I guess the answer is "dream on" but - online "chat" with people who understand autism?

Isn't that what this place is?

What would you like to talk about JF?

Indeed it is but it's almost never instant (unless you or one or two others are around :-) ).

See it's almost like the moment has already passed, but what I wanted to talk over was in my other post today. Two months after diagnosis, winter approaching (I have SAD too) and I almost feel split into two people - my old self who didn't know he is autistic and the new one who understands, and I'm trying to cut myself some slack. I'm also dealing with an ironic situation at work where I've moved from a very busy office to a tiny one of my own, which sounds wonderful (and often is) but means that what residue of social skills and appetite I had is evaporating, and my self-esteem is suffering (as a result of all of this).

What's JF by the way?

What kind of social interaction do you really want?

But that's where the laptop comes in - you use the work as an excuse to reject advances from the wrong people - within a couple of visits, you can train the undesirables to leave you alone.  

You're also in total control - you can get up and walk away whenever you want.

Yes there is, but it's hugely clattery/noisy and I'm not sure that the right (wrong) people would leave me alone :-)

How burned out are in the evenings?    Can you be bothered with external socialising?    Joining a nerd-club or doing a Meetup?

Sort of - you basically want to hand-select the people around you and get rid of all the others 

Do you have a tea room at your place?   Or a restaurant?   I always found excuses to take a laptop into one of those places at the right times so I would be in full view - people who knew me would pass a few minutes with me - but had to be one their way quickly so it's a time-limited interaction.   In could get a social 'fix' and then disappear back into an office or plantroom and be on my own for as long as I wanted.

It's a bit unrealistic really - what I really want is people around but being quiet, or occasionally chatting about general life stuff. What I'd really like is to work in an office with about a dozen people in it - whereas I've gone from  a massive, noisy, open plan area with about 200 people to a tiny space with one other very noisy person (thankfully leaving very soon). So I want people there (though I'm fussy about the demographic & personality type) but not placing demands on me. I said it was unrealistic didn't I? :-)

It's a bit unrealistic really - what I really want is people around but being quiet, or occasionally chatting about general life stuff. What I'd really like is to work in an office with about a dozen people in it - whereas I've gone from  a massive, noisy, open plan area with about 200 people to a tiny space with one other very noisy person (thankfully leaving very soon). So I want people there (though I'm fussy about the demographic & personality type) but not placing demands on me. I said it was unrealistic didn't I? :-)

But that's where the laptop comes in - you use the work as an excuse to reject advances from the wrong people - within a couple of visits, you can train the undesirables to leave you alone.  

You're also in total control - you can get up and walk away whenever you want.

Yes there is, but it's hugely clattery/noisy and I'm not sure that the right (wrong) people would leave me alone :-)

How burned out are in the evenings?    Can you be bothered with external socialising?    Joining a nerd-club or doing a Meetup?

Sort of - you basically want to hand-select the people around you and get rid of all the others 

Do you have a tea room at your place?   Or a restaurant?   I always found excuses to take a laptop into one of those places at the right times so I would be in full view - people who knew me would pass a few minutes with me - but had to be one their way quickly so it's a time-limited interaction.   In could get a social 'fix' and then disappear back into an office or plantroom and be on my own for as long as I wanted.