# So do you have a completely inexplicable habit, too? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 20, 2013, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430 "2013-06-20T03:12:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/21 "2013-06-21T18:27:30Z")
I flex my toes when things pass by and I’m driving…like telephone poles (also signs, pavement breaks, etc). So, a telephone pole passes by, as my car comes even with it, I squeeze my toes down on my right foot. If they’re evenly spaced, it becomes sort of a beat. I don’t do it ALL the time…but I do it quite often. It’s both oddly satisfying and annoying, especially when I notice I’m doing it, because then I just feel like I need to stop (since it’s dumb), but usually will continue for a little while longer anyway before stopping. ---
**Author:** ![perfectparanoia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a5b964/32.png) [@perfectparanoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/perfectparanoia)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/22 "2013-06-21T19:45:44Z")
All my weird habits are a result of me being the worst morning person ever. I must do things in the morning in the exact same order in the exact same way every day. If I screw up and, say, wash my face before my feet, I have to start back at my feet and work back to my face and do everything again. But, hey, it works for me, I get out of the house just about when I am actually waking up. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/23 "2013-06-21T21:42:11Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > When eating, I always “save the best for last.” I eat around the edge of a sandwich, then eat the center. if it’s a fast-food burger, I’ll take out the pickles, tomato, lettuce, etc. and eat them first. A slice of pie, I eat from the crust to the tip. Cake, I try to save as much of the frosting as I can for last. And of course pizza, from the crust to the point. In fact, if I’m eating pizza alone, I turn it over and eat all the crust first, then that huge delicious glob of toppings. > > Of course, when I’m eating with other people, I try to minimize all of this. In the case of pie, you clearly do not understand which part is the best. As for other stuff… It seems to kinda miss the point, like with the burger. The other stuff is designed to create a complete tasting experience… Why not just forego it altogether if it isn’t making your piece of beef more delicious to eat?] > [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > It seems like all the males on my Italian side never eat the last small corner of a sandwich that we were last holding. Sometimes people have commented to me on this, one time at a family pic nic I noticed all the men left the one corner. My first thought is that all those guys are doing something decidedly unsavory with those hands and they know what kind of cooties th Are adding to the corner they touch, ya know what I mean? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![prettydorky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f04885/32.png) [@prettydorky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/prettydorky)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/24 "2013-06-21T22:19:18Z")
I’ve mentioned this before, but I count syllables. Several times per day, usually the last line of whatever I just read/heard/said, I’ve counted the syllables in my head and then divided them into segments of 6 or 8. Or occasionally 7. I can’t discern any pattern as far as when it happens most, or least. I also use to squeeze my toes down to count them, but not anymore. I also pick at my cuticles, as does one of my brothers, and our dad. And I bite the inside of my lips and cheek when I’m thinking, as does our mom. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/25 "2013-06-21T23:41:44Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > In the case of pie, you clearly do not understand which part is the best. > > As for other stuff… It seems to kinda miss the point, like with the burger. The other stuff is designed to create a complete tasting experience… Why not just forego it altogether if it isn’t making your piece of beef more delicious to eat?] See the word “inexplicable” in the thread title. Oh, and another one: I count steps, especially when going up or down a LOT of steps, like in a landmark. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2013, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/26 "2013-06-21T23:44:42Z")
Whenever I take a straw wrapper off a straw, I flatten the wrapper so that it’s perfectly flat, and then I fold it up bit by bit until it’s just a tiny little folded-up rectangle. Then I throw it away. I do this even if I’m not thinking about it. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/27 "2013-06-22T03:34:29Z")
When I am checking items off of a list as I complete them, I always check off the last item even though there’s no reason to. You really only have to throw the list away at that point. I just like the act of crossing it out. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/28 "2013-06-22T03:49:04Z")
My first thought is that all those guys are doing something decidedly unsavory with those hands and they know what kind of cooties th Are adding to the corner they touch, ya know what I mean? 😉 [/QUOTE] You may not be far off with that, I was a mechanic and most of them were some kind of blue collar worker. That side of the family has always been extra fussy about food touching things and cross contamination. ---
**Author:** ![KSO](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@KSO](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KSO)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/29 "2013-06-22T05:28:41Z")
Whenever I’m alone and burp, I say “Ginger.” Ginger was a golden retriever/collie sweet, goofy dog we had while I was growing up who was constantly in the garbage and… you guessed it… burped a lot. So whenever she burped, someone in the family would say “Ginger” in a I-can’t-believe-you-just-burped-like-that voice. She died in 1990 or so. It was only a couple of years ago that I even realized I do this… ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/30 "2013-06-22T06:49:32Z")
> [@chewsick](#): > > I also talk out loud (sotto voce) when performing various tasks – you may think I’m wrong, but I imagine this annoys a great many more people IRL in public spots. On the order of “where is it I’m going? oh yeah, right this way.” That kind of thing. Or, trying to find a book at a “research” library, very quietly clucking tongue and saying “eh, matrices, whatever I want the Poole textbook so I can see what those idiots are teaching those kids.” I do this. Sometimes it can help to hear that info. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/31 "2013-06-22T07:32:51Z")
I sing to my cats when I’m feeding them. I make up little songs about the particular flavor of cat food they’re getting. They look like they appreciate it . . . well, either the song or the food. ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/32 "2013-06-22T14:02:53Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Whenever I see wild mushrooms growing, I have to kick them over. Don’t know why, but it’s a compulsion. You’re probably just subconsciously expecting to grow several feet and gain the ability to break blocks with your head upon contact. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/33 "2013-06-22T15:00:43Z")
I have (do) what I think is compulsive rumination. I go over past encounters all the time in my mind. What’s embarrassing is that I act it out with my hands (What? Me worry?)—if somebody walks by I try to pretend I was brushing lint off my shirt or something. And when I’m cutting vegetables I mentally count each slice. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2013, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/34 "2013-06-23T01:10:49Z")
When I’m slicing stuff like carrots or celery where there are a fair number of slices (as opposed to cutting a potato into four pieces or something), I count the slices while I am slicing. No particular reason, as it’s not like I remember the number of slices and write it on the wall of the kitchen or anything. 😛 I just count the number of slices and then promptly forget the number. I count other stuff like that, too, but right now I can’t remember any other examples. ---
**Author:** ![Noel\_Prosequi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b19c9b/32.png) [@Noel\_Prosequi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noel_Prosequi)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2013, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430/35 "2013-06-23T15:33:05Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > Apparently I frequently put my elbow up in the air while I’m sleeping on my side. My boyfriend calls it my chicken wing, and puts it down for me. Usually I don’t wake up, and he tells me about it in the morning. People are weird! Now that’s freaky. Mrs P does exactly the same thing, and the family calls it her chicken wing, too. She doesn’t believe me when I tell her, though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-do-you-have-a-completely-inexplicable-habit-too/661430.md?page=1)