# Odd little habits you have **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 9, 2000, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239 "2000-10-09T07:41:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2000, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/61 "2000-10-11T21:05:26Z")
geezits, that reminded me of something I hadn’t thought about in _ **years** _! I have always been somewehat obsessed with symmetry (sp?), especially when I was younger. I had unconsciously figured out odd and even because of it, but I called them “fair” or “unfair”, non-respectively. cuz if you separated them into halfs, somebody would always get more. wow, this is nugging my brain out. must… go… wash… hands… ---
**Author:** ![Sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunshine)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2000, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/62 "2000-10-11T21:48:33Z")
I have never actually been diagnosed as obsessive-compulsive, but I think I may be a bit borderline. I count things. Especially how many steps to get from one place to another. Keystrokes is another biggie. All things have a particular place and position that they should be in. If they’re not, I fix it. If I can’t fix it (for example, a car parked incorrectly or something in a storefront, etc.) it bothers me for hours. I’ll even go look at the parking lot at work to see if that car I saw on the way in has moved so it will stop bothering me. Even things in other people’s houses, desks, etc. Some things are just _wrong_ and I have to fix it. I can’t go to sleep with the sheets/blankets wrinkled or messed up. This usually means Mr. Sunshine has to straignten them out to my satisfaction while I’m in the bed, and then get in without messing anything up. Remember that episode of _Friends_ where Monica can’t sleep because the pair of shoes is in the other room and they’re not sitting correctly? One of them is turned on the side and she has to get out of bed and go fix it before she can sleep. Totally me. I also keep things. Matches, empty film cases, grocery store bags, stuff like that. Good things to keep a few of around but do we really need ten THOUSAND plastic bags? Samwiches: can’t call 'em sanDwiches. Also, MUST cut all samwiches I eat, and MUST cut corner to corner, not straight down the middle. Then I have to eat from the corner. My brother will just chomp right in to the middle of the straight side–aaaaacccckkk! I can’t stand it! Bite off the corner, quick! My whole life, my brother has poked his finger into all my food, leaving a little hole. A lot of times, when he is not eating with me, I will poke the little hole myself because my food just seems wrong without it. And yes, Mr. Sunshine is sane. Opposites attract. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2000, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/63 "2000-10-11T22:09:15Z")
> [@](#): > > _From Mullinator_ > When I see a word, I tend to try and figure out anagrams. U main troll! All ruin mot! ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2000, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/64 "2000-10-11T22:29:39Z")
A couple more: Before getting out of the shower in the morning, I slowly turn the cold water completely off. The unbearable itch from the burning water, and the way it sort of soothes itself at the same time is fantabulous. As far back as I can remember, I spell and count things in my head. I don’t set my alarm clock to ‘normal’ times, such as blahblah o’clock, or blahblah :30. It always has to be an odd number, like 13 or 47 after the hour. I lip synch like nothing you’ve ever seen. Whenever one song is getting way less votes than the other on the radio’s ‘Three O’clock Hit Challenge’, I put in a vote for the underdog. I squish down my angelfood cake before eating it. One of the hardest parts of my day is saying goodnight to my cats. I have to kiss them in the same spot, the same amount of times, and if I pet one longer than the other, I will be up all night trying to balance out. They must think I’m nuts. I also cannot (if they are inside) leave without saying goodbye and telling them where I am going. And if I’m in a hurry and DO forget, they won’t talk to me when I get home. I stand on chairs and sit on floors. Whenever I am putting away these plastic glasses that we have, I have to either stack them with one of their own colour, or else have no pairs that match at all. And I don’t just mean no blue and blue, I mean if I have a stack of pink and green, I can’t have another pink and green. My socks aren’t allowed to match anything else that I am wearing. I can’t use a straw without biting it closed while I drink. I have a hard time getting rid of things, including empty pens and _especially_ old socks. I make up words. I always have to have my window open at least a wee bit, both in my room and car. I will buy things that are orange even if I like the object better in a different colour. I make up nicknames for myself. A favourite being: oscaboo. **running out of brain juice** I will return, later. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/65 "2000-10-12T02:29:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Giraffe \* > \*\ ***Tzel** , **Renton\_Ivr** , for some reason the fact that you sit in the shower really disturbs me. Why do you do it?? You just sit on the floor of the tub while the water cascades on you from high abaove? That’s weird. > > If I had just started dating someone, and walked in on them taking a shower and they were just hunkered down on the shower floor, I’m not sure what I would do. It would freak me out a little. > > Now separating food and all that, that’s not that weird. \*\* I do occasionally sit in the shower and (if you have time) it is a wonderful way to contemplate where you are and where you’re going in life and the universe. The warm falling water hitting your head and shoulders while you are sitting is among the most relaxing and pleasurable experiences you can have if you are in the mood. ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Lord\_Davidson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bc8723/32.png) [@Dark\_Lord\_Davidson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Lord_Davidson)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/66 "2000-10-12T02:29:23Z")
For some reason, if I’m on a two-lane road at a red light and there’s a car in the lane next to me, I _have_ to beat them off the line. Maybe it’s the southern hick redneck Nascar fan inside of me. When eating a sandwich on a circular roll, I eat around it in perfectly sized bites until the middle remains, whereupon I do it again and again until the sandwich is gone. If I’m wearing shoes, they MUST be laced and tied perfectly. If I’m wearing a button-down shirt the buttons MUST be done up. If my wallet isn’t in my right back pocket, I feel naked. People must think I’m a freak because I touch my ass every so often to make sure it’s there. Whenever I can, I break glass. It’s soooooo satisfying. I eat my veggies on my plate first, even if it’s a veggie I like. Same with salad. When eating any food with condiments, I make sure I get at least _some_ of every type of condiment in each bite. If I run out of a particular one, I get more. I’m a freak. ---
**Author:** ![Shaelar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Shaelar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaelar)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/67 "2000-10-12T02:32:47Z")
I am obsessed with even numbers. When I turn the volume on the TV up or down, I make sure that the little number reading is an even number. When I set my alarm clock, I make sure that it’s set on an even number. I eat my Skittles in pairs of two. I do silly little things like that. It’s not like it’s over taken my life, but I find myself doing those types of things without any thought at all. Odd numbers make me uncomfortable. I think they’re bad luck. Also, even numbers pair up and odd numbers all ways leave one thing out all alone. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/68 "2000-10-12T02:58:53Z")
Pod People: 28 Denizens of Bizarro World: 20 (many people fit into both categories) Incorrigible Revolutionaries: 1 (c’mon oldscratch, you can share your habits with us :)) BTW, **mega the roo** , I just _have_ to know, > [@](#): > > _originally posted by mega the roo_ > I always have to be fair. To everything. Including burger patties. What does it mean to be fair to burger patties? ---
**Author:** ![sk8rixtx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@sk8rixtx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sk8rixtx)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/69 "2000-10-12T03:02:43Z")
What category do I fit into? ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/70 "2000-10-12T05:32:18Z")
> [@](#): > > What does it mean to be fair to burger patties? Well you see, I work at Burger King and whenever I have to send product I face some issues. Lots of times the patties will be stuck together in fives, and the problem with this is that I can only put four in a row, and the last thing I want to do is exclude one from it’s friends. And although I haven’t decided if they actually _like_ going through the broiler or not, this is a SERIOUS dilemma. I also try to send all the loose ones together, because I feel bad that they were left out of the little groups, and this way they have someone to go on the trip with. I also do this before sending the clumpy ones. It’s bad enough that they’re all alone in there, that I don’t think they need to wait until the end while the popular patties go first. I have problems with the buns, as well. I always have to take them out in some form of a pattern, and I absolutely refuse to leave one in the corner by itself. Then I have pickle issues. I have a hard time using the ones with three holes in them (a.k.a. Man Pickles), because they more often than not, look like they’re screaming… and I KNOW that it’s because they see the ketchup bottle in my hand, coming to smother them. So sometimes to deal with this I will either make a smiley face with the ketcup, or just save the Man Pickle from it’s misery. In the latter case I would say, “Look! A man pickle!” And it would be thrown in my face. I’m beginning to experience problems with spec. product, as well. But I will save that for another day. ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/71 "2000-10-12T05:40:19Z")
Oh. And sometimes I tape the man pickle to the microwave where he plays my mascot for the day. … and I eat the my pizza from top to bottom. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/72 "2000-10-12T06:04:01Z")
I’m trying to decide what a “man pickle” is. Based on the only thing I can think of, I have to say that taping it to the microwave must be a health code violation. ---
**Author:** ![Skelji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Skelji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skelji)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/73 "2000-10-12T20:35:23Z")
I have just finished reading this entire thread, and I have come to the conclusion that you are all crazy people. That’s why I feel so at home here. I kept reading, and kept thinking, “Oh, I’ll quote that”, until I realized I’d be quoting a whole bunch of people. For all 3-way light switches in my house, you know, where there’s a switch for the light on each end of the room, there is an “up” set and there is a “down” set, and they must always be that way. People will screw with me and mess this up, and as soon as I notice, I must restore the switches to their proper configuration. That’s normal, isn’t it? All of my paper money must be in ascending value. I stopped carrying a wallet, but either way, everything is in my front left pocket. Back pocket wallets get picked too easily. I cannot go to sleep without the TV on. The timer must be set for 60 minutes, no more, no less. Yes, I know, I’m being subject to subliminal messages, aren’t I. I mix letters around in words, breaking them up into even groups of letters. (obse…s…sive…compu…lsive) I am constantly tapping or drumming my fingers on my desk, but that’s probably from playing the drums. I have had people at work tell me to stop my incessant tapping. On the car radio, all stations must be programmed in ascending order. I really get pissed when a new station comes around and I have to re-program everything. I count stairs. But I’ll never fall on my ass in the dark, either. Crooked pictures on the wall beg to be straightened. My alarm cannot be set on the hour, but rather at 6:03, or 7:11, etc. I have an old reel-to-reel tape deck, and sometimes I get the willies when I look at it because it looks like two screaming faces. Electrical outlets sometimes look like this, if they are aligned vertically with the ground plug on the bottom. Sure, you laugh. If you’re reading this in the U.S., go take a look. The outlet has a surprised look, doesn’t it. That’s it. You people are all freaks. Stop staring at me. ---
**Author:** ![TripleAnt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e19adc/32.png) [@TripleAnt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TripleAnt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/74 "2000-10-12T22:30:48Z")
Ah, this is weird, I also feel naked if my wallet isn’t in the correct back pocket, so I have to touch my ass to see if it’s still there, which it is. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![Welfy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e56c9b/32.png) [@Welfy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Welfy)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/75 "2000-10-12T23:41:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by They Call Me Sneeze \* > \*\*“I always have to be fair. To everything. Including burger patties.” > > [that is supposed to be a quote from mega the roo, but i dont know how to do quotes. anyway -] > > me too! if i pat one tree when i am walking down the street, i have to go and pat ALL the trees. _snip snip snip_ > > along the same lines, i buy things so they won’t be lonely. > \*\* Could you be my long-lost twin? I do the exact same things. For instance, I always put my stuffed animals on my bed all crowded around me. I feel bad for them if they’re far away and leaning on the window. Everything must be together. I think I have abandonment issues… ---
**Author:** ![Welfy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e56c9b/32.png) [@Welfy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Welfy)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2000, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/76 "2000-10-12T23:45:48Z")
I found out that I have Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome…I talk to myself constantly. I didn’t realize this until last night when I was talking and the two people in my squad asked me who I was talking to. I was startled and said, “Hmmm…I don’t really know.” They just looked at each other strangely. I think I used to actually talk to people until I realized that almost no one listens to me anyway… _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2000, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/77 "2000-10-13T02:53:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sk8rixtx \* > What category do I fit into? Ah yes. I seem to have misstated before, and omitted your special category. In my mind, you are a MBBWFPBMC\*. I hope that helps. 😉 [sub]\*Mind-Bogglingly Bizarre Wakko From a Plane Beyond My Comprehension… yes, I intentionally spelled it “wakko”[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Renton\_lvr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7feea3/32.png) [@Renton\_lvr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renton_lvr)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2000, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/78 "2000-10-13T04:27:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Giraffe \* > \*\ ***Tzel** , **Renton\_Ivr** , for some reason the fact that you sit in the shower really disturbs me. Why do you do it?? You just sit on the floor of the tub while the water cascades on you from high abaove? That’s weird. > \*\* I guess I started doing it when I realized I could shave my legs easier that way. No balancing is required and it’s easier to see that area around the ankle that’s so hard to get sometimes. Once I was there I found that it was more comfortable than standing. ---
**Author:** ![MikeG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikeg/32/4329_2.png) [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2000, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/79 "2000-10-13T04:44:59Z")
OK here’s my submission. When I am moving (walking, driving etc.), I count things by threes up to 15. The main ones are the blocks on the sidewalk and parked cars. Example-[3,6,9,12,15], repeat. Every block of parked cars must end in 15 so I allow [7-1/2,15] and [5,10,15] to allow for numbers of cars not divisible by five. If I’m walking and counting the blocks, the street must be 12 in the order. Also are driveways and anything else cars can drive on.The curb counts as a discrete countable object (and should always be 9), but broken sidewalks don’t. I have even gotten to the point where on commonly traveled routes,I know what number to start on to end up on the desired order. The weird thing is, I remember starting this in my early teens but I don’t remember why or what prompted the rules. Oh btw, I’m very disorganized in real life but when I get into a cleaning mode, I end up straightening the junk drawer or lining up my books/cds/hotwheel collection and putting off the big stuff like mopping:) ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2000, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239/80 "2000-10-13T16:15:47Z")
While going to the bathroom, I dig through the cupboards and read the ingredients on shampoo bottles, etc. I do this even if I’m only in there for a matter of seconds. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-little-habits-you-have/36239.md?page=5)