Hi D.,
We have a lot to talk about! First of all, every kid (obviously) is unique. Nobody here, and not even every doctor, can tell you exactly "what's up" with your child.
Our son, who just turned four, has been obsessed with ceiling fans since he was a little over the age of two. We didn't have any fans in our house, so I don't know how the obsession began. He has gone through phases in terms of how he acts on the obsession, but his love of fans has held strong and we have given up on thinking it will just pass.
We installed two ceiling fans in our home, but it has made NO difference in his interest in others. He knows which restaurants, doctors' offices, friends' homes, etc. have fans. He knows what color they are, how many there are, how many blades there are, etc. When we take walks around the neighborhood, our path is governed by where he knows there are ceiling fans. I could go on and on...
We had J. evaluated a few months ago with an initial diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome. We more recently had another evaluation, this one more complex, which disputed the Asperger's diagnosis. We still don't know what, if anything, J. "has"...but we know that he's a complicated, adorable, funny, lovable little boy. Who loves fans. Really, really loves fans.
We got him a real ceiling fan to play with (from a Freecycler) and a tool box with real screwdrivers. He spends hours at a time removing the screws and nuts, taking the blades then the brackets off, and then replacing all of them. For a few years now everyone has said that he's going to be an engineer someday. Maybe they're right!
Feel free to write to me if you'd like to talk about this some more. We have nearly two years' of experience on the topic!
By the way, YouTube has LOTS of videos of ceiling fans, which our little boy LOVES.
Best wishes,
T.