# Weird stuff you do habitually for no reason **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 24, 2008, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487 "2008-12-24T01:31:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![EpicNonsense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c37758/32.png) [@EpicNonsense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EpicNonsense)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/101 "2010-07-12T13:12:27Z")
I always lock the door… whether it be my car, my bedroom door, or the bathroom.. doors with locks, get locked. If I am microwaving something, and for some reason need to put my utensil into the mix of whatever I am heating, I always rinse the utensil off in the sink. No idea why I do this. > [@Rack-a-Bones](#): > > I chew the inside of my lip. And sometimes the inside wall of my cheeks. And sometimes the outsides of my lips. And sometimes my finger nails. Yes, I happen to enjoy chewing gum too. > [@Rebo](#): > > I wet my toothbrush, add toothpaste, then wet it again. It really doesn’t need that final wetting. I have to smell something I am unfamiliar with, before eating it. I am a leg shaker. Then again, I am just always ‘moving’ in general. I can never seem to just sit still. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/102 "2010-07-12T13:16:02Z")
I tap the salt shaker on the table before using it. I used to do it because it is common practice in tropical countries (where I used to live). Now I suspect I am just being silly. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/103 "2010-07-12T13:17:19Z")
I don’t sniff the milk, but it makes sense to me; then again, in my family I’m the first person who notices souring milk (unless the Kidlets have bested me, no information available about that). This one I inherited from my father: unless it’s real, real, real, ultrasupermegahot, I go to sleep with at least a blanket or coverlet over the sheet. It may all get kicked off as soon as I fall asleep, but I can’t fall asleep without the weight. On the other hand, my mother covers herself up to her eyebrows (the few times she did that to any of her children, the child in question woke up in a panic; the Kidlette can’t stand that much covering either) but it will usually be just the sheet. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/104 "2010-07-12T13:20:15Z")
When I took horseback riding lessons, many moons ago, I learned that if you have to walk behind a horse, you give him a pat to let him know you’re there. To this day, when I’m crossing the street and I’m behind a car, I will reach out and pat the car. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/105 "2010-07-12T13:28:13Z")
> [@FallenAngel](#): > > I pace when on the phone. I hate taking calls at my desk at work because it’s not really paceable. Yeah, me too. I also keep my alarm clock in my bedroom set 7 minutes fast. If the power goes out and I have to reset it, I reset it so that it’s 7 minutes fast again. I don’t know why I do it, it never fools me and even if it did, 7 minutes? That’s not enough to make me feel like I’ve slept in. I don’t know. I’ve been doing it and I’ll keep doing it until I see a reason to stop, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/106 "2010-07-12T13:43:12Z")
When I sit down on my couch, exhausted, to relax and maybe doze off - I will have to get up several times to make sure the part of the room that is visible to me is tidied up. Cat toys, magazines, books on the floor have to be put away or at least arranged in a neat pile. Clothing thrown on a chair, or shoes on the floor, have to be put away or hidden. A dead flower in a vase on the end table? No rest until I trudge across the room and remove it. Dust bunny blowing around? Capture! … This is a variation of “I can’t go to bed unless the dishes are done and the floor is swept”. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/107 "2010-07-12T14:59:41Z")
I’ve got a few. I always put the left sock on first. I don’t really feel compelled to, I just do. Of course, the left shoe goes on first as well. Like many others, I have to leave the water running while I brush my teeth. No double-wetting of the toothbrush, however. I generally only make morning coffee at home on weekends. When I do, I pour it into one of four smallish ironstone mugs with flared tops I inherited from my parents, even though I have several regular coffee mugs in my cupboard. If all the little mugs are dirty, and I have to use a regular mug, it throws my whole day off. When I’m out driving, I look in the mirror occasionally to see if someone is following me. In close to forty years of driving, no one ever has. Anytime I get a drink in a bar, I immediately remove the straw and fold it between my thumb and forefinger. Someone once told me, many years ago, that if the two ends match up evenly you’ll get laid that night. The ends almost never match, and to this I attribute my rather uneventful sex life. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/108 "2010-07-12T15:02:57Z")
> [@Santo\_Rugger](#): > > I do all those things. Maybe we’re not as weird as we think we are. 😃 > > If you shower with your clothes on, it shows you’re crazy. If you shower with your clothes off, it shows your nuts. Nice joke, but it’s only true about half the time. And everyone gets dispensation for sniffing the milk. This is a safety precaution. ---
**Author:** ![hougaswd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@hougaswd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hougaswd)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/109 "2010-07-12T15:27:18Z")
I wash my hands. A lot. In the winter my knuckles crack and bleed. I compulsively swirl or shake liquids. I line things up on my bench top in the order I plan to use them. I check and recheck calculations. Oh wait. I’m a chemist. Nevermind. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/110 "2010-07-12T15:58:40Z")
> [@TheBori](#): > > I line up the seam on paper cups (McDonal’s, etc) with my fingertips, at the back. If I’m drinking coffee with a Java Jacket, both seam shave to line up. My friends have rotated my cup at the table, when I wasn’t looking, and marvelled how I unconciously rotate it back. > OCD, harness it! No, the seam has to go right up the middle of my thumb, facing me. Cups in the cupholder in the car move around and turn away from that, but I always turn them ‘right’ when I pick them up. Same for the seam on the label of a pop or water bottle. ---
**Author:** ![PsyXe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@PsyXe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PsyXe)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/111 "2010-07-12T19:23:16Z")
I do the double-wetting toothbrush thing. When I was little I used to narrate everything I was doing in a David Attenborough documentary voice, now I just talk to myself and to anything vaguely animate in my general vicinity. When I’m baking I count spoons of flour, which annoys me no end because it distracts me from counting the cups, which is of course what really matters. I also grind my teeth constantly, while I’m awake, and pull out my eyelashes and eyebrow hairs when I’m stressed (but not enough to be noticeable, usually). Like **AClockworkMelon** , I hate the sound of cardboard (but not paper). The worst is the sound of polystyrene scraping against cardboard, like when you’ve bought a new appliance and are taking it out of the box. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/112 "2010-07-12T19:54:28Z")
> [@CaerieD](#): > > Whenever I have a sandwich or a burger, I’ll eat all around the edges and slowly work my way inwards. I’m so glad I’m not alone. It only makes sense, really, since the outside is the crust or the part of the bun with less burger in it. Do you eat both ends of the hot dog before you eat the rest? ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/113 "2010-07-12T22:30:15Z")
> [@dbygawdcapn](#): > > Every time I fart, I audibly proclaim "What did you say? " .Then I will fart again and say "Oh, that’s what I thought you said! ". That’s hilarious! > [@Kobal2](#): > > I compulsively archive every single e-mail, letter, messenger chat, IRC chat, RPG character sheets. I never re-read them. The one time I lost a particular cache of really old and musty IRC logs, I felt like I had lost a bit of myself, a deep physical sensation. Go figure. I do this for conversations that I deem to be cool or otherwise noteworthy, but I get the same icky feeling if I lose them. Speaking of which, I need to sync my backups soon. As for me, I have this weird thing that I do when parking. I’ll pull all the way into a spot, then back up a tiny bit, and then move forward again an even tinier amount, finally ending up between the first and second positions. It’s fun. I don’t do it with company or if I’m in a hurry, but it annoys me to not do it. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/114 "2010-07-12T23:52:03Z")
My food has to be even. Say I only have one bite left of potatoes, but two bites left of meat, I’ll only eat one of each and leave the leftover because otherwise my eating wouldn’t be even. ---
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/115 "2010-07-13T00:22:28Z")
This is probably a throw back to my drinking days. I go to the fridge and look inside it several times a day. I don’t know why I do this because there is never anything good in there. I look at the milk, the butter and the pickles. I shut the door. I do this every few hours. I may miss the refrigerator interaction which was so important for too long?? ---
**Author:** ![Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8c91f0/32.png) [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bam_Boo_Gut)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/116 "2010-07-13T00:33:31Z")
> [@Perciful](#): > > This is probably a throw back to my drinking days. I go to the fridge and look inside it several times a day. I don’t know why I do this because there is never anything good in there. I look at the milk, the butter and the pickles. I shut the door. I do this every few hours. I may miss the refrigerator interaction which was so important for too long?? I only feel compelled to do this when the electricity has gone off. What am I doing - making sure? I manage to catch myself these days. I don’t wet my toothbrush at all. Of course I use The Force on automatic doors, red lights too, but they can take a couple of gos. ---
**Author:** ![dogbutler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dogbutler/32/428_2.png) [@dogbutler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dogbutler)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/117 "2010-07-13T00:39:54Z")
> [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](#): > > Of course I use The Force… red lights too, but they can take a couple of gos. I do the Picard “Make it so.” wave and say Green! ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/118 "2010-07-13T02:35:59Z")
I have OCD… there are a lot of things I do without any good reason. Nuff said. ---
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/119 "2010-07-13T03:14:22Z")
> [@Sami41](#): > > I absolutlely must have the bathroom sink running while I brush my teeth. Same here. I know we’re supposed to conserve water but if it’s turned off, suddenly the toothpaste in my mouth feels very dry and, well, pasty. So I just try not to have it running full blast. Plus I’m rewetting the brush every so often anyway. I know someone who always brushes with hot water instead of cold…now that’s strange. I’ve also taken to shaving with a light stream of water running, but that’s because my sink stopper is broken. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487/120 "2010-07-13T05:12:25Z")
**Megan Jones** , welcome to the boards. Please note that we prefer not to have old threads, which we call zombies, to be resurrected. I’m going to close this, but please feel free to start a new thread and link to the old one if you want to continue this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-stuff-you-do-habitually-for-no-reason/478487.md?page=5)