Living With Aspergers
Photos and Writing by Trevor Cartwright
My final project is on a fellow WSU student who has a moderate case of aspergers. He lives with a friend of mine and I was curious to see what his life is like in comparison to his peers. I started by asking my friend if there was enough "proof" to make a project out of this and it was actually quite the learning experience from what I found.
I began to keep track of his habits and routines to compare them to my own habits and it was interesting how seriously Abijah was about several things. One thing to keep in mind, my friend is rather laid back and that causes issues in the household. Abijah keeps things neat and tidy and if they aren't that way he gets upset. In the photos I took, along with the captions, should give you a pretty good idea of what aspergers is. Don't mistake these photos and captions as negative in any form. Abijah is a kind and intelligent person and was more than happy to comply with my project and questions. I hope you enjoy.
Die hard Seattle Seahawks fan. Hasn't missed a game since he was 6 (Give or take a few).
This is Abijah's couch. If anybody else sits on it, he gets very upset, very very upset.
Abijah hates unclean states and does not like living with others. Such as my friend. Abijah will be living alone next semester. This may be one of the reasons.
Abijah makes his bed every day and ensures it is always clean, daily routine.
You can often find Abijah cleaning his golf clubs at random times, even if they are already clean, he likes to stay busy.
This is Abijahs pride and joy, has had it for 7 years and won't let anyone else drive it.
Abijah collects records as a hobby, this is only what he has here in Pullman but many more at his parent's house.
Every night before Abijah goes to sleep he locks his keys, wallet and phone and (God knows what else)
Every night, unless Abijah goes out, he has steak and chicken sandwichs for dinner. Every night.
Abjiah had an ironing board installed in his room so he could iron his clothes several times a week.