December 21, 2025 • 24 mins
A blog that almost stalled. A book that took shape anyway. And a voice that keeps getting louder. We sit down with Michael, an autistic author from Ontario, to trace how “Michaelism: My POV on Life with Autism” went from idea to self-published reality—and why persistence beat perfection at every turn.
Michael opens up about the early days when the word autism felt abstract, while picture-based learning made the world click. That contrast sets the tone for an honest look at communication, school, and the moments that defy low expectations—like a cherished trip to Ottawa and friendships that still carry into his weekly routine. We unpack the power of special interests, from J-pop and K-pop to EDM and dance, and reframe them not as obsessions but as engines for joy, structure, and community. If you’re searching for real stories about autism acceptance, sensory choices, and everyday advocacy, this conversation meets you where you are.
We also dive into the nuts and bolts of self-publishing with IngramSpark, why Michael chose that path, and how book signings and autism conferences in Toronto helped him connect with readers. He walks through key themes from his book—anxiety, emotions, making friends, money and math, communication, volunteering—and shows how each chapter anchors practical skills in lived experience. Through family support, grief, and growth, Michael models what it looks like to claim identity, wear it proudly, and keep moving forward with compassion.
Hit play to meet a writer who leads with heart and clarity. If his mantra—stay strong, never give up—resonates with you, share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe for more stories from autistic advocates, leave a review to help others find the show, and tell us: which special interest has shaped your life?
Manifest your dreams with Happily Ever After: a cosmic toolkit for real life change.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:00):
The SJ Child Show is back.
Join Sarah Bracker at the SJChild Show team as they explore
the world of autism and sharestories of hope and inspiration.
This season, we're excited tobring you more autism summits
featuring experts and advocatesfrom around the world.
(00:20):
Go to SJchilds.org.
SPEAKER_00 (00:29):
Oh, yeah.
Stories of love and could jumpthroughout the night.
SPEAKER_03 (00:36):
Welcome back, everyone.
It's so great to be here today.
Welcome to the SJ Child Show.
I have a special guest today.
He is coming all the way fromCanada.
SPEAKER_06 (00:46):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (00:47):
Our neighbor from the north, Michael.
Hello, how are you today?
A-OK.
Ah, I love that.
Thank you.
What part of Canada are you in?
Ontario.
Wonderful.
How's your weather today?
SPEAKER_05 (01:02):
So far, good.
SPEAKER_03 (01:04):
Love that.
It's a little windy and breezyhere down in Salt Lake City,
Utah today.
So yeah.
Oh my gosh.
Great to meet you.
Tell us about yourself.
Introduce yourself.
Tell us about kind of where itstarted for you.
SPEAKER_05 (01:21):
So, anyways, uh, my name is Michael Deser.
Uh, I am from Thornell, Artario,Canada.
I'm honestly with Autism Canadasince October 2021.
And yes, I'm the author of mybook.
It's called Michaelism, my PLVon like with autism.
SPEAKER_03 (01:36):
I love that.
SPEAKER_05 (01:38):
So please get to know me, everyone.
SPEAKER_03 (01:41):
I think that's a fantastic way to do it.
Everybody needs to check thatout.
And is it on Amazon?
SPEAKER_05 (01:47):
Indeed, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (01:49):
Perfect.
And I'm sure we'll have thelinks available for everyone.
Tell us about Michaelism and howhow what happened during the
writing process.
SPEAKER_05 (01:59):
Well, it all started when I decided to start my
almost blog after doing articlesfor Autism Ontario.
And when I first do it, I I Itend to give up, but my parents
told me to just keep going.
SPEAKER_03 (02:14):
I'm so proud of you.
SPEAKER_05 (02:17):
And to be fair, it was a one heck of a writing
process that I survived verygreat.
But I even did completed sinceCOVID-19.
SPEAKER_03 (02:28):
Oh wow.
You know, writing take a longtime.
I I understand that.
SPEAKER_05 (02:33):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (02:35):
Tell us a little bit about your childhood.
Well, what at what age are youdiagnosed?
SPEAKER_05 (02:45):
Well, allow me to uh okay, anyways, I'm gonna I'm
gonna read a little part of mypage from this.
Okay, here we go.
I believe there are a lot ofthings that you should know
about having autism specialorder means for me.
I am not here to tell you havingautism is like internal because
everyone is different and so aretheir experience.
(03:08):
For me, I for me, I haven't.
I must admit that I did notalways think this, especially if
I am having a really hard day.
When I found out about myautism, I cannot remember what
at what age.
My word, it was a word I had heroverheard my parents say before,
(03:28):
but I never understood what itlooked like or sounded like.
I mean, what my therapists wereteaching me how to speak an
understanding language, apicture of a car or a toy car
with a label car on it was mucheasier to learn and understand.
It was a clear clear example ofsomething concrete, but this
(03:52):
word autism, no clue.
SPEAKER_03 (03:55):
I love that paragraph.
I mean, I think that that sumsit up perfectly.
You know, Michael, I'm latediagnosed autistic as well.
SPEAKER_04 (04:06):
Nice, nice.
SPEAKER_03 (04:08):
And when I realized that I could kind of understand
my son and my daughter and myhusband, who all are autistic,
and I oh way, yep.
So it's a really special kind ofum site that I can have for my
(04:30):
family and give them all theaccommodations they need.
SPEAKER_05 (04:34):
Sorry, and it's wonderful.
SPEAKER_03 (04:36):
Yeah, thank you so much.
I appreciate that.
Tell us about your experiencesgoing through school.
How was that?
Was it hard?
SPEAKER_05 (04:45):
I survived and I got pretty good grades.
So let me rephrase it.
Let us face it, school can't behard for any kid, especially a
kid who was diagnosed withautism.
As I grew up, I attended fourdifferent schools when
thankfully and my friends, someof these friends are still my
good, longtime friends.
Pretty cool, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02 (05:05):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05 (05:06):
And what was the best part of school?
Well, it was great.
It was going to Ottawa on theschool trip, but friends, I am
100% sure my parents andteachers did not think I would
ever be able to school tripmyself when I was young.
Well, they were wrong, weren'tthey?
SPEAKER_03 (05:25):
And who knew you were gonna be doing podcasts,
sir?
SPEAKER_05 (05:28):
That would be me.
SPEAKER_03 (05:30):
Mm-hmm.
That's right.
Good job.
So proud of you.
Ah, this is a wonderfuldiscussion.
So, how old were you when youdecided to start writing the
book?
SPEAKER_05 (05:41):
It was like around 2018.
SPEAKER_03 (05:43):
Okay.
Wow.
And it takes a lot of time towrite a book.
Like you said, you survived thewriting process.
SPEAKER_05 (05:52):
Yep.
It took me like two years andthe making.
But in the end, I kept going andI kept going and I kept going
non-stop, 24 hours constantly.
SPEAKER_03 (06:04):
Good for you.
What do your parents think aboutthat now?
SPEAKER_05 (06:08):
They were 100% proud of me.
They told me to keep going andthey were the best within me.
SPEAKER_03 (06:15):
I love that.
What are your plans next?
SPEAKER_05 (06:17):
Well, to keep spreading artism awareness like
I always do.
SPEAKER_03 (06:21):
Good.
SPEAKER_05 (06:21):
And promote the books and else like I did
before, but even better.
SPEAKER_03 (06:27):
I love that.
Show us that book again.
I love did you choose thosecolors?
SPEAKER_05 (06:34):
Yep, I did it.
Red, green, blue, and yellow.
SPEAKER_03 (06:39):
Why did you choose those colors?
SPEAKER_05 (06:41):
Because it suits me perfectly.
SPEAKER_03 (06:43):
It does.
It does suit you perfectly.
What is what's about thosecolors that you feel like
relates to you?
SPEAKER_05 (06:52):
Everything, including my autism.
SPEAKER_03 (06:55):
Really?
SPEAKER_05 (06:56):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (06:57):
Oh, that's amazing.
So, what kind of stuff do you dowith your friends now?
SPEAKER_05 (07:02):
I bought one of my friends on every Thursday at a
mall near me.
SPEAKER_03 (07:06):
Really?
SPEAKER_05 (07:08):
Yeah.
It turns out they were myabsolute longtime friends from
high school.
SPEAKER_03 (07:12):
Do you is there like a store that you love to go to
the most?
SPEAKER_05 (07:16):
Let's see.
They got Sun Money's records,and that's probably it, you
know?
SPEAKER_03 (07:21):
Oh, okay.
Good.
Do you like music?
SPEAKER_05 (07:24):
Yeah, I like J pop and K-pop and EDM electronic
dance music.
Do you like to dance?
Uh yep, I do actually, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (07:35):
Oh, that's great, Michael.
And that's great exercise.
Dance, it's like fun and goodfor you all at the same time.
That's my favorite thing.
So tell us about some of yourother favorite things.
What other interests do youhave?
SPEAKER_05 (07:50):
Okay, I'm gonna okay.
Here we go.
Many people with ASD havehobbies.
Sometimes people say that thoughthese hobbies are obsessions.
I do not like it when I hearpeople say that it is an
obsession.
Yes, it's a special interest.
When I hear non-autistic peoplesay it, it sounds like it's it
(08:11):
is a bad thing.
Hobby hobbies are a normal foreveryone, not a big deal.
SPEAKER_03 (08:17):
Not a big deal.
So, my you know, it's funny toobecause I kind of grew up, I'm
an only child.
I don't know about you.
Do you have brothers andsisters?
SPEAKER_05 (08:27):
I have one brother, I used to have two sisters, but
one sister died from overdose.
But I'm gonna I'm not gonnamention it, but I'm gonna keep
it.
Sorry about that, but it's it'sokay.
But my brother, but my brotheris doing well in Brock
University, he's doing well.
SPEAKER_03 (08:44):
Wonderful.
SPEAKER_05 (08:45):
I love it.
And I gotta admit it.
He's he's a he's an awesome butfunny brother to me.
The best within me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:54):
I love special.
Yep, absolutely.
So what about?
And I should have asked youbefore we were off the show, and
you tell me if you don't want totalk about it, you just say, no,
nothing.
Uh, but what about um how aboutdating?
SPEAKER_05 (09:10):
I'm not I'm not prepared for that date,
actually, no, but I'm I I willget there eventually.
SPEAKER_03 (09:15):
Yeah, that's great.
SPEAKER_05 (09:16):
Whatever who knows?
SPEAKER_03 (09:18):
Who knows?
Well, I'll tell you what.
Some of I didn't know thathobbies could be such a great
thing for people until I met myhusband, and he had such amazing
hobbies.
Wow, he really taught me how totake time out of what I thought
was my busy schedule and dothings for myself, you know, as
(09:41):
my own hobbies.
And so it's it's really it'ssomething I had to learn how to
do because I don't think I wasallowed to do it when I was
younger.
SPEAKER_05 (09:51):
Thanks! Wow, right?
SPEAKER_03 (09:53):
And so just we're always learning about ourselves
throughout our whole life,right?
SPEAKER_05 (09:59):
Oh, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (10:01):
So here we are, and fifth, oh my almost 50.
Oh, 50.
SPEAKER_06 (10:07):
Why?
SPEAKER_03 (10:08):
Thank you.
Um, and it's great because nowI'm taking a whole new approach
to my life and doing way morestuff for me.
SPEAKER_05 (10:19):
Wow.
SPEAKER_03 (10:20):
Don't get it's about time.
I love it.
SPEAKER_05 (10:24):
Tell us about your shirt and your love of Bob's
burgers.
I've seen every episode and Ilove the characters.
One of my favorites is TinaBoucher.
She loves horses, but zombies,and she often writes heroic porn
or something, but I don't knowwhy, but it's a quirks.
SPEAKER_03 (10:45):
That's funny.
Oh my gosh.
I haven't seen that show inquite some time.
SPEAKER_05 (10:50):
If there are any other shows that you like, I
like a stop art and Ricky Morty,and and sometimes I like Game of
Thrones.
SPEAKER_03 (10:58):
Oh, me too.
I like all of those shows.
Yeah, me and my husband watchall of those shows together.
SPEAKER_05 (11:04):
Yeah, uh, I gotta admit it.
I love my I love my family, Ilove my friends, everyone cares
about me, and they accept me forthe way I am.
SPEAKER_03 (11:15):
That's exactly how it should be, Michael.
That's how my household is.
I love my children just the waythey are.
We we call it don't should onanyone.
You should be this or you shouldbe that.
No shoulding on anyone overhere.
I love that.
I love that.
It's funny, huh?
Oh, this is so much fun to getto know you.
SPEAKER_05 (11:37):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:38):
So tell me kind of what you're doing for your book
sales.
Do you go and do like booksignings?
SPEAKER_05 (11:45):
I do that.
Uh, yes.
This year I'm gonna be attendingan autism conference this coming
December.
SPEAKER_03 (11:52):
Where?
SPEAKER_05 (11:53):
In a hotel in downtown Toronto.
SPEAKER_03 (11:56):
Wow, that is gonna be so exciting! Is this your
first time speaking in person?
Or are you?
SPEAKER_05 (12:02):
I did the sign, actually.
Yeah, and I saw with money.
Oh, wow! But yeah, I did.
Um just like back in 2024, and Idid it.
SPEAKER_03 (12:12):
Same thing.
I'm so proud of you.
You're gonna do great, ofcourse.
No doubt.
And I want to hear all about itwhen you get back and you're
done.
Like, I want to hear the fullreport.
Nice.
SPEAKER_04 (12:27):
Oh, yes, good.
SPEAKER_03 (12:29):
Now we have now you have a new friend in your life,
Michael.
Oh, yes, definitely.
This is exciting.
So let's approve, holla! Woo! Ilive in so tell me about um do
you like to go out and likewatch any kind of sports or
anything like that?
SPEAKER_05 (12:50):
I love hockey, I love baseball, and I love
basketball, you know?
SPEAKER_03 (12:54):
Ooh, what's your favorite like play?
SPEAKER_05 (12:59):
Ooh, blue chase, actually, and the Toronto Mantle
Leaves.
They're all my favorite sportsteams, you know.
SPEAKER_03 (13:07):
Oh, that's so much fun.
Do you is there any sports thatyou like to play?
SPEAKER_05 (13:13):
I went bowling, you know.
SPEAKER_03 (13:15):
Okay, yeah, I like bowling too.
You know, I grew up in Reno,Nevada, and they have the
world's largest bowling alley.
Mm-hmm.
Really?
You'll have to go there someday.
SPEAKER_05 (13:29):
Thanks.
I might do that just in case,but who knows?
SPEAKER_03 (13:33):
Who knows?
You might get a big gig down inthe US and have to come down
here.
I agree.
Maybe you'll get on Love on theSpectrum Canada.
I don't know.
Are they doing that?
I no clue.
SPEAKER_06 (13:46):
No, no clue idea.
SPEAKER_03 (13:48):
Oh, this has been so much fun.
Tell us about a little bit moreabout your book.
Um, anyhow.
SPEAKER_05 (13:57):
I just had to go with self-publishing like
Ingram's Bark.
Yeah.
I was going to uh majorpublishing, but I decided to go
with this company calledIngram's Bark.
And they it was the best choicefor me ever that I ever ended up
going with.
SPEAKER_02 (14:12):
I'm so glad you did that.
I self-published some books too.
SPEAKER_05 (14:17):
And for the viewers, you're gonna have to learn some
Japanese from me.
So listen, everyone, it's timefor a Japanese lesson 1-0.
Here we go.
Okay, Kiteska Ari Gato Jehi Jofor autism, and finally Kazoku
(14:47):
family.
SPEAKER_03 (14:48):
I love that.
You know, Michael, my son speaksJapanese as well.
SPEAKER_05 (14:53):
Oh wow, beauty.
SPEAKER_03 (14:54):
His name's DJ, and he is 15.
Wow.
Oh wow.
Speaks Japanese and guess howmany other languages?
SPEAKER_05 (15:03):
Tell, tell.
SPEAKER_03 (15:06):
Yikes! Yikes, right?
Give him a woo-hoo! Yahoo! Loveit.
This is so much fun.
This is one of the funnestpodcasts I've ever done,
Michael.
You're a lot of fun.
So tell me about your family.
Tell me about your mom and dad.
SPEAKER_05 (15:25):
My mom's a stay-home person, and my dad is a doctor.
Doctor.
He works on a doctor atNorthwick General Hospital.
He helps people to make themfeel better.
SPEAKER_03 (15:37):
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_05 (15:39):
Yeah.
And I do love my family a lot.
But it's okay to get thearguments, but not a lot.
Because in the end, people passthings up and they forgive each
other.
SPEAKER_03 (15:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
Absolutely.
Life's all about therelationships that we have with
one another, I think.
And that's hard sometimes forthe autistic community, isn't
it?
SPEAKER_05 (16:01):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:02):
So that's a it's like a big challenge, but a big
uh reward as well.
SPEAKER_05 (16:09):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:10):
I like to look at it that way.
SPEAKER_04 (16:12):
Really, huh?
SPEAKER_03 (16:14):
Yeah.
If you look at both sides, thenit's easier to see why it's so
good.
SPEAKER_04 (16:21):
That's fascination.
That's fascinating.
SPEAKER_03 (16:26):
Thank you.
I like to explore things througha lot of measurement and data.
Like I like to understand whythings are the way they are.
SPEAKER_05 (16:35):
And I like to research stuff on the internet.
SPEAKER_03 (16:38):
Yeah, me too.
Do you use chat GPT?
SPEAKER_05 (16:41):
I do, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (16:42):
Me too.
SPEAKER_05 (16:43):
I do, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (16:45):
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_05 (16:46):
Chat GPT, dude.
Oh, sorry.
Anyhow.
SPEAKER_03 (16:50):
Mine is called Bestie.
Bestie?
unknown (16:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:55):
Like my best friend, my bestie.
So it gives me good advice.
Because it's looking out for mybest interest, I hope.
SPEAKER_04 (17:08):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (17:09):
So when people go to look for your book, they can
find out on Amazon.
SPEAKER_04 (17:13):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (17:14):
And how much does it cost?
SPEAKER_05 (17:18):
Let's see.
Like around$20 or something.
SPEAKER_03 (17:22):
Perfect.
That's a wonderful gift.
Or if you want to buy it foryourself to read, but please go
and support Michael bypurchasing his book on Amazon.
And is there uh Michaelism byMichael Tanzer?
SPEAKER_05 (17:37):
And he is from Fortnite, Ontario, and I'm 34
years old.
SPEAKER_03 (17:43):
34.
He's just, yes, just in hisprime, getting his authorship
out there.
Good job.
I love it.
What else do you talk about inyour book that people can look
forward to?
SPEAKER_05 (17:59):
Anxiety.
Anxiety about myself.
And of course, school.
Yada yada.
Emotions and making new friends.
Oh, wonderful.
And money in the math.
And of course, communication.
And volunteering.
SPEAKER_03 (18:19):
Oh, those are great.
Oh, let's talk about yourvolunteering.
I want to know more about that.
SPEAKER_05 (18:24):
I'm all I'm all years.
Okay, here we go.
Volunteering is so important forpeople on the spectrum.
I started volunteering when Iwas in high school to graduate.
I have to do 40 hours ofvolunteering.
The first place I volunteeredwas HMV chauffeur, his master's
voice.
And then I helped at Best Buy.
(18:45):
I think everyone I think ohsorry.
I think I enjoyed volunteeringat HMV so much because of my
interest in music.
SPEAKER_02 (18:53):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (18:56):
Great.
What kind of music?
Tell us about your love ofmusic.
SPEAKER_05 (19:00):
I really love EDM, J pop, and K-pop.
SPEAKER_03 (19:04):
And do you like to play any instruments?
SPEAKER_05 (19:07):
No, I just I just I just dance.
SPEAKER_03 (19:09):
Just dance and enjoy it.
Yep.
I love that.
So when you go out to public andyou go out and stuff with your
family, do you like to wearheadphones or anything like
that?
Is there any way that you kindof signal to people that you
might need more accommodations?
SPEAKER_05 (19:27):
I prefer to say let's use it at home because I
want to I want to be morepublic.
You know?
That's why my family isencouraging me to do that.
SPEAKER_03 (19:37):
I think that's fantastic.
We all need to have goodexperiences out there, don't we?
To shape us as a person.
SPEAKER_05 (19:45):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03 (19:46):
Well, Michael, I want to thank you so much for
joining me today.
SPEAKER_04 (19:51):
Oh, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (19:52):
Is that a beautiful tattoo on your arm?
Let me see.
Wow, look at that.
I love it.
And you know what?
SPEAKER_05 (20:01):
It's part of my autism.
SPEAKER_03 (20:02):
It is so great.
I actually have a rainbowbutterfly on my legs.
Nice butterfly tattoo.
Yeah, it's so fun.
And I love the infinity symbol.
That is, you can probably see,I'll I'll put my sign up.
There's my awesome SJ Child'sInfinity Symbol.
(20:26):
And the next time I have anautism summit, I would love to
formally invite you to be a partof that with us.
SPEAKER_05 (20:34):
Remotely, but yes, but on Remotely, yes,
definitely.
SPEAKER_03 (20:38):
Yes.
Perfect.
All right.
Remote.
So you can begin.
In fact, the InternationalAutism Summit, the third annual,
will be in April.
So I'll get in touch with you,okay?
All right then.
Oh, it's so nice to have you onthe show today, Michael.
Anything else you want to say tothe view or the listeners?
SPEAKER_05 (20:58):
Word my advice?
Stay strong 24 hours seven andnever give up.
SPEAKER_03 (21:03):
Never give up.
And never surrender.
Answer.
Here we go.
Thank you so much for joining ustoday.
What a fun time we've had.
And can't wait to go support youby buying your book, Michaelism.
SPEAKER_05 (21:21):
My POV with autism, actually.
SPEAKER_03 (21:23):
Say that again.
SPEAKER_05 (21:24):
My POV on life with autism, actually.
SPEAKER_03 (21:27):
Perfect.
Oh, I love that.
Okay.
Well, we're gonna have the linksand everything down in the
description so you can go andbuy that for your Christmas
because this is gonna be comingout right before Christmas time.
SPEAKER_05 (21:39):
It's alright out since 2020.
SPEAKER_03 (21:42):
Okay, that's great.
And we will make sure to get allthe information.
It's been so much fun, Michael.
Thanks for being here today.
Have a great one.
We'll see you next time.
SPEAKER_05 (21:55):
See ya.
See ya, everyone.
Don't forget to subscribe andfollow me on Instagram.
Peace.
Michael Tesser out.
SPEAKER_06 (22:03):
Perfect.
SPEAKER_00 (22:17):
The heart of the city, she shines right.
Oh yeah, stories of love andgood.
The SJ Child Show is back.
Join Sarah Bracker at the SJChild Show team as they explore
the world of autism and sharestories of hope and inspiration.
This season, we're excited tobring you more autism summits
featuring experts and advocatesfrom around the world.
(00:20):
Go to SJchilds.org.
SPEAKER_00 (00:29):
Oh, yeah.
Stories of love and could jumpthroughout the night.
SPEAKER_03 (00:36):
Welcome back, everyone.
It's so great to be here today.
Welcome to the SJ Child Show.
I have a special guest today.
He is coming all the way fromCanada.
SPEAKER_06 (00:46):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (00:47):
Our neighbor from the north, Michael.
Hello, how are you today?
A-OK.
Ah, I love that.
Thank you.
What part of Canada are you in?
Ontario.
Wonderful.
How's your weather today?
SPEAKER_05 (01:02):
So far, good.
SPEAKER_03 (01:04):
Love that.
It's a little windy and breezyhere down in Salt Lake City,
Utah today.
So yeah.
Oh my gosh.
Great to meet you.
Tell us about yourself.
Introduce yourself.
Tell us about kind of where itstarted for you.
SPEAKER_05 (01:21):
So, anyways, uh, my name is Michael Deser.
Uh, I am from Thornell, Artario,Canada.
I'm honestly with Autism Canadasince October 2021.
And yes, I'm the author of mybook.
It's called Michaelism, my PLVon like with autism.
SPEAKER_03 (01:36):
I love that.
SPEAKER_05 (01:38):
So please get to know me, everyone.
SPEAKER_03 (01:41):
I think that's a fantastic way to do it.
Everybody needs to check thatout.
And is it on Amazon?
SPEAKER_05 (01:47):
Indeed, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (01:49):
Perfect.
And I'm sure we'll have thelinks available for everyone.
Tell us about Michaelism and howhow what happened during the
writing process.
SPEAKER_05 (01:59):
Well, it all started when I decided to start my
almost blog after doing articlesfor Autism Ontario.
And when I first do it, I I Itend to give up, but my parents
told me to just keep going.
SPEAKER_03 (02:14):
I'm so proud of you.
SPEAKER_05 (02:17):
And to be fair, it was a one heck of a writing
process that I survived verygreat.
But I even did completed sinceCOVID-19.
SPEAKER_03 (02:28):
Oh wow.
You know, writing take a longtime.
I I understand that.
SPEAKER_05 (02:33):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (02:35):
Tell us a little bit about your childhood.
Well, what at what age are youdiagnosed?
SPEAKER_05 (02:45):
Well, allow me to uh okay, anyways, I'm gonna I'm
gonna read a little part of mypage from this.
Okay, here we go.
I believe there are a lot ofthings that you should know
about having autism specialorder means for me.
I am not here to tell you havingautism is like internal because
everyone is different and so aretheir experience.
(03:08):
For me, I for me, I haven't.
I must admit that I did notalways think this, especially if
I am having a really hard day.
When I found out about myautism, I cannot remember what
at what age.
My word, it was a word I had heroverheard my parents say before,
(03:28):
but I never understood what itlooked like or sounded like.
I mean, what my therapists wereteaching me how to speak an
understanding language, apicture of a car or a toy car
with a label car on it was mucheasier to learn and understand.
It was a clear clear example ofsomething concrete, but this
(03:52):
word autism, no clue.
SPEAKER_03 (03:55):
I love that paragraph.
I mean, I think that that sumsit up perfectly.
You know, Michael, I'm latediagnosed autistic as well.
SPEAKER_04 (04:06):
Nice, nice.
SPEAKER_03 (04:08):
And when I realized that I could kind of understand
my son and my daughter and myhusband, who all are autistic,
and I oh way, yep.
So it's a really special kind ofum site that I can have for my
(04:30):
family and give them all theaccommodations they need.
SPEAKER_05 (04:34):
Sorry, and it's wonderful.
SPEAKER_03 (04:36):
Yeah, thank you so much.
I appreciate that.
Tell us about your experiencesgoing through school.
How was that?
Was it hard?
SPEAKER_05 (04:45):
I survived and I got pretty good grades.
So let me rephrase it.
Let us face it, school can't behard for any kid, especially a
kid who was diagnosed withautism.
As I grew up, I attended fourdifferent schools when
thankfully and my friends, someof these friends are still my
good, longtime friends.
Pretty cool, isn't it?
SPEAKER_02 (05:05):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05 (05:06):
And what was the best part of school?
Well, it was great.
It was going to Ottawa on theschool trip, but friends, I am
100% sure my parents andteachers did not think I would
ever be able to school tripmyself when I was young.
Well, they were wrong, weren'tthey?
SPEAKER_03 (05:25):
And who knew you were gonna be doing podcasts,
sir?
SPEAKER_05 (05:28):
That would be me.
SPEAKER_03 (05:30):
Mm-hmm.
That's right.
Good job.
So proud of you.
Ah, this is a wonderfuldiscussion.
So, how old were you when youdecided to start writing the
book?
SPEAKER_05 (05:41):
It was like around 2018.
SPEAKER_03 (05:43):
Okay.
Wow.
And it takes a lot of time towrite a book.
Like you said, you survived thewriting process.
SPEAKER_05 (05:52):
Yep.
It took me like two years andthe making.
But in the end, I kept going andI kept going and I kept going
non-stop, 24 hours constantly.
SPEAKER_03 (06:04):
Good for you.
What do your parents think aboutthat now?
SPEAKER_05 (06:08):
They were 100% proud of me.
They told me to keep going andthey were the best within me.
SPEAKER_03 (06:15):
I love that.
What are your plans next?
SPEAKER_05 (06:17):
Well, to keep spreading artism awareness like
I always do.
SPEAKER_03 (06:21):
Good.
SPEAKER_05 (06:21):
And promote the books and else like I did
before, but even better.
SPEAKER_03 (06:27):
I love that.
Show us that book again.
I love did you choose thosecolors?
SPEAKER_05 (06:34):
Yep, I did it.
Red, green, blue, and yellow.
SPEAKER_03 (06:39):
Why did you choose those colors?
SPEAKER_05 (06:41):
Because it suits me perfectly.
SPEAKER_03 (06:43):
It does.
It does suit you perfectly.
What is what's about thosecolors that you feel like
relates to you?
SPEAKER_05 (06:52):
Everything, including my autism.
SPEAKER_03 (06:55):
Really?
SPEAKER_05 (06:56):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (06:57):
Oh, that's amazing.
So, what kind of stuff do you dowith your friends now?
SPEAKER_05 (07:02):
I bought one of my friends on every Thursday at a
mall near me.
SPEAKER_03 (07:06):
Really?
SPEAKER_05 (07:08):
Yeah.
It turns out they were myabsolute longtime friends from
high school.
SPEAKER_03 (07:12):
Do you is there like a store that you love to go to
the most?
SPEAKER_05 (07:16):
Let's see.
They got Sun Money's records,and that's probably it, you
know?
SPEAKER_03 (07:21):
Oh, okay.
Good.
Do you like music?
SPEAKER_05 (07:24):
Yeah, I like J pop and K-pop and EDM electronic
dance music.
Do you like to dance?
Uh yep, I do actually, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (07:35):
Oh, that's great, Michael.
And that's great exercise.
Dance, it's like fun and goodfor you all at the same time.
That's my favorite thing.
So tell us about some of yourother favorite things.
What other interests do youhave?
SPEAKER_05 (07:50):
Okay, I'm gonna okay.
Here we go.
Many people with ASD havehobbies.
Sometimes people say that thoughthese hobbies are obsessions.
I do not like it when I hearpeople say that it is an
obsession.
Yes, it's a special interest.
When I hear non-autistic peoplesay it, it sounds like it's it
(08:11):
is a bad thing.
Hobby hobbies are a normal foreveryone, not a big deal.
SPEAKER_03 (08:17):
Not a big deal.
So, my you know, it's funny toobecause I kind of grew up, I'm
an only child.
I don't know about you.
Do you have brothers andsisters?
SPEAKER_05 (08:27):
I have one brother, I used to have two sisters, but
one sister died from overdose.
But I'm gonna I'm not gonnamention it, but I'm gonna keep
it.
Sorry about that, but it's it'sokay.
But my brother, but my brotheris doing well in Brock
University, he's doing well.
SPEAKER_03 (08:44):
Wonderful.
SPEAKER_05 (08:45):
I love it.
And I gotta admit it.
He's he's a he's an awesome butfunny brother to me.
The best within me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:54):
I love special.
Yep, absolutely.
So what about?
And I should have asked youbefore we were off the show, and
you tell me if you don't want totalk about it, you just say, no,
nothing.
Uh, but what about um how aboutdating?
SPEAKER_05 (09:10):
I'm not I'm not prepared for that date,
actually, no, but I'm I I willget there eventually.
SPEAKER_03 (09:15):
Yeah, that's great.
SPEAKER_05 (09:16):
Whatever who knows?
SPEAKER_03 (09:18):
Who knows?
Well, I'll tell you what.
Some of I didn't know thathobbies could be such a great
thing for people until I met myhusband, and he had such amazing
hobbies.
Wow, he really taught me how totake time out of what I thought
was my busy schedule and dothings for myself, you know, as
(09:41):
my own hobbies.
And so it's it's really it'ssomething I had to learn how to
do because I don't think I wasallowed to do it when I was
younger.
SPEAKER_05 (09:51):
Thanks! Wow, right?
SPEAKER_03 (09:53):
And so just we're always learning about ourselves
throughout our whole life,right?
SPEAKER_05 (09:59):
Oh, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (10:01):
So here we are, and fifth, oh my almost 50.
Oh, 50.
SPEAKER_06 (10:07):
Why?
SPEAKER_03 (10:08):
Thank you.
Um, and it's great because nowI'm taking a whole new approach
to my life and doing way morestuff for me.
SPEAKER_05 (10:19):
Wow.
SPEAKER_03 (10:20):
Don't get it's about time.
I love it.
SPEAKER_05 (10:24):
Tell us about your shirt and your love of Bob's
burgers.
I've seen every episode and Ilove the characters.
One of my favorites is TinaBoucher.
She loves horses, but zombies,and she often writes heroic porn
or something, but I don't knowwhy, but it's a quirks.
SPEAKER_03 (10:45):
That's funny.
Oh my gosh.
I haven't seen that show inquite some time.
SPEAKER_05 (10:50):
If there are any other shows that you like, I
like a stop art and Ricky Morty,and and sometimes I like Game of
Thrones.
SPEAKER_03 (10:58):
Oh, me too.
I like all of those shows.
Yeah, me and my husband watchall of those shows together.
SPEAKER_05 (11:04):
Yeah, uh, I gotta admit it.
I love my I love my family, Ilove my friends, everyone cares
about me, and they accept me forthe way I am.
SPEAKER_03 (11:15):
That's exactly how it should be, Michael.
That's how my household is.
I love my children just the waythey are.
We we call it don't should onanyone.
You should be this or you shouldbe that.
No shoulding on anyone overhere.
I love that.
I love that.
It's funny, huh?
Oh, this is so much fun to getto know you.
SPEAKER_05 (11:37):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:38):
So tell me kind of what you're doing for your book
sales.
Do you go and do like booksignings?
SPEAKER_05 (11:45):
I do that.
Uh, yes.
This year I'm gonna be attendingan autism conference this coming
December.
SPEAKER_03 (11:52):
Where?
SPEAKER_05 (11:53):
In a hotel in downtown Toronto.
SPEAKER_03 (11:56):
Wow, that is gonna be so exciting! Is this your
first time speaking in person?
Or are you?
SPEAKER_05 (12:02):
I did the sign, actually.
Yeah, and I saw with money.
Oh, wow! But yeah, I did.
Um just like back in 2024, and Idid it.
SPEAKER_03 (12:12):
Same thing.
I'm so proud of you.
You're gonna do great, ofcourse.
No doubt.
And I want to hear all about itwhen you get back and you're
done.
Like, I want to hear the fullreport.
Nice.
SPEAKER_04 (12:27):
Oh, yes, good.
SPEAKER_03 (12:29):
Now we have now you have a new friend in your life,
Michael.
Oh, yes, definitely.
This is exciting.
So let's approve, holla! Woo! Ilive in so tell me about um do
you like to go out and likewatch any kind of sports or
anything like that?
SPEAKER_05 (12:50):
I love hockey, I love baseball, and I love
basketball, you know?
SPEAKER_03 (12:54):
Ooh, what's your favorite like play?
SPEAKER_05 (12:59):
Ooh, blue chase, actually, and the Toronto Mantle
Leaves.
They're all my favorite sportsteams, you know.
SPEAKER_03 (13:07):
Oh, that's so much fun.
Do you is there any sports thatyou like to play?
SPEAKER_05 (13:13):
I went bowling, you know.
SPEAKER_03 (13:15):
Okay, yeah, I like bowling too.
You know, I grew up in Reno,Nevada, and they have the
world's largest bowling alley.
Mm-hmm.
Really?
You'll have to go there someday.
SPEAKER_05 (13:29):
Thanks.
I might do that just in case,but who knows?
SPEAKER_03 (13:33):
Who knows?
You might get a big gig down inthe US and have to come down
here.
I agree.
Maybe you'll get on Love on theSpectrum Canada.
I don't know.
Are they doing that?
I no clue.
SPEAKER_06 (13:46):
No, no clue idea.
SPEAKER_03 (13:48):
Oh, this has been so much fun.
Tell us about a little bit moreabout your book.
Um, anyhow.
SPEAKER_05 (13:57):
I just had to go with self-publishing like
Ingram's Bark.
Yeah.
I was going to uh majorpublishing, but I decided to go
with this company calledIngram's Bark.
And they it was the best choicefor me ever that I ever ended up
going with.
SPEAKER_02 (14:12):
I'm so glad you did that.
I self-published some books too.
SPEAKER_05 (14:17):
And for the viewers, you're gonna have to learn some
Japanese from me.
So listen, everyone, it's timefor a Japanese lesson 1-0.
Here we go.
Okay, Kiteska Ari Gato Jehi Jofor autism, and finally Kazoku
(14:47):
family.
SPEAKER_03 (14:48):
I love that.
You know, Michael, my son speaksJapanese as well.
SPEAKER_05 (14:53):
Oh wow, beauty.
SPEAKER_03 (14:54):
His name's DJ, and he is 15.
Wow.
Oh wow.
Speaks Japanese and guess howmany other languages?
SPEAKER_05 (15:03):
Tell, tell.
SPEAKER_03 (15:06):
Yikes! Yikes, right?
Give him a woo-hoo! Yahoo! Loveit.
This is so much fun.
This is one of the funnestpodcasts I've ever done,
Michael.
You're a lot of fun.
So tell me about your family.
Tell me about your mom and dad.
SPEAKER_05 (15:25):
My mom's a stay-home person, and my dad is a doctor.
Doctor.
He works on a doctor atNorthwick General Hospital.
He helps people to make themfeel better.
SPEAKER_03 (15:37):
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_05 (15:39):
Yeah.
And I do love my family a lot.
But it's okay to get thearguments, but not a lot.
Because in the end, people passthings up and they forgive each
other.
SPEAKER_03 (15:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
Absolutely.
Life's all about therelationships that we have with
one another, I think.
And that's hard sometimes forthe autistic community, isn't
it?
SPEAKER_05 (16:01):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:02):
So that's a it's like a big challenge, but a big
uh reward as well.
SPEAKER_05 (16:09):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:10):
I like to look at it that way.
SPEAKER_04 (16:12):
Really, huh?
SPEAKER_03 (16:14):
Yeah.
If you look at both sides, thenit's easier to see why it's so
good.
SPEAKER_04 (16:21):
That's fascination.
That's fascinating.
SPEAKER_03 (16:26):
Thank you.
I like to explore things througha lot of measurement and data.
Like I like to understand whythings are the way they are.
SPEAKER_05 (16:35):
And I like to research stuff on the internet.
SPEAKER_03 (16:38):
Yeah, me too.
Do you use chat GPT?
SPEAKER_05 (16:41):
I do, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (16:42):
Me too.
SPEAKER_05 (16:43):
I do, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (16:45):
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_05 (16:46):
Chat GPT, dude.
Oh, sorry.
Anyhow.
SPEAKER_03 (16:50):
Mine is called Bestie.
Bestie?
unknown (16:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (16:55):
Like my best friend, my bestie.
So it gives me good advice.
Because it's looking out for mybest interest, I hope.
SPEAKER_04 (17:08):
Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (17:09):
So when people go to look for your book, they can
find out on Amazon.
SPEAKER_04 (17:13):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (17:14):
And how much does it cost?
SPEAKER_05 (17:18):
Let's see.
Like around$20 or something.
SPEAKER_03 (17:22):
Perfect.
That's a wonderful gift.
Or if you want to buy it foryourself to read, but please go
and support Michael bypurchasing his book on Amazon.
And is there uh Michaelism byMichael Tanzer?
SPEAKER_05 (17:37):
And he is from Fortnite, Ontario, and I'm 34
years old.
SPEAKER_03 (17:43):
34.
He's just, yes, just in hisprime, getting his authorship
out there.
Good job.
I love it.
What else do you talk about inyour book that people can look
forward to?
SPEAKER_05 (17:59):
Anxiety.
Anxiety about myself.
And of course, school.
Yada yada.
Emotions and making new friends.
Oh, wonderful.
And money in the math.
And of course, communication.
And volunteering.
SPEAKER_03 (18:19):
Oh, those are great.
Oh, let's talk about yourvolunteering.
I want to know more about that.
SPEAKER_05 (18:24):
I'm all I'm all years.
Okay, here we go.
Volunteering is so important forpeople on the spectrum.
I started volunteering when Iwas in high school to graduate.
I have to do 40 hours ofvolunteering.
The first place I volunteeredwas HMV chauffeur, his master's
voice.
And then I helped at Best Buy.
(18:45):
I think everyone I think ohsorry.
I think I enjoyed volunteeringat HMV so much because of my
interest in music.
SPEAKER_02 (18:53):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (18:56):
Great.
What kind of music?
Tell us about your love ofmusic.
SPEAKER_05 (19:00):
I really love EDM, J pop, and K-pop.
SPEAKER_03 (19:04):
And do you like to play any instruments?
SPEAKER_05 (19:07):
No, I just I just I just dance.
SPEAKER_03 (19:09):
Just dance and enjoy it.
Yep.
I love that.
So when you go out to public andyou go out and stuff with your
family, do you like to wearheadphones or anything like
that?
Is there any way that you kindof signal to people that you
might need more accommodations?
SPEAKER_05 (19:27):
I prefer to say let's use it at home because I
want to I want to be morepublic.
You know?
That's why my family isencouraging me to do that.
SPEAKER_03 (19:37):
I think that's fantastic.
We all need to have goodexperiences out there, don't we?
To shape us as a person.
SPEAKER_05 (19:45):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03 (19:46):
Well, Michael, I want to thank you so much for
joining me today.
SPEAKER_04 (19:51):
Oh, yes.
SPEAKER_03 (19:52):
Is that a beautiful tattoo on your arm?
Let me see.
Wow, look at that.
I love it.
And you know what?
SPEAKER_05 (20:01):
It's part of my autism.
SPEAKER_03 (20:02):
It is so great.
I actually have a rainbowbutterfly on my legs.
Nice butterfly tattoo.
Yeah, it's so fun.
And I love the infinity symbol.
That is, you can probably see,I'll I'll put my sign up.
There's my awesome SJ Child'sInfinity Symbol.
(20:26):
And the next time I have anautism summit, I would love to
formally invite you to be a partof that with us.
SPEAKER_05 (20:34):
Remotely, but yes, but on Remotely, yes,
definitely.
SPEAKER_03 (20:38):
Yes.
Perfect.
All right.
Remote.
So you can begin.
In fact, the InternationalAutism Summit, the third annual,
will be in April.
So I'll get in touch with you,okay?
All right then.
Oh, it's so nice to have you onthe show today, Michael.
Anything else you want to say tothe view or the listeners?
SPEAKER_05 (20:58):
Word my advice?
Stay strong 24 hours seven andnever give up.
SPEAKER_03 (21:03):
Never give up.
And never surrender.
Answer.
Here we go.
Thank you so much for joining ustoday.
What a fun time we've had.
And can't wait to go support youby buying your book, Michaelism.
SPEAKER_05 (21:21):
My POV with autism, actually.
SPEAKER_03 (21:23):
Say that again.
SPEAKER_05 (21:24):
My POV on life with autism, actually.
SPEAKER_03 (21:27):
Perfect.
Oh, I love that.
Okay.
Well, we're gonna have the linksand everything down in the
description so you can go andbuy that for your Christmas
because this is gonna be comingout right before Christmas time.
SPEAKER_05 (21:39):
It's alright out since 2020.
SPEAKER_03 (21:42):
Okay, that's great.
And we will make sure to get allthe information.
It's been so much fun, Michael.
Thanks for being here today.
Have a great one.
We'll see you next time.
SPEAKER_05 (21:55):
See ya.
See ya, everyone.
Don't forget to subscribe andfollow me on Instagram.
Peace.
Michael Tesser out.
SPEAKER_06 (22:03):
Perfect.
SPEAKER_00 (22:17):
The heart of the city, she shines right.
Oh yeah, stories of love andgood.
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