miss work.
Kalisha had it in her head and in her heart she wanted to apply at Parkview Field with the Tincaps, a minor league baseball team in our town. Despite our best efforts to dissuade her, she filled out an application and sent it in. They called her for an interview. At the end of the interview, she shook hands and said, "I'll see you when you hire me." I love self-confidence and apparently, they did also because they did hire her.

Not content with just one application, she also applied to work at the Vera Bradley Outlet Sale. This is a 5 day event which brings thousands of people to our town, from every state in the union. It is organized chaos in a frenzied way.  Kalisha likes the VB bags and wallets so she was sure she would love to work at this sale. God placed a very understanding person in the interview and hiring area. I told the lady I didn't believe Kalisha would make it for an 8-hour shift; she graciously gave her 4-hour shifts.

 

Kalisha will have to ride the city bus to and from the coliseum, where this event is held. I will write another post on how she prepared herself for knowing where to enter, get her nametag and apron and find her way around. If we all had this much tenacity, it would be a better world.

 

As we were discussing her 2 jobs, she said, "I am so excited. I love all the people at the ballgames and I can hardly wait for all the crowds at the VB sale. I just love being in with all the people and excitement."

 

I told her, "You know, Kalisha, that is very "un-autistic." The wanting to be in the middle of all the action and interacting with the crowds is very uncharacteristic of most people with autism."

 

She thought about that for a minute and then said, "Maybe I'm not autistic after all."