Inspired by a friend who posted on Facebook that if you’re showering with him and he doesn’t wash his left arm first, it isn’t him, it’s an impostor.
So your double looks exactly like you, right down to the birthmarks. What otherwise-innocuous and mundane behaviors would raise red flags for your nearest and dearest?
Nothing extreme or obvious, like lacking knowledge about your profession, hobbies, or personal life. This impostor has done his homework and fits almost seamlessly into all aspects of your life - but he can’t possibly know all of your little quirks and habits. Eventually he does that one little thing that makes people who know you think, “Wait, that’s not right…”
I doubt that anyone besides me could give our cat proper noogies. My wife has tried, but only I can get that knuckle grinding into his forehead just the way he likes it.
According to the feline residents of the house, I have magic fingers. They will literally run over other humans in the house to get skritches from me. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t be fooled by an imitation.
Hard to say what habits an impostor would know about.
One thing he might slip up on: he might watch a movie and simply appreciate it for itself. Everyone knows that I launch into a critical or scientific review after every movie, and there is always something that should have been done differently. As far as I’m concerned, the main reason to watch a movie is to think about it later. Good movies inspire interesting thoughts; crappy movies just highlight loads of inconsistencies and errors.
Another tell might be waking up in the morning. Apparently, some people are capable of setting an alarm and getting up right as it goes off. I need a good hour of mostly awake time to acclimate myself to the idea of getting out of bed. I am not a happy person if I have to wake up quickly and this isn’t a problem that can be fixed by going to bed early or by caffeine.
Either the imposter wouldn’t follow one of my little OCD behaviors while walking across campus, or they’d slip up and be nice to a student. Either way…BUSTED!!