Grace Tame has shared a hilarious video of herself on a bus for the first time in years, revealing she even brought coins to pay the driver – something that was phased out in Australia more than a decade ago.
The former Australian of the Year, 29, appeared giddy with excitement as she said: “I’m on a bus. I haven’t taken public transportation in I don’t know how long.
‘I even thought I had to pay with coins. I brought the coins,” she admitted, showing her coins to the camera.
‘But you don’t have to do that. You just tap a card.’
Ms. Tame then responded to her endearing sense of wonder by saying, “I don’t know why I’m so excited.”
But in the next breath she answered her own question.
‘No, that’s right, I’m autistic. Things like this get me excited,” she said, still with a big grin on her face.
Ms Tame (pictured) admitted it had been so long since she had been on the bus that she thought she could pay with cash
The author and advocate for sexual assault survivors has previously spoken about living on the autism spectrum.
“The stereotype of people with autism being emotionless or unempathetic – at least in my experience – couldn’t be further from the truth,” she said.
Ms Tame was diagnosed with high-functioning autism while living in the US after completing high school – where she was cared for by her 58-year-old maths teacher.
Her 2022 autobiography “The Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner” talks about reclaiming her power after sexual abuse.
“The power needs to be returned to you because everything that happens against your will as a child happens to you before you ever have a chance to establish yourself,” she said.
‘With children who have never had the opportunity to set their own boundaries, they often don’t know how because they have had such poor boundaries.
“They’re so used to people coming along and just being able to push them and dictate the terms.”
Ms Tame (photo) published her autobiography ‘The Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner’ in 2022