My name is Colm Philpott, and I'm autistic. I started this blog to debunk the many, many, many misconceptions about autistic people, we're actually quite awesome when you get to know us! I also talk about three of my biggest interests, music, cycling and astronomy, and also anything else that piques my interest.
The weather is getting better and it’s time to get out a lot more. This time of year can actually be a bit bittersweet for me, because I have quite bad travel anxiety. During the Winter I don’t mind not traveling anywhere, because, it’s Winter. I think, like many people, the thought of going more … Continue reading A Most Excellent Cycle To Kilcrea Castle And Ballincollig Regional Park
Hello, today I wanted to talk about a terrible ideology that is affecting more and more people, I have seen many of my friends and family members affected by this set of beliefs, and it is heartbreaking to see them change from the bigoted, ableist people I once knew, into people who cost corrupt organizations … Continue reading Why Autism Acceptance Is Bad (For Business)
Note: I’m afraid this is going to be one of those posts where you need to read a previous one for context, so you should probably read this previous one first before you get going on this one: https://autismneurodiversity.wordpress.com/2022/09/30/what-if-neurotypicals-non-autistics-were-stigmatized-the-way-autistic-people-are Or if you’re feeling adventurous, why not start straight into this one even though you will … Continue reading The Return Of Dr Ravi Saavol
In 1979, Andy Irvine released his first solo album. This was far from his first encounter with the music world, he had at this point already been in two quite innovative and memorable Irish trad groups, Sweeney’s Men in the 1960’s, and in the 1970’s, the one, the only, Planxty, the band that took Irish … Continue reading Rainy Sundays… Windy Dreams, from Ireland to the Balkans and Back again
Mt Esja seen over the water from Reyjkavik In July 2009, I spent a wonderful week in Iceland, staying in the capital city of Reyjkavik but also getting out to see the amazing countryside. It wasn’t long before I was planning in my head to go on another trip there of at least two weeks, … Continue reading Iceland, My Favourite Place That I’ll Probably Never Visit Again
Too often, I end up never getting to see my favourite musicians play, travel anxiety makes it difficult to see them in Dublin, and impossible to see them outside Ireland. And I can be so scatterbrained at times that they will come to play in my city and I will simply be unaware of it. … Continue reading Handful Of Earth, An Essential Scottish Folk Album With Obscenely Good Guitar Playing
Iceland’s folk music has to a large extent, been lost to history. In Ireland, or Scotland, Norway, Hungary or Bulgaria, it’s easy enough to find examples of those country's folk songs to listen to. Sadly, this is not the case with Iceland. However, Iceland has done something different, that many countries have not managed to … Continue reading Summer Make Good, Soothing and Scary Sounds From Iceland
There is what I feel is an incorrect narrative about Rush’s music that I think too many fall for, even myself at times. And that is, “From Farewell to Kings until Moving Pictures, they had the exact right amount of synthesizers, but from that point on, you couldn’t move for the amount of synthesizers, jaysus … Continue reading Power Windows, A Glorious Meeting Between Prog And Eighties Pop
Something that has always given me a strong sense of calm, and often a strong sense of wonder, is seeing something that is very far away. Being on top of a hill, or a mountain, and seeing a far off village, or town, or other mountain, that might take as much as a day or … Continue reading Distance
As I get older, I am noticing more and more people have what I call a Simpsons deficiency. About twenty years ago, everyone would have gotten what the title of this post was a reference to. But now, things have changed, too many people are Simpsons deficient. And if you’re thinking, that awful show that’s … Continue reading Do You Find Something Comical About My Appearance When I Am Cycling My Bike?
Ponderings Of An Autist 