See Horse

Horse sense.

Horse play.

Trojan horse.

Horse of a different color.

He’s the dark horse in the race.

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

Euphemisms, clichés and metaphors are all oddities in communication that leave many of our Aspies feeling confused, frustrated, and sometimes even angry. It can be difficult for us NT’s to grasp this.

Angelfire has a great post on Aspie/NT differences.

“Indeed, it may seem absurd and ridiculous to some people that someone could tell you about in minute detail about the Solar System or provide you with the details of the inner workings of a PC or car engine or explicit information about the American Civil War but not understand the basic rules that govern social interaction or be able to hold a structured conversation, or understand something that seems so simple - social interaction, proverbs, metaphors, sayings and clichés, but that is how the brains of people with Asperger's Syndrome are wired, for good or for ill. AS is a social learning disability, not a General Learning Disability.”

Every once in a while my husband will come up with his own speech inventions. He seems dead serious when he spouts something like, “Corn nuts are corny.”

“Huh? What did you say, Dear?”

Steve’s voice increases in volume. “I said ‘Corn nuts are corny!’ Didn’t you hear me?”

I assure him that I did indeed hear. I just didn’t understand.

“Well, you say illogical things all the time and call them correct. I just made up my own thing!”

Oh. Okay, Sweetie. Care to explain?

Sweetie then goes into a twenty minute tirade about stupid things people say that make no sense whatsoever. He decided that he will make up his own sayings because they at least make sense to him. And no one is going to change his mind.

Absolutely no ONE!

“No ONE but NO one.  Hey, that’s good!” says He.

He then repeats this to himself several more times, and marches off to some predetermined activity, leaving me there with my mouth hanging open.

I try repeating it to myself. I try again. Hmmm. I don’t get it.

Then I laugh out loud and go off to find some ‘thing’ to do, corny or not!