Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello,
My name is Matthew and I have full Autism Spectrum Disorder. I was diagnosed way back in 2011, a lot of time has gone by but I still feel the same as I did then. Some days are hard others can be really good. My parents have health issues, dad has Diabetes and mum a benign brain tumour, and my brother has depression, but through it all they still give me so much support and love!
I don’t get out much, like to stay to a routine and struggle lots with excessive worrying which is with me day and night. I’m always trying to push myself to do things, even though 99% of the time I fail. But I’m a dreamer, I have lots of dreams. I like to sing and want to be a singer, I’m nearly 22 and hope to next year be making progress as a singer, I also want to learn to drive next year, I have a car which I’m restoring slowly but surely. My Dad loves classic cars, he restores them and I help him out!
My favourite things to do are restoring classic cars, photography, playing games, listening to music and singing and also watching Disney movies…
It’s really nice to meet you all!
Hi Matthew nice to meet you.
It's great to have dreams and things you would like to do in the future.
I learnt to drive when I was 24 and it was one of the best things I ever did. I'm 58 now and I still love driving!
My husband and have got a 1962 Morris Minor and a 1976 MGB roadster. We enjoy going to classic car shows. What type of car are you restoring for yourself?
I'm sure you will enjoy being part of this forum.
Thanks Sunflower, I’m sure I’ll love it here too as well!
I get pretty lonely sometimes. Some days I struggle to socialise with my own family and I spend a lot of my time alone, I’ve always wanted to speak with other people like me which is why I’m so happy I found this forum.
Wow you’re very lucky! Morris Minor’s are lovely cars, very rare now and quite expensive too. I haven’t seen one for a very long time, when we’re out and about I usually look for classics going along.
Our current project is my dad’s 1992 Jaguar XJR 4.0 litre, the car in my profile picture. It’s a really nice car, so comfortable as well, it’s very luxurious and pretty rare to see. Ours currently isn’t MOTd, we intended to get it MOTd this year but it had more problems than we thought…
The driver’s side floor well had been leaking for a while, but when we jacked the car up the jacking point under the passenger side began to crumble into pieces. We investigated and it turned out the passenger side was leaking as well, but under the carpet so we had no idea! My dad hit the floor with his screw driver and it literally fell to pieces. So now it’s in the garage until spring next year when we weld it.
The other project is my own car, a white Volvo 850 SE 2.5 litre. My dad used to drive it but he’s passed it down to me, so I’m looking forward to driving it when I pass my test next year :)
There is a long history of Morris Minors in my family. My dad had a black Morris Traveller and my grandad had a trafalgar blue Morris Minor. My dad got rid of the Traveller and bought a Bedford minibus when we were teenagers. When we left home he took on the Morris Minor my grandad used to drive.
My first Morris Minor was an impulse purchase. I fell in love with the British racing green exterior and the cherry red interior. I should have spent more time inspecting it, but another woman had stopped to look at it so I just blurted out "I'll buy it!". We restored and eventually sold that.
Then came a Fiat 126, which we sold in order to buy a Triumph Herald and then bought back again. My next Morris Minor was trafalgar blue. That got sold against my wishes when we bought an MGB roadster.
Earlier this year I persuaded my husband to buy another Morris Minor. We have also owned classic motorcycles and scooters... we get a bit carried away when it comes to buying vehicles. If I had a barn I would fill it!
Restoring vehicles is frustrating at times, but overall I would say it is very enjoyable and satisfying keeping them in use. It is good that young people like you are learning the skills of restoring and driving classic cars. I think they are much more classy and full of personality than most modern vehicles.
Aww great picture! Your dog looks like he's having a lot of fun!!