Is there anything that’s known as “normal” anymore? I tend to believe that the answer to that is “no”. Having said that, I’m sure that all of us see habits and things that others do that make us question their sanity. Our friend Charles of Mostly Bright Ideas comes up with a lot of stuff that makes many of us think that maybe his parents were saying about him as a child “that boy ain’t right”, but I’m thinking that we’re probably not all that much different.
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I figured that after my last video and rank that I’d lighten things up a bit and fess up to a few things. I laugh at myself often but I don’t often do it in public. Still, I’ll admit that I have some quirks that maybe others do or don’t; let me share some of mine.
I can’t go to sleep unless I’m covered by some kind of blanket. Luckily, I have the blanket my wife made for me that fits the bill. I also run the fan every night, mainly for sound. When it’s cold I run the heat and the fan, which seems odd but I need the noise. When it’s hot I aim the fan at me, but I don’t like air blowing on me so I cover up with the blanket, which gets a slight bit of air to my body, but it’s more my face I’m concerned with. I also have a second fan that just blows on my face, but it’s small so it does the job without getting on my nerves. But if I don’t use the blanket, and the equivalent of 5 pillows (in a hotel it’s 5 pillows; at home it’s a body length pillow, an extra “hugging” pillow, one for my head and a booster that goes against the headboard to help the first pillow sit in the proper place.
When I eat cake with frosting, which is most of the time, the frosting must be on the left side. That’s because I’m right handed, and I always want to finish with the best part of the cake, which is the frosting. I also have to eat it in a pattern, to make sure the cake stays even all around until I reach the ultimate frosting and slight bit of cake finish.
Whenever I eat food that has to be cut, I cut it all up before I start eating. I cut everything in precise patterns so that almost all pieces of meat or whatever else I’m eating are the same size. And when I eat more than one thing at a time, such as meat, potatoes and nasty vegetables (I hate vegetables), I eat everything such that my last bite will have one of each in it. My meal has to end that way, otherwise I’ve jinxed myself.
I also have periods where I won’t touch food. I don’t mean I won’t eat; I mean I’m just not touching it, whether raw or cooked. It limits where I’ll go out to eat because if I’m not touching food, I’m not eating sandwiches or many other things. Funny, but that never seems to prevent me from touching cookies. lol
Anything that needs butter on it I need to see the butter, otherwise I’m putting more on. The same goes for salad; if I can’t see it, it’s not there.
Toilet paper must go over the top instead of underneath. I don’t know a single male that does it underneath, though I’m betting there’s one out there. I think my wife does it the other way sometimes to mess with my head.
When I encounter stairs, whether I’m going up or down, I count them ahead if possible so that I always end on my right foot. If there are a lot of them and I miscounted by my quick review, I will stop 3 steps before the end and alter my steps to make sure I end on my right foot.
I count letters and words in sentences. It’s probably why I’m good at spelling and math. I don’t count every sentence, but I count a lot of them. I see how many letters there are and then divide everything by 3, which is my lucky number. If it ends up divisible by 3 I move on; if not, I have to create alternate ways of saying the phrase and recount until it divides by 3. I’ve been doing this since I was 8 years old; no idea why.
When I eat ice cream with chocolate sauce, I always eat the first half or quarter the regular way, then I have to mix everything together to finish. After everything is mixed, I eat using the back of the spoon instead of the regular way.
Finally, if I eat a sandwich and it’s meat, it must have mayonnaise or Miracle Whip on it. If there’s cheese on the sandwich, which is rare, it can only be Miracle Whip, not even mayonnaise. If I eat hotdogs at home, I start with Miracle Whip on the bread, then a thin stream of mustard and then ketchup. The only deviations are if I decide to add barbecue sauce, in which case I don’t use mustard or ketchup, or chili, in which case I don’t add ketchup.
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Why am I talking about weird things I do? First, trust me, I only scratched the surface, though I’m saying now that if my friend Scott stops here and says anything, he’s lying! lol Second, I mention these things because I just want to show that overall I’m a regular guy with some habits that others might think are a bit different, but that everyone has differences and things we do that might or might not be embarrassing. Trust me, I’m not embarrassed by any of the things I’ve shared because they’re my hard rules; anyone who’s ever eaten out with me can attest to this. My wife will attest to the rest of it.
See, when I talk about blogging I talk both about their being rules and no rules. For instance, the main non-rule is that people should just write and worry about other things after they’ve figured out if they can write things on a consistent basis. Until you find your voice, it doesn’t matter whether you follow any certain patterns or not.
The main rule after that is to be yourself and not to be afraid to show people who or what you really might be. I tend to believe that people love to read whatever you’re writing about if they can relate to the writer in some fashion. Giving one’s writing personality is a big deal; revealing something about yourself that others can read, take in and even potentially laugh at is cathartic, but it’s also a way of making yourself more real to your readers.
So this is me; well, a small part of me. I’m not even going to tell you about Rice Krispies treats.
Welcome to the human race Mitch. There are many things that you talk about that fits my bill too. Had my late wife read this blog post in her time, she would have said, “Good Lord, another ‘character'”. Normal, abnormal, subnormal are all sobriquets that I have faced at various points in my life. Now I am at the stage of life where due to my bust hips, size and age, I too laugh a lot at my self because neither fight nor flight is possible. The other two feeding and you know what are possible, but the former has to watched very carefully and the latter, opportunity seems to have deserted me.
So, welcome again!
Glad for your perspective Rummuser. I think my goal in life is to keep myself happy and my wife laughing; that is, when she’s not disgusted because I’ve made her change up on something that she thinks is ridiculous. Lately it’s the debate as to whether or not Cheez Whiz & crackers can count as a meal; it’s actually the same debate we had when we first met. You know which side I’m on. lol
How brave of you to share all those little things about you. As you mentioned, you aren’t embarrassed by any of them which is why you laid it all out there for us to read.
I think you’re right though, if we find a blogger we like it doesn’t matter what you write about. I still enjoy reading it because you wrote it. I also enjoy reading about people, who they are, what they enjoy, what their lives are like. It helps me to get to know them a little better. So thank you for sharing this with us.
Looking at myself right now, I probably have some annoying habits. But hey, I live alone so that’s a good thing! LOL!!!
Thanks Mitch, really enjoyed this post.
Thanks Adrienne. I think men own up to their habits quicker than women do, although I’m certainly not going to tell them all. Yet it’s in getting to know others through what they write and how they act that we come to enjoy them more, kind of like my watching your rant against Firefox earlier today. 🙂
LOL LOL LOL LOL This post is so funny. Mitch, I could write a book about my husband’s weird habits. I’ve gotten used to them but other people look at him oddly.
DeAnna, I’m betting he has some of the same things to say about you. lol
ok, are you slightly OCD or do I not pay attention to a lot of stuff I do?
I do count stairs while I’m going up/down…I think that dates back to the days when I would take the stairs (for exercise)instead of the elevator and I would count them to keep me distracted from the exertion it took 🙂
I do cut several pieces of meat at once. I think that’s an etiquette no-no.
And I eat the frosting from cake either first or last, depending on my mood- I like frosting the best. So do I want the best first or save it till the last?
Decisions, decisions…..
BTW- I did an almost Wordless Wednesday on my Working at home advice blog called “On blogging- being me” that will post tomorrow morning.
Do great minds think alike or what?
Now I have to WRITE a post someday about my weirdness!
Carolee, it seems we do that from time to time, and now I see we have some of the same habits so I don’t feel so goofy anymore. lol Etiquette; phooey!
Mitch,
This post was lighthearted, I liked it. You’re not weird, I need to be covered by something to sleep too. My husband now has me in the habit of noise (tv), it used to radio before. WHen I put cups and glasses away they must be upside down, I could go on forever LOL! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Lynda, my cups also need to be upside down, and my wife needs TV to fall asleep, which means I’m usually turning it off. Glad you had a good time.
This post reminds me of he movie “As good as it gets”. You should see it sometimes. We all have our weird patterns, so as long as the person next to us doesn’t complain, then we are ok 🙂
Goodness Mia, I had to go look up the movie because I’ve never heard of it only to find out Jack Nicholson was in it and he and Helen Hunt won Oscars for their performances; will wonders ever cease! lol
Let me know if you like it. I find it brilliant and sweet 🙂
This was a fun post, Mitch. It’s nice to get a glimpse into the “inner you” haha! Like Carolee, my first thought was it sounds like a touch of OCD, but then I suppose anyone making a list of their quirks would sound that way. I like noise when I’m trying to sleep, too. Usually, I have the TV on, but I do find that the whirring noise from a fan works great. I don’t know how people can just fall asleep in the quiet darkness. My mind starts racing. I know a lot of people that count things. I count stairs, too. I’ve never thought about what food I end on, though. I’ll have to pay better attention! LOL Thanks for this post, Mitch! Super entertaining!
Thanks Jess. My mind races as well, which is bothersome when all one wants to do is sleep. And it’s so nice seeing how many counters there are around here. lol
I always knew you were weird Mitch, I think the fact that you play chess so well threw me off guard 😀
I reckon I have a few weird habits, like some of the tasty sandwiches I make. It has to have a cream cheese base and then I use whatever I can get my hands on as a filling. I’ve use chips, twists, CC’s, snack biscuits, heck I’ve even use breakfast cereal. 😉 When it comes to eating it I eat the crust off first and then get stuck into the sandwich itself.
As for cakes, I always leave the icing to last, that’s the only way to eat cake.
Sire, I broke myself of the habit of cutting off crusts, though that doesn’t mean I eat them. As to the rest… I dislike cream cheese so that’s not an obsession I’ll ever have to worry about, though my love of Miracle Whip is pretty close.
I agree with the toilet paper off the top bit, but the rest; especially the eating habits – nah, that’s just weird. 🙂
Allan, I am what I am; Popeye and I are symbiotic friends. 😉
I have no problem with that, Mitch. I’d much rather you be who you are than to pretend to be something else. And I have to respect a man who can not only recognize his idiosyncrasies but admit them to others. As for me, I’d have to ask my wife what mine are… OK, well maybe I know of a few.
Everybody have some crazy habits. I originate from cold country, but currently live in tropical, however I still cover my head with blanket. If I don’t do that, I can’t fall asleep. Another habit, or may be just a fetish, I like when my girlfriend scratch the base of my head and neck, it really make me relax. A bad habit, I am heavy smoker and my day starts this way every day.
Carl, we’ve got to get you off the smokes; I certainly don’t have to tell you how slowly it’s taking away your life. Still it’s a habit, good or bad. As for what your girlfriend does… well, who doesn’t like that? 😉
I tried many times, once successful using some of the latest medications, but it was too expensive. About my girlfriend, she is ok with that, but sometimes she refuses, haha.
Oh, lol, Mitch! I first read this post in my feed reader and your photo didn’t appear in it. Now I see it! Were you dressed up for a christmas tree or for this post? 🙂
(Another weird thing, totally off topic, a list of my posts has appeared for the commentluv options, and I’m not a member of the site. It’s very welcome, but how did it happen? Have you a new plugin?)
Right, your post… well, yeah, I knew some of these things about you cos you’ve written about some of it before (foody things mostly, and lists, and suchlike) and usually where there’s a bit of OCD some more follows on from it as I think that OCD actually is part of the person.
I’m a bit like you with the blanket thing (though at a pinch, if it’s incredibly hot, I can sleep without covering… for a while, though I wake), and I need noise to sleep – so I got a noisy ticking clock, but now the noise annoys me (alliteration deliberate). Toilet paper, yep, don’t like it to be the wrong way round, it’s got to be over the top, not round the back. (What do you do if you go to a public place and it’s the wrong way round, or don’t you use public toilets?) Cake… I also eat the frosting first, but I hold it round the ‘normal’ way, cos I like to have a surprise with seeing more frosting come into view as I turn it,lol!
A question: if you got rid of your crust-cutting-off thing, have you got rid of any other of these things? And – what helped you do it?
Hi Val,
I actually only got rid of cutting the crusts; I still won’t eat them. One time I didn’t have a knife so I just kind of ripped a sandwich in half and found that one can get to the gooey soft stuff fairly well easily eat around those crusts, and it saves time. Other than that I can’t think of a habit I’ve given up that wasn’t medically necessary, and I haven’t given up many of those either, to my dismay.
Some of your habits are a little weird but here are some of mine:
The temperature in the house must be 68 degrees or below at ALL TIMES—with the ceiling fan on while I sleep.
I’m the same as you when it comes to the toilet paper. As far a mayonaise, it must be Hellman’s.
I must sleep on the left side of the bed—no matter where I am.
Bev, you just helped me think of a habit I broke to respond to a question Val asked me. I always slept on the right side of the bed my entire life, even my married life, because I fall asleep on my side, always laying on my left side. Then I started having hip issues and suddenly it hurt to lay on my left side for awhile. So I switched to the right side in a hotel room once and I was very comfortable, and it just seemed like if I was on my right side I had to be on the left side of the bed to breathe properly; I can’t have my air blocked, even if it’s another body that’s not up against me. And thus I started sleeping on the left side of the bed. I change up which side I lay on to go to sleep because the CPAP has eliminated any breathing issues, but I’m stuck on the left side. How weird!
As for 68… well, it I only had to breathe in it I’d love that; otherwise that’s cold! lol
Hehehe! I like the idea of counting the letters in the sentence and divide everything into 3. I guess each one of us has our own unique characteristics but not all are courageous enough to reveal it to anyone.
Connie, sometimes I have no shame! 😉
Oh my, Mitch, you’ve got some habits that are all your own! But, I can relate to (too) many of them.
I’ve gotta have air! My kids declare if a hurricane was raging outside, I’d run into the street just to breathe in the wind! Then I gotta have a sheet or a blanket, and my face covered. It doesn’t matter the season .. A/C, fan, blanket.
I tend to cut up all my meat at once, but if not all of it, most. I love veggies, and I generally end up with one bite of each thing. (I tend to think of it as my concept of “balance” spilling over. LOL )
This is a brave post and too funny. 🙂 I had a similar desire to be somewhat more forthcoming a few weeks ago, so loaded up my About Me page with lots of stuff … about me.
Vernessa, did you leave all that stuff on your About page? If so I’m going to have to come back over and check it out. I figure we all have something we do that we’re not crazy about but that’s what makes us “us”. And it’s been neat to see that some of my habits are shared by others; I feel less lonely or looney. lol
Hey Mitch,
I left all the stuff I put on it right there. (If I felt a little uncomfortable sharing something, I refused to delete it because that meant I was truly “sharing” something!) It’s not quite as personal as we’re dealing with here, but it’s more than I usually “reveal.”
I figure either someone finds out something they didn’t know about me and it’s ok with them, or they find out something they’d rather not know, and that’s ok with me. LOL
All leading to they’ll feel like they know me a bit better, which makes for great relationships. 😀
Here’s the link, and as always, have your say. 🙂
Can We Talk? (yes, I named my About Me page!)
Brilliant, naming your About page; I’ve never even thought about that. Checking it out in a few minutes.
Mitch, this was so much fun to read. Discussing our idiosyncracies is warm-up for when we go on and on about bowel movements and rhuematiz.
Remember the “I’m this, you’re that?” series of comparisons? I’m unique, you’re weird. Plain and simple. LOL
I pronounce the words on digital clocks. Seven minutes after seven, I will invariably mutter, “LOL”. An hour an one minute later, I say hello to “BOB”. My dad is 7:14, one of my son’s middle name appears as 3:37 and so on.
So, maybe I’m a little weird, too. But yes, top-rolling tawlet paper, for sure!
Cheers,
Mitch
Yup, you get to claim some major league weird as well Mitch. lol
Hey,Mitch,
but I do want to hear about Rice Krispies treats!It was such fun to read this post, you have no idea. I think people generally like to hear that others also have same or similar habits, common to all mortals. Not everything has to be about Superman issues. The way you are describing your unique habits while being aware of them shows you are both a perfectionist and hedonist. After I once explained to a friend of mine (who is a psychologist),that I eat cookies with fillings in a way that I first separate them in order to eat just the filling, and only then I eat the rest of the cookie, she told me it just shows I am a hedonist and like to take the best out of things…I know how to enjoy, so I guess it’s not an issue of sanity, but about tiny fragments of our characters.
Kristina, if that’s true what your psychologist friend said then I’m probably one of the biggest hedonists on the planet! lol As for those Rice Krispies treats, I love to cut a chunk, then roll it up into a ball, as tight as possible, and put that entire thing in my mouth. Heck, just realized my wife’s out of town and I could make a batch of that if I wanted to! Then again, I tend to lose my mind and get sick, so it’s probably better that I don’t. 😉
I have an annoying habit, biting my nails. It’s not so “unique” but it’s just something that I can’t stop. Even after buying that liquid to put on them, not working. Ugh.